Creative Writing in Nature for Kids

This is a five-day course.
This class is geared for children ages 6-12.

After two years of running this children’s program out of WoodenBoat School campus, It’s time to give Sophie and Grace (of Bard College) more time and space on campus. This year, kids will have the same reading, writing and nature based experience but in a full day format. Running 9-3 with a break for lunch, the day will begin with drop off at the lower pole building at the waterfront. From there, each day is unique including collaboration with the Friends Memorial Library in town and exploration of the WB campus as a whole. 

In their own words:

Every day there are only 3 goals we care about. 

Do the kids read, write, and enjoy themselves?

That’s all that matters. We only want them to find joy in these activities in order to better understand themselves and the world around them. Bard learning is about process over product. The pedagogy that we employ in this program focuses on the interpersonal act of writing. We encourage engagement and development over ‘expertise’ or ‘mastery’ of a subject. At the WoodenBoat School, a similar pedagogy exists. Although the teaching is focused on a niche subject, the learning is vast and interpersonal. WoodenBoat students are encouraged to go at their own pace, and to prioritize collaboration over competition. It is for this reason why the connection between these two institutions is not only symbiotic, but compatible as well. It’s not too early to teach children these lessons, to get them to think differently. It’s not just what we teach these kids, it’s how, because that has the greatest impact on their lives. The way they feel being here and the memories they make in this space is timeless. Although we highly value the syllabus we’re giving these kids, it’s a vehicle used to get them to find out what they want to learn. Ultimately, what we’re teaching them is agency and autonomy within their own education. We encourage them to explore, question, and even sometimes disagree in order to get them to think outside of the box often created for children at a young age. We want the kids to take what they are learning and apply it to other parts of their lives and continue in life with skills that go beyond reading and writing, and to further the connection between Bard College and The WoodenBoat School.