Outdoor learning for 3-4-year-olds and school-age children.

PHILOSOPHY

Leap for Joy Open Air Learning is a nature-based educational program in which the child’s educational experience involves all of their senses; with a focus on building a strong understanding of their place within their world. It involves a deep immersion into a child’s surroundings, where the children are the leaders of their own experiences. Teachers act as active participants in each child’s play and discovery; they are observers of activities, safety monitors, creative connectors of learning and supporters of expanding exploration and engagements.

Leap for Joy Open Air Learning provides optimal physical activity developing fine and gross motor skills in a way that is natural and individualized. Climbing rocks, balancing on logs, picking flowers and scooping water are tangible ways for a child to develop at their own pace. While most preschools focus on kindergarten readiness, Leap for Joy Open Air Learning focuses on quieting the mind and body, developing the inquisitive nature of a child, large and small motor skills, developing self-discipline, building resiliency, relieving stress, social responsibilities and giving children a strong connection and understanding of their world and community. With all this in place, children are physically, socially, emotionally and cognitively prepared to enter school with minds that are ready to absorb, learn and retain information taught in kindergarten and beyond.

The biggest contributor to Leap for Joy Learning’s educational philosophy is a child’s imagination!