Flora, Fauna, Fun!

What better way to get to know the forest than by looking at the plants and animals within it? Join us as we deepen our knowledge and understanding of the unique forests of Umstead! This week we will search for as many critters as we can find, including their tracks, homes, scat, and bones. We'll have a chance to explore our pelt and skull collection and play lots of animal themed games. Animal aren't the only part of the forest! We'll learn to identify plants around us, maybe make some pine needle tea, and learn about natural dyes as we craft some of our very own nature art. If your kid loves learning about the world around them, can name more native animals than you can, or wants to add walnut dye to their artistic repetoire - join us for this awesome fall camp!

In addition to the theme-related activities listed above, every week of camp will include some classic Schoolhouse activities such as: morning and closing circle, deep woods and field games, water time (weather permitting), whittling, storytelling, and of course, looking for any critters we can find!

Outdoor Surivival Skills

We might not be able to go back to the future… but we can go back to the ancient forest! This week is all about primitive methods of surviving in the woods. We will learn and practice all sorts of skills to survive including identifying and tasting edible plants, primitive fire making and basic cooking, shelter building, map reading, tracking, make art out of natural materials, and more! Campers will travel back in time and come back with new skills, new memories, and new friends! Whether your camper fashions themselves a mini-survivalist already or they're ready to try a brand new thing, this camp will be a blast!

In addition to the theme-related activities listed above, every week of camp will include some classic Schoolhouse activities such as: morning and closing circle, deep woods and field games, water time (weather permitting), whittling, storytelling, and of course, looking for any critters we can find!

Junior Naturalists

This week campers will become ecologists and create their very own pocket field guide full of all things forest! How many different species of fungi will we find!? How many species of insects could we discover!? Which tree might be the oldest? We’ll go on a hunt for things high and low with our binoculars, magnifying glasses, sweep nets, and field guides as we observe the world around us. We’ll be practicing our naturalist skills including creating some of own citizen science projects, learning to identify animal scat and tracks, make plant presses, and draw our own maps of Umstead. Campers will leave this week with a newfound love for the woods and their very own notebook full of all the things they’ve learned and observed. We can't be sure what adventures nature will provide this week, but we can be sure that we'll all end up knowing a little more about the forests and fields around us.

In addition to the theme-related activities listed above, every week of camp will include some classic Schoolhouse activities such as: morning and closing circle, deep woods and field games, water time (weather permitting), whittling, storytelling, and of course, looking for any critters we can find!

11/5 Discover Day

Our Discovery Days offer students a chance to enjoy the outdoor fun and adventure of Schoolhouse of Wonder when they have a free day from school routines. Each camp day will be different, but each one will involve games and exploration. Join us for deep woods and meadow games, fort building, whittling, stories and songs around the campfire and an opportunity to build your earth skills and knowledge of the natural world. Activities will vary seasonally. 

11/11 Discovery Day

Our Discovery Days offer students a chance to enjoy the outdoor fun and adventure of Schoolhouse of Wonder when they have a free day from school routines. Each camp day will be different, but each one will involve games and exploration. Join us for deep woods and meadow games, fort building, whittling, stories and songs around the campfire and an opportunity to build your earth skills and knowledge of the natural world. Activities will vary seasonally.