Our Programs

Our Pinecones (ages 4-7)  program is offered in 7-9 week sessions, during the months of September to June, and all types of learners are welcome - public school, Heartwood and homeschool families.  The Pinecones program runs 9:30 - 2:30 on Monday's - Thursday's, are always taught by a certified teacher or equivalent, and while the majority of our programs are held at the soccer fields or our Nicholson location, we may spend time visiting some of the beautiful locations around Golden, such as the Columbia Wetlands, the pond ecosystem of Cedar Lake or Reflection Lake, and the river ecosystem of the Columbia River, Kicking Horse River and Blaeberry River.

We enjoy plenty of time exploring our local environment, learning all about the flora and fauna and their contribution to a healthy biome, and the food webs of our local ecosystems.  Each week the children are taught a new nature study topic, on top of their regular forest exploration - which helps expand their understanding of our natural world.  Participants in this school year program are also invited to participate in any Forest Kids family fun nights that are offered.

Our Pinecones program focuses on introducing our youngest learners to the magic of mother nature and focuses on spending time observing all parts of nature and learning new fun facts in order to grow their respect and understanding of our natural world.  Students will learn through hands-on exploration, observation + creation and experience various methods of learning through art projects, science experiments, handcrafts, story telling, collaborative games + building projects.

The Pinecones program aims to provide a positive association with nature and learning, with the goal of having kids want to become life long learners.  Pinecones is the heart of Forest Kids, as it provides our littlest kiddo's the opportunity to learn to respect and love nature from a young age, preparing them for our other Forest Kids programs, Rangers and Wildcraft, where more specialized nature based education takes place.

Our Pinecones program also offers the benefits of peer mentorship and role modelling to our youngest naturalists, as we have some of our older Forest Kids Mentors joining this program from time to time.  Mentors are learning about the 7 Habits of Happy Kids (Leader in Me Program), and will practice their leadership skills and even take turns offering mini lessons to the group!

Our Forest Kids Rangers Program (ages 7 - 13) is offered in 7-12 week sessions, during the months of September to June, and all types of learners are welcome - public school, Heartwood and homeschool families.    The Rangers program runs 9:30 - 2:30 on Monday's, are always taught by a certified teacher, and our location varies week to week. We may spend time in the diverse Columbia Wetlands, the pond ecosystem of Cedar Lake or Reflection Lake, and the river ecosystem of the Columbia River, Kicking Horse River and Blaeberry River.

 This program is always evolving to meet the needs of my core group of kids (the majority have been with me since I started 6 years ago!).  They are such an amazing group of kind + compassionate kiddo's who are so good at playing and working with others, and demonstrate impressive leadership skills.  If you have a child that works well with others and is excited to learn new skills, this program is for you!  

Rangers offers more in depth learning opportunities, from learning about history and connection to nature in different parts of our world, learning bush craft and survival skills, learning new survival based handcrafts, performing science experiments, longer hiking opportunities, to learning and understanding various nature based sciences from earth sciences, biology, history and astronomy.  The goal is to offer a well rounded nature based education that continues to evolve to fit the interests of the kids enrolled, continuing to grow their love and respect of all things nature.  Participants in this school year program are also invited to participate in our Forest Kids family fun nights + field trips.

Students registered in our full 2026/27 school year are given a survival day-pack at the beginning of the year that they will not only use to help them with their bush craft skills each week, but they come in handy to display all their earned Forest Kids Ranger Badges!   To earn Forest Kids Ranger Badges, students must demonstrate successful completion of new skills taught. These badges provide a sense of accomplishment and these kiddo's sure do love the challenge of learning and earning!

This group will also have multiple additional learning opportunities and optional field trips offered. Aside from enjoying special days where my husband, a hunter and trapper, comes to demonstrate new hands on survival skills (from processing animals to cooking and eating them squirrel stew is still one of our most talked about days!), we also have plans in the works for a bird hunting experience in the Alberta grasslands, as well as snaring opportunities, a winter campout and year end Rangers showcase.  Rangers is all about teaching the next generation the importance of knowing traditional survival and wilderness skills, with the hopes of preserving this valuable and traditional way of life.

I am so excited for another year of fun, where students work towards achieving specific accomplishments and celebrate their success with family, friends and their community.

Our Forest Kids Wildcraft Program (ages 7 - 13) is offered in 7-12 week sessions, during the months of September to June, and all types of learners are welcome - public school, Heartwood and homeschool families.    The Wildcraft program runs 9:30 - 2:30 on Wednesday's, are always taught by a certified teacher, and our location varies week to week. We may spend time in the diverse Columbia Wetlands, the pond ecosystem of Cedar Lake or Reflection Lake, and the river ecosystem of the Columbia River, Kicking Horse River and Blaeberry River.

 This program aims to provide students with the opportunity to slow down, practice mindfulness, and learn new skills through meaningful connections with mother nature.  This program offers students the chance to be little naturalists by studying their natural world through observing the relationships between organisms within their environment, and how these relationships change seasonally. This group will also learn all about edible and medicinal plants in our local ecosystem, and have the opportunity to forage, preserve and create their own herbal teas, salves and tinctures.  Additionally, Wildcraft includes a number of Waldorf inspired handcraft projects, such as crocheting, sewing and nature crafts, to nurture children's creativity, cognitive development, patience, and fine motor skills. Participants in this school year program are also invited to participate in our Forest Kids family fun nights + field trips.

Wildcraft is designed to offer kids the opportunity to enjoy calm and connection to our roots, in our fast paced, ever stressful world.  In a day and age where childhoods are becoming increasingly overscheduled and reliant on technology, Wildcraft aims to be the balance for our kids, by gifting them a day to slow down, find their calm in a group of like minded kind + compassionate kiddo's, and offering them meaningful connections to their past, their peers, their community and with nature.  It has never been more important to protect our children's mental health, and our Wildcraft program aims to nurture healthy minds, hearts and hands through connection and purpose.

Students registered in our full 2026/27 school year are gifted their very own nature journal at the beginning of the year, that they will use to keep records of their observations, through realistic drawings and observation notes. 

Additional opportunities include a year end interpretive naturalist showcase, where students choose a nature topic to share about, to educate and promote awareness + appreciation of our local environment.  I also have plans in the works to host a family handcraft weekend, provide traditional handcraft skill workshops with specialists within our community and enjoy an overnight family hike with food that the kids preserved themselves.  This is a new program so my plans are still evolving, but I am SO excited to offer this new program to the youth and families within our community!

Our summer camps fill up very quickly, so be sure to email, indicating your interest, so you can be added to our early contact list, before camps are posted to the public.  Our summer camps are a mix of science experiments, hand crafts, games, free play, exploration and education of our various ecosystems around beautiful Golden, BC.  These camps run Monday - Friday, 9:00am - 3:00pm.

*Local families: Please join our private Facebook group for regular updates and information on new programs being offered.

*Non-local visitors: Please follow us on our Instagram page to see what we have been up to, get your weekly dose of nature inspiration and to follow along on Forest Kids Adventures!

At Forest Kids, we value and cherish the beauty of families spending quality time together, especially when it comes to educational adventures in nature!  I have decided to offer an annual field trip opportunity to any Forest Kids families that enroll in our September - June school year programs, as a thank you for your support.  This field trip is offered separately from Forest Kids Education Inc., and is something I am offering personally to my families. I am donating my time and resources, all in an effort to offer families in our community the opportunity to experience the joys of authentic hands on learning, together.

Field Trips we have enjoyed so far:

Vancouver Island 2023:  

Things we learned about: Marine biology, mammals + ecosystems, tide pool and temperate rain forest ecosystems, history of glaciation on the island, cave exploration, petroglyph history and traditional uses of the coast by early Native Americans and paleontology inspired education as we learned about the fossils found on Muir Creek sandstone cliffs.

Royal Tyrell Museum Overnight Camp-in 2023 + 2024

Things we learned about: Paleontology and archaeology related activities such as hands on fossil observation and fossil casting, learning about the badlands, understanding the excavation/archaeological process and understanding how paleontologist study fossils to learn information.

Fort Steele Heritage Town + Kootenay Hatchery 2025:

Things we learned about: The forgotten gold rush on Wild Horse Creek, architecture, life and skills in 1896 (they learned about the Yukon and Dawson City previously, which was built in the same year), leather worker skills, Kootenay region fish and conservation efforts, and fishing skills.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 2025:

Things we learned: Cultural connections through participation in Dia de los Muertos events and alter display, reptiles, endangered animals, the tropical rainforest (comparison to the temperate rainforest from a previous field trip), water fowl, ocean sea turtle lifecycle and conservation, temperature and humidity, ocean life, whale migration patterns and connections,  life in a small fishing village, understanding currency and bartering skills, and insects.

Bamfield Marine Science Center 2026:

Things we learned about: Marine mammals, marine invertebrates, the temperate rainforest flora and fauna, hands-on exploration of the Pacific coastline at low tide, webs of life (connections between all living things), life in a small fishing village (connections and comparison to a  previous field trip), oceanography and scientific data collection, dredging on a research vessel, life under the docks, discovering shallow tow and deep tow ocean plankton under a microscope, and art + poetry in nature.