Coyote Pups
Seasonal Nature Programs
“The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful.”
Coyote Pups (5-7 years):
Days: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays
F/W Tuition: Click here for 2024 Fall/Winter tuition options*
W/S Tuition: Click here for 2025 Winter/Spring tuition options*
Location: SLO Botanical Garden, El Chorro Park and surrounding hillsides.
*Plus $50 Enrollment Fee per child/per session ($100 annually)
APPLY
September 03, 2024 through June 06, 2025
Mentors: Kara Quinn, Dina Overland, Gracie Church, Morgan Weldon, Hannah Goldstein
We gather together on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9 am-3 pm to deepen place-based learning designed for Coyote Pups (5-7 years). These days are centered around nature immersion and activities that develop focus, initiative, and a sense of belonging within a caring learning community. With the kinder-age child, we trek further on the land to directly experience the changing seasons and movement of animals through the landscape. The seasons inspire a cycle of activities which help us all create meaningful connections with ourselves, one another, and the land. Our days follow the familiar rhythm and flow of nature to which we add:
foraging and tending the land,
practicing wilderness skills (whittling, shelter-building, tracking),
crafting with natural materials (plant dyes, clay, sticks and fiber),
unstructured free play and timeless wanders.
Join our “band” of Coyote Pups and get Outside Now!
FALL/WINTER 2024
September 03, 2024 through January 24, 2025
If you put Fall on a compass with Winter in the North, Autumn becomes the Southwest/West time of year: the time for celebrating and gathering the gifts of nature. Together we harvest edible and medicinal plants, observe the animal life as we tend our surroundings, and tell the stories that reveal themselves on our day’s encounters. Nature beckons Coyote Pups in Autumn to gather and craft, trek and map, observe and imagine, sing harvest songs, and share gratitude for the gifts of nature.
We speak of Winter as the Northwest/North time of year: the time for seeking shelter and reflecting upon the mysteries of life. Little ones deepen their relationship with fire, enjoy the coziness of gathering in a secure space we build ourselves, and sip teas we harvest on the land. Coyote Pups in Winter construct shelters, create warmth, “catch” songs, share stories from the ancestors, cook nourishing food, craft, and more. When the Winter rain arrives, we dress warmly and continue to engage our senses outdoors!
WINTER/SPRING 2025
January 27, 2025 through June 06, 2025
We speak of late Winter as the North/Northeast time of year: the time for warm fires and questions, dreams and drawing, plans for planting in the coming Spring. Little ones ponder “Why” and “How” stories while tucked in shelters of their own creation. Fox Kits and Coyote Pups embrace late Winter rains when they come and find endless pleasure in the creative potential of mud! We drench ourselves in sensory goodness outdoors and then snuggle up and share stories, dances, and music of the day.
We associate Spring with the East: the direction of a sunrise. It’s a time for anticipating and observing birth. In the springtime, little ones are energized with natural curiosity for the changes they see in a landscape bursting with new beginnings: blooming wildflowers, baby birds, budding trees. The brilliant colors, soft winds, growing grasses, and baby creatures of Spring awaken all of our senses. Fox Kits and Coyote Pups in Spring share story, song, treks, games, crafts, planting, mapping, movement, and more!