Amid the towering pines and coastal fog of Monterey County, some families are looking to take advantage of the local landscape to help teach their young children. Earth Trek Forest School, a non-traditional outdoor learning program, encourages students to explore traditional subjects through hands-on experiences in the natural world.

Founded in 2020, the program admits students aged 2.5-9 years old into its five programs. Through various outdoor lessons, students are prompted to create a connection with local nature through expanding wilderness and emotional awareness and participating in hands-on science.

“I had just seen so much time students had spent indoors and on screens that I was so inspired to create a place where students could be outside, moving their bodies, connecting with nature and experiencing joy through exploring and connecting with nature,” said Founder and Program Director Vanessa Yakobovich.

After seeing how isolated and disconnected young kids were from nature after growing up through the pandemic, Yakobovich was inspired to start the school and begin fostering those connections. Founding the school in Monterey provided the perfect backdrop for the outdoor lessons, she said.

Lessons are not restricted to a traditional desk and classroom setting. At Earth Trek, the world is the classroom, with lessons being taught outside in spaces including Mission Trail Park in Carmel, Garland Park and Carmel River Beach.

During spring classes, the curriculum might include studying frog calls or learning about pollinators. The curriculum changes with the season so in the fall, students might learn about animal migration and hibernation patterns or why the leaves change color. Students are also encouraged to lead through their curiosity, which may mean interrupting a planned lesson in order to learn about something else they are interested in.

“It’s about giving the students time and space to explore at their own pace (and) to be supported by really nurturing adults who follow the students’ lead instead of directing it,” said Yakobovich. “My goal was to create a program where childhood play really unfolds naturally.”

Class sizes cap at 10 students and range from $40 per week to $288 per week, depending on which class they are enrolled in and how many days a week that class meets.

The school is currently open for fall 2025 registration, with classes beginning Sept. 8.

Classes are intentionally kept on the smaller size “to ensure that the students are being seen for the individuals that they are,” said Yakobovich. “Because we’re in an outdoor environment, safety is of course, our top priority and we want to keep those ratios low.”

Earth Trek is also currently open for registration to its summer sessions.

Forest Fairies and Woodland Wonders (ages 3—5) is described as a “whimsical week of storytelling, nature crafts and fairy tale-inspired outdoor play.” This session runs from June 9-13 and Aug. 4-8 from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

For older kids aged 5-9, the Wild About Water: Exploring Aquatic Life session is a “deep dive into the world of rivers, creeks and ocean creatures.” This program will be open July 28 through Aug. 1 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

While Earth Trek could be utilized as the sole educational experience for younger kids, because of its small size, Yakobovich typically sees families utilize the programs as an extra boost to their kids’ education.

Eventually, Yakobovich sees the school growing in its capabilities to teach students beyond their early years and into high school.

“My hope is that students leave Earth Trek with a sense of wonder, confidence and belonging not only to themselves but to their community … and to the natural world,” she said. “My goal is for students to feel curious and excited about science and how the world works, and how we’re all connected. To build resilience by problem solving and adapting through changing outdoor conditions.”

Through lessons rooted in nature and curiosity, Yakobovich and her teachers take kids’ leads to let them explore and learn about what stands out to them, she said.

This model helps in “building that resilience and problem solving to develop empathy through relationships with the other children in the class, their peers, animals, plants and the place,” said Yakobovich. “And to really know how to take care of this land and to connect with it deeply.”

More information about the school can be found at www.earthtrekforestschool.com/.