Audubon's Forest Classroom

A new hands-on program for grades K-6

Join our in-person, weekly, school year long program for grades K-6 (approx. ages 6-12) called Audubon's Forest Classroom. We integrate the outdoor classroom with rigorous academic concepts, conservation-based themes, and connection with nature. This program is designed to provide students supplemental learning to their homeschool or in-classroom education, as well as routine during this uncertain time.

Every MONDAY the same small group of students will meet with two of Audubon's Teacher-Naturalists to give us the flexibility to work in age-appropriate small groups or come together as one big class. This program will follow the model of our Forest Playschool, where children are given the opportunity to lead their days with inquiry and are supported by our Teacher-Naturalists with seasonal topics and nature mentoring. No two days look the same, but themes of cooperation, curiosity, and phenology will prevail throughout our sessions.

Check our our Forest Classroom Blog for insight on how we spent our time!

Do you have a 3-5 year old? Be sure to check out our Forest Playschool program too!

2023-2024 Session

2023-24 Program Registration: OPEN

Please email Lead Teacher, Emily Kaplita about future interest or questions.

2024-2025 Session

Registration for the 2024-2025 session will open late April/Early May

Registration for 2024-25 will be through our CampDoc system, the same system we use for our Camps. See below for details and instructions

Grades: K-6 (approx. ages 6-12)

Dates: This is a year-round program that meets on Mondays!

We meet in the Fall/Winter for 11 weeks: Septmeber 9, 2024- December 9th 2024.
We meet in the Witner/Spring for 16 weeks: January 13 - May 19th 2025.
We DO NOT meet on the following holidays or school breaks:
- Oct 14th - Indigenous Peoples' Day
- Nov 11th- Veteran's Day
- Nov 25th- Thanksgiving Break
- Dec 16th, 23rd, 30th, Jan 6th- Audubon Winter Break
- Jan 20th- Martin Luther King Jr Day
- Feb 17th- Presidents' Day
- Feb 24th- February Vacation Break
- April 21st- April Vacation Break

Time: 9am - 3pm

Location: From Septmeber- November and April-May*** we will be located at Audubon Vermont's Clubhouse (accessed by the sugarhouse parking area on Main Road). The Clubhouse is located within our sugarbush and is our indoor space with bit open windows, a concrete floor, and fire place. The area has two rustic outhouses with handsanatizing/cleaning options available but the facility doesn't have running water. This space doesn't have potable water. This program will be entirely outdoors. We will spend our days hiking and playing outside at the Green Mountain Audubon Center. In the event of unsafe weather (driving rain, thunderstorms, high wind, etc) we will cancel and refund your program fee.

***From December-March our program will meet at our Education Barn location at 255 Sherman Hollow Rd Huntington VT

Tuition

Non-refundable deposit: 15% Tuition $1755
Memebers save 5%! You can become a member of Audubon Vermont and the National Audubon Society with a donation of $20 or more. Consider a $35 Membership for your Family: vt.audubon.org/join

At initial registration you will need to pay AT LEAST the %15 non-refundable deposit ticket to hold your spot for this Forest Classroom Session and has been accounted for in the total program fee. Please contact Emily Kaplita if you need assitance for the deposit.

Deposit

The initial deposit payment is non-refundable. If you withdrawal your student before the start of our program and within the first weeks of our program the deposit will count towards our refund policy.

Payment Policy:

Please pay using your CampDoc account, please make sure there is an up-to-date card option available. CampDoc will not auto charge, you must manually make payments. If you cannot pay online, please let me know, we can accept cash or check. If you need a payment plan or scholarship, please let me know.

Financial Assistance

If you need assistance or a payment plan please note that in your campers profile in CampDoc and email Emily Kaplita. All program applicants must pay the non-refundable deposit, unless you've reach out otherwise.

Forms: Health and Liability Release Forms are required to be filled out under your students profile in CampDoc.

Registration Process:

We are using the same registration system we use for our summer camps, Camp Doc. They have excellent user guides to help you navigate their system.
Go here http://app.campdoc.com/register/audubon/greenmountain
First Time users: Follow the above link to create an account. Detailed Instructions on how to Create an Account. You do not need to complete your participants entire profile to register for camps, just what is required to add a participant.
Register each camper for Green Mountain Audubon Center, Huntington VT camps. Detailed Instructions here. You will be asked to pay the deposit now, but you can also pay the full amount due.
Your registration is not complete until you have submitted all your paperwork
Contact E mily Kaplita with any questions.
This FAQ guide is made for our Camp registration, but the information can still be helpful for our yearly program registration too!

**Personal Program Withdrawal**

Please give us as much advance notice as possible of your withdrawal from the program. If you pay up in full we will refund you a prorated fee starting 4 sessions after your withdrawal. If you pay monthly, we will still expect you to pay for the following 4 sessions and will either charge your CampDoc account or we will contact you about check/cash payment. We are happy to discuss on a case-by-case basis any withdrawal. When there are forces outside of the family’s control (illness, school, etc.) we are happy to address that when it arises.

**Weather Statement/Cancellation**

This program is entirely outdoors, but for unsafe weather (thunder and lightning, high winds, extreme temperatures) we have access to both rustic and heated spaces. We help children build resiliency and learn to advocate for their needs ("I’m too hot!", "I'm too cold!", "I'm just right!") but that requires proper attire that include items that are waterproof and/or insulated. If proper gear is a barrier to participation, please contact us. Should our local school (Brewster Pierce Memorial) cancel for weather or conditions at the Audubon Center be unsafe, we will cancel. We will let you know by email or phone as soon as possible with the cancellation update. If schools have delayed, we will take this into consideration and may delay, since our program starts later than schools we typically don't. If we choose to delay will will ALWAYS contact you. Since this is a fully outdoor program, cancellation due to weather is an inherent risk of the program and there will be no refunds.

**Additional Audubon Cancellation**

For other cancellations within Audubon Vermont's control you will recieve a program credit, or you can transfer your refund to be a tax deductible donation

For more information, please contact:
Lead Teacher
Emily Kaplita
(802) 434-3068