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Registration for Summer Classes:  May 21st and May 22nd, 2-6 pm

Registration for classes will be open from the hours of  

2:00 - 6:00 pm at:
WildKids Clubhouse located at 
Dark Star Wildlife Center 

18743 County Road 12

Pengilly MN 
Summer classes Start

Time 11 am - 4 pm 
June 16th - August 18th Ages 3-7  
June 17th - August 19th
Early drop off and later pickup can be arranged for working parents. 

Lunch and Snacks provided.
Summer class Price - $15 per class (bring Lunch and a snack) drink. 

$20 Lunch snack, Juice boxes and water included

Thursday classes ages 3- 7 
Friday Classes ages 8-11  
Dark Stars WildKids Forest School takes children into the great outdoors to explore the natural environment.  Learning that focuses on the development and growth in children.
Children spend most of the day outside giving them opportunities to achieve and develop a deeper understanding of the natural world around them. 
Children learn through playing in nature, exploring the forest, fun adventures, activities, playing in the mud, and learning of our amazing wildlife in Minnesota. We monitor the children but encourage exploration and discovery on their own.
At the WildKids Forest School kids will learn of Minnesota wildlife, develop confidence, self-esteem, imagination and physical ability as they are allowed to test their limits in nature. 
In a forest and prairie environment, learning experiences are based on what activities kids want to engage in at that particular time.  Being supervised by a forest school leader, the child builds problem-solving skills, independence, and resilience as they try things out. Kids will spend most all day outside, they will also be engaging some time in nature activities and wildlife programs in the WildKids Clubhouse.

 

Forest School developed in the UK in the 1990s and is a nature-based play and learning that encourages kids to develop confidence and self-esteem. Getting kids outside in nature instead of being confined to a computer screen

Ideal age is 3-11 years. 

16 minutes is the average amount of time kids spend outdoors. 

By the age of 8 years old they will have spent 1 year of 24-hour days on screen.  

25% have never climb a tree.  

Kids in Nature has become something of the past, seen as a threat to kids including a rise in risk-averse parenting and dependency on technology contributes to keeping kids indoors. We desperately need a Forest School in our Community. 

The WildKids Forest School will be a therapeutic educational learning experience in maximizing social, emotional and develop potential by allowing kids to manage risks, have more independence, in guiding their own learning, achieve goals, be active, play and learn through direct experience in nature. Outside the confines of four walls, without the distractions of electronics and excessive supervision, kids can move, explore, and discover at their own pace. Getting dirty and not having to worry about it is part of playing outdoors and activities. Make sure kids are dressed in cloths that do not need to be kept clean. 

We believe young people of all backgrounds, cultures, and abilities deserve and benefit from unstructured play in nature.  

Nature offers a place where kids can find peace and wonder. It is the greatest playground of all, with woodland structures, textures, smells, animals of all shapes and sizes, plants some edible, mudpuddles, dirt, and so much more!  

 

Summer Class 

 

MN Wildlife Species (Mammels) A-Z)

What is a Habitat

Journey Sticks

 My Tree

Natures Headdresses

 What's my Animal? 

Woodland Mapping 

Wetlands and Mud Fun

Frogs and Turtles

Nature Scavenger Hunt 

Hungry Birds 

Wildlife Team Games 

Animal Tracks

Forest Art

Bat and Moth

Survival Skills 

Building Shelters

Adventures of the Red Fox

Photo Graphic Memory

 

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Fall Classes:

Start: September 10th and 11th - November 6th, 2022

10:00 AM -4:00PM 

Some of our fall class lineup:

Bow and Arrow

Fall Nature Art  

Stick Frames 

Essential Knots 

Building Shelters 

Predators Track Prey 

Web of Life 

Sleeping Bear 

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