Forest Tots

Our weekly outdoor learning experiences are designed for youth to explore, engage, learn and play! Find a program which may interest your child! Please check the Calendar of Events for dates and times.

 

• Date: Tuesdays & Thursdays

• Time: 10:00 am - 11:30 am

• Ages: 3yrs - 5yrs

• Fee: $5.00 - ticketleap.events/events/quintamazatlan

• Program description: Drop in with your tot and participate in an Outdoor Learning Environment (OLE!) and nature-based driven curriculum where seasonal phenomena will be explored though story, sensory play, nature art and walks through the forest.

Participants will:

• Develop an understanding of seasonal changes in the Rio Grande Valley by exploring plant and wildlife.
• Learn ecological processes through age appropriate activities.
• Practice stewardship and reciprocity through acts of service and kindness around our urban sanctuary.
• Gain confidence and autonomy through socialization between children of a similar age range and the ecological community.
• Generate a lasting and caring relationship with the more-than-human world, developing leadership and interest in civic engagement.

 

 

March 5 - Out to look for Ocelot

Why are some animals like Ocelot Jaguarondi no longer around? Many species that call the Rio Grande Valley home have become endangered due to the loss of habitat. Bring your tot to learn the stories of these creatures, and how we can keep animals feeling at home.

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in prints and pattern provocation. 
  • · Engage in Imaginative Ocelot trail walk.
  • · Practice empathy and perspective taking by thinking about what it is like to be an animal that has lost their home.

 

March 10 - Red-Winged Blackbird

Migratory birds start passing through the region welcome larger numbers of Red-Winged Blackbird. Bring your tot to enjoy the sounds of their iconic chorus and learn why some birds are traveling this season.

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate bird feathers provocation.
  • · Engage in Red-Winged Birding trail walk.
  • · Practice identifying and discriminating phonetics of bird calls.

 

March 12 - Spring Migration, Magnificent Monarchs

Monarch butterflies begin arriving from their overwintering grounds in Mexico this time of year, searching for milkweeds to sustain them before laying their eggs. Tots will learn about the magnificent journey of monarchs and their cultural significance. 

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in butterfly wing provocation.
  • · Engage in butterfly garden exploration.
  • · Practice attaining new knowledge about Monarch butterflies and making observations of butterfly behavior.

 

March 17 - Anacua Tree and Me

Anacua is one of our most abundant trees in Quinta Mazatlan's thornforest. Bring your tot to begin a friendship with Anacua, learning how to identify them, listen to them and even communicate with them!

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in leaf threading provocation.
  • · Engage in tree hugs and song trail walk. 
  • · Practice forming values, kindness and self-awareness by relationship building with trees.

 

March 19 - Signs of Spring

What do you think of when you think of Spring? Tots will investigate the signs of spring and learn how each living being responds to more daylight warmth that introduces the season. 

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in shadow drawing provocation.
  • · Engage in "Busy Creatures" trail walk.
  • · Practice language and literacy by interpreting signs and signals of seasonal change.

 

March 24 - Pollinating Bees

There is an invisible force that supports the relationship between flowers and bees called static electricity! Tots will explore different bees of South Texas, and how they fly with a positive charge that helps them collect pollen.

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in magnetic play provocation.
  • · Engage in bee hive print making.
  • · Practice noticing and creating patterns through observing pollinating bees and investigating the science behind magnetic force.

 

March 26 - World of Wildflowers

It's not a weed its a wildflower! Bring your tot to appreciate Spring blooms this season and learn the importance of their appearance to supporting healthy ecosystems. 

Tots will:

  • · Begin with Welcoming Song and a Tree Trunk Story.
  • · Participate in Wild Color Hunt.
  • · Engage in day and night blooming movement game.
  • · Practice proprioception through imaginal play and sensory integration of observing bright flower blooms. 

 

March 31 - No Program

 

Classes & Programs

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