Ages 2½ – 5 · Forest Classroom

Where school
smells like
rain.

A mud-kitchen classroom tucked between Douglas firs. Pinecone counting, fire-circle songs, and a rope swing hung from a living branch.

Visit Our Forest
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48 families enrolled · 6 spots for Fall 2026
Children playing in a Douglas fir forest clearing with morning light filtering through the canopy
Fire Circle Songs
Pinecone Counting
Creek Magnifying Glasses
Mud Kitchen
Wild Fennel Soup
Rope Swing
Bark Rubbings
Salamander Studies
Outdoor Lunch
Story Time
Fire Circle Songs
Pinecone Counting
Creek Magnifying Glasses
Mud Kitchen
Wild Fennel Soup
Rope Swing
Bark Rubbings
Salamander Studies
Outdoor Lunch
Story Time
8:30 AM
Morning Drop-Off
"

The day begins
with a song
around the fire.

Drop-off at Canopy isn't a handoff — it's a gathering. Each morning the whole forest family assembles at the fire circle, and the day officially begins when everyone has found their seat on a cedar round.

By 8:45 your child is already deep in the woods, magnifying glass in hand, and the last thing on their mind is that you've left.

Visit Our Forest
Children sitting around a fire circle in a forest clearing at morning, cool blue light filtering through Douglas firs
8:30 AM
Small child holding a pinecone up to examine it in morning forest light
Educator greeting children arriving at forest school in the morning
01

Child-Led Learning

Teachers observe and follow. If a salamander under a log holds more wonder than planned counting, the salamander wins.

02

All-Weather Days

Rain gear hangs by the door not as a warning, but as a welcome. Mud is the medium. Puddles are the classroom.

03

Certified Educators

Every Canopy guide holds a Forest School Level 3 certification and current wilderness first aid.

Creek
10:15 AM
Creek Walk

Every rock
is a question
worth turning over.

Child crouching at creek edge examining rocks with magnifying glass in dappled forest light

Caddisfly larvae · 10:22 AM

Group of toddlers wading in shallow forest creek with rubber boots

First wade of the year · 10:38 AM

Child drawing in field journal sitting on mossy log beside creek

Field journal · 11:05 AM

Two children comparing leaves of different sizes and colors in forest

Leaf sorting · 11:18 AM

3
Acres of forest
dedicated classroom
1:4
Teacher ratio
all outdoor sessions
52
Weeks a year
rain or shine
6
Years running
since 2020
12:00 PM
Outdoor Lunch & Rest
Children eating outdoor lunch at wooden tables surrounded by fir trees in golden midday light
12:00 PM · Lunch
Child stirring a pot over outdoor camp stove during cooking lesson
Cozy yurt interior with soft light, small cots and children's drawings on the walls
1:30 PM · Rest Yurt

Lunch cooked
over a fire
tastes different.

The outdoor kitchen is real. Children help — stirring, tasting, deciding whether the soup needs more wild fennel. Lunch isn't an interruption of learning; it's the most applied math of the day.

After eating, rest time moves into the yurt. Soft light through canvas. The sound of wind in the firs. Most children are asleep before the second story.

"

The children who struggle most to sit still inside are the ones who are absolutely calm after an hour in the creek.

Maya Chen, Lead Forest Educator at Canopy Preschool, smiling outdoors
Maya Chen
Lead Forest Educator · 6 yrs
Visit Our Forest

Daily Rhythm

8:30
Fire Circle
9:00
Free Exploration
10:15
Creek Walk
11:30
Project Time
12:00
Outdoor Lunch
1:30
Rest / Yurt
2:30
Story & Song
3:00
Pickup
Home
3:00 PM
Pickup Time

They run toward you
with dirt-streaked
cheeks and wild fennel.

Every worry you carried from the office dissolves in about four seconds. The day is written on their hands, their knees, their absolute certainty that what they did today mattered.

48Families
4.9Google Rating
6 yrsIn the Forest
Child running through forest clearing in warm golden afternoon light toward pickup, arms full of wildflowers

"The last forty minutes of daylight through a canopy — everything warm-lit from below."

What Canopy Families Say

"

We drove 20 minutes past three other preschools to get here. The first day Theo came home with a fistful of wild fennel and told me he'd made soup. That was it. We were done looking.

Priya Nair, mother of Theo, smiling warmly
Priya Nair
Mom to Theo, 4 · Enrolled Fall 2024
"

My son used to cry at drop-off everywhere else. At Canopy he runs ahead of me to the fire circle. I'm the one who lingers.

Marcus Webb, father of Eli, smiling outdoors
Marcus Webb
Dad to Eli, 3½ · Enrolled Spring 2025
"

She comes home tired in the best way — the way you're tired after a real day, not a screen day. She sleeps so well now.

Keiko Tanaka, mother of Hana, with warm expression
Keiko Tanaka
Mom to Hana, 3 · Enrolled Fall 2025
Visit Our Forest
Canopy
6 spots remaining · Fall 2026

Come see what a
real school day
looks like.

No form to fill. Just a Saturday morning walk through the forest with your family. We'll show you the fire circle, the creek, the yurt. Your child will probably find something remarkable under a log.

Visit Our Forest
Free campus tour
No commitment required
Saturdays 9–11 AM