"Wisdom begins in wonder."

**-Socrates**

Our Learning Environment:

See Photos of our property

Two spring-fed streams run through the length of our school site.
Towering sycamores, pine and oak trees stand guard over the noise and clutter of the outside world.
The sounds of nature provide a constant, creative symphony.
Our children add wonder and human vitality.
You can't get this in traditional schools, with walls.
Collaborative learning truly has space to flourish at Knox Forest School. Therefore, so do our kids and teachers.

By learning to respect all living things, we learn to respect ourselves and each other in the process.

*From the biggest creatures to the smallest, we take time to explore and find details, and we ask questions that favor curiosity and compassion about the natural world.*

*As we explore the natural world, we make sure we take the time to learn the details required to implement a natural wonder and respect for what we find.*

*When we explore a creature, we make sure to handle it with care.*

*One of the things we learn through respect of all living things is the value of friendship.*

Our education style is a student-led, interest flow of learning.

At Knox Forest School, the children lead the way. Our teachers guide them as they explore and discover the land, their own minds, bodies and friendship with one another.

In traditional schools, the teachers are the primary focus. They plan the lessons, and the children follow directions. This means that the children are told what they should be curious about. In this environment, innate curiosity is curtailed and replaced with programs and structures that gives too many boundaries to the imagination. There is also a lack of space to explore. Children are often crammed into small spaces with little room to roam and wander. This diminishes the freedom to build wonder and questioning.

Forest school provides boundary, so the kids feel safe. But it gives them space. At the early stage of learning, this is the most important aspect of their education. By allowing them to lead the way, they learn the soft skills of human experience. Curiosity, questioning, resilience, risk assessment, and collaboration. They soak up their environment. It is not forced. We do not test the children and put them into categories. Each has his or her own special personality. Special way of moving about. By taking the time to ask questions and notice details about the world around us, we teach the slow process of scientific inquiry. This will carry on through life with them. Later, when we add numbers and letters, they will absorb them at a greater rate.