CORE PROGRAM
- Fully Accredited Independent School
- Small class sizes (10 to 14)
- Led by experienced and talented Ontario Certified Teachers.
- With a large outdoor education focus
- Offering a unique living curriculum that exceeds provincial standards and focuses on educating the whole child
We develop a set of our core competencies by focusing on the whole student and achieving a balance in their growth and development:
AN EDUCATION REVOLUTION....
The WILD School experience goes beyond four walls. We go beyond mastering core proficiencies (E.g. mathematics and literacy) in order to develop critical and creative thinkers with an entrepreneurial mindset. We need education to inspire students to innovate, find purpose, love learning, and make an impact now.
EDUCATION IS MOTION
The world doesn't sit still. The natural world is fluid. We are in flux. And that is how we teach. Our curriculum is living and moves with the opportunities presented by seasonal changes, current events, and the interests of the individual students. We strive to ignite curiosity and empower our students to understand how they best learn and to love doing so. We nurture the whole child, giving them control in their lives and in their learning, so that they can thrive with purpose in our rapidly changing world.
DESIGNED FOR SUCCESS
Our education system has changed little in the past 100 years despite us learning so much about how the brain functions. Our WILD School program is designed using the science of early brain development. By utilizing the environment/landscape, movement and inquiry, we ensure that when students are actively learning that they are at a peak state for optimal comprehension and retention. This has been scientifically proven for better long term results. E.g. Kuo et al, 2019
OUR CLASSROOM IS LIFE, OUR CAMPUS IS THE NATURAL WORLD.
We foster curiosity in learning through hands on experiences. We peel back knowledge like an onion, exploring the many layers that go beyond initial perceptions and investigate how they integrate and relate. Our thinking is critical, our lessons are rooted in real world problem solving using relevant examples. This stimulates interest and motivation to discover more. We take the classroom outside and into the community - integrating real world projects and opportunities. Ask yourself - how much is your child actually learning in a traditional classroom? Don't you want more for your child's development?
A PLACE TO STRIVE FOR INSPIRATION AND CREATIVITY.
How do you prepare students for a future that we cannot predict? How do you pack for an adventure that you don't know what to expect?
You focus on developing core competencies such as: grit, perseverance, creativity, adaptability, sustainable happiness, and learning how to learn. So that students will thrive in any future they choose.....
AN ACCELERATED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The WILD School experience enables participants to immerse themselves in the natural environment, where classrooms are literally outdoors or directly connected to it (through windows and direct access). This alone has been scientifically proven to deliver a host of benefits - see below. But combined with a curriculum that stimulates curiosity, creativity, problem solving, personal growth and fun, we have created a complete Accelerated Learning Environment.
WHY IT WORKS
1.) Small Class Sizes - teachers are able to give their full attention to individual students.
2.) An Engaging Curriculum - our ‘living curriculum’ truly engages students as it forms around the students' interests and the opportunities presented to us in nature and our community.
3.) Working with Our Brain's Physiology - like preparing for a ski race, we get our students in a peak state of flow through so that they are highly engaged and their brains are able to retain much more information. Nature, it turns out, is our biggest enabler of this.
4.) FUN! - you can’t underestimate the power of fun in a child’s learning. Think about the times when you’ve learned the most. Were you bored?
THE SCIENCE OF WILD SCHOOL
LOCATION: KIMBERCOTE
We are thrilled to announce our new home base location at Kimbercote (near Heathcote). We will be moving into a brand new, custom built school. The property sits on 100 acres (+ adjacent conservation lands) of creeks, fields and forests overlooking the Beaver Valley. Also on the property are multiple outdoor classrooms, a green house, science centre (with Lemur Monkeys, turtles, snakes, and much more), butterfly garden, amphitheatre, medicine wheel fire pit, interpretive walks and over 20 kms of trails. Truly this is an incredible classroom!
Click Here for GOOGLE Map Location
BUSING FROM COLLINGWOOD IS AVAILABLE
We often also set up mobile outdoor classrooms in the rivers, historic and cultural sites and parks of our beloved Blue Mountains. All locations are within 25 minutes of both Collingwood and Thornbury.
Part of our program is dressing for the weather and we educate both students and parents on how to be comfortable in our natural environment no matter the weather.
PROGRAMS:
Grade JK to Grade 8
Grade JK/Sk - Monday to Friday - 8:45am to 3:30pm*
Grade 1/2 - Monday to Friday - 8:45am to 3:30pm*
Grade 3/4 - Monday to Friday - 8:45am to 3:30pm*
Grade 5/6 - Monday to Friday - 8:45am to 3:30pm*
Grade 7/8 - Monday to Friday - 8:45 to 3:30pm*
* Extra curricular programming - 3:30 to 4:30pm
APPLICATION PROCESS
- Fill out Application Form
- Schedule Tour
- Schedule In-Person Student Assessment
COME AND SEE WHAT ALL THE BUZZ IS ABOUT!
Schedule a site visit or a back yard presentation.
EMAIL: Info@wildschool.ca
PODCAST FEATURE
The Value of Natural Consequences
In a recent episode of The Best Boss Ever podcast, hosted by WILD School parent, Christine Laperriere, our founder Jeff Barrett provides incredible insight into the core essence of Wild School that reaches far beyond the traditional Ontario curriculum.
The conversation begins with Jeff sharing his past experiences guiding expeditions in Antarctica and The Arctic, being a landscape architect, and his deep love for wild spaces that ultimately influenced him to create Blue Mountain Wild School.
Jeff speaks on the value of natural consequences as a self awareness tool that helps prepare students today for the challenges of tomorrow. They talk about key elements of the WILD School program such as personal accountability, teaching leadership by leading yourself, the lessons from failure, the core values of leadership and how these values can be taught early by learning grit, problem solving, adaptability, perseverance and resilience through experiences in nature.