Notchcliff Forest School Cooperative

Not all classrooms have four walls! The Notchcliff Forest School Co-op is for families who want to balance home school or online learning with social play and nature connection in a small group setting. The K-2nd grade co-op has drop-off class options available on Monday-Thursday for the full year to support your homeschool journey. The Forest Fridays program is open to K-5th graders with drop-off class options for ten (10) Friday classes (one per month, Sept. 2025 - June 2026) or you can register for select Forest Friday dates, depending on availability.
 

Note: Enrollment in the K- 2nd co-op is a school year commitment. If you must cancel your enrollment before the end of the program year, you are responsible for the balance of your registration until another child can fill the spot. Open enrollment for new families is first come, first serve starting Feb. 1st. (Plan your tour asap learn more and to receive the enrollment code!)
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2025-2026 Forest School Co-op
 

Regular Day (K-2nd): Sept. 2, 2025 - May 27, 2026 from 9 - 1 p.m.

Monday: Hands-on Science and Social Studies Inquiry (K-2nd)

Tuesday: Language and Literacy Exploration (K-2nd)

Wednesday: Wild Math and Outdoor Cooking (K-2nd)

Thursday: Creative Nature Arts: Music, Art, and Dramatic Play (K-2nd)

*Note: We are exploring a weekly 3rd-5th option for 2025-2026; details coming soon.  

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Fall Afternoon Sessions (K-2nd): Sept. 8 - Oct. 31 from 1 - 3 p.m.

Monday: Hands-on Science and Social Studies Inquiry (K-2nd)

Tuesday: Language and Literacy Exploration (K-2nd)

Wednesday: Wild Math and Outdoor Cooking (K-2nd)

Thursday: Creative Nature Arts: Music, Art, and Dramatic Play (K-2nd)
 

*Note: When registration begins in Feb. 2025, we will reassess demand for the afternoon session; if there is strong demand, we will offer the p.m. session for the full school year. This is a new option, so we appreciate your patience while we determine what our learning community needs.

Forest Fridays (K-5th): Sept. 2025 - June 2026 from 9 - 1 p.m.

Explore seasonal themes one Friday each month (K-5th) over 10 months.

Forest Friday dates: Sept. 5, 2025, Oct. 3, 2025, Nov. 7, 2025, Dec. 5, 2025, Jan. 9, 2026,

Feb. 6, 2026, Mar. 6, 2026, Apr. 3, 2026, May 1, 2026, June 5, 2026​

Classes meet entirely outdoors, rain or shine! You will receive complete details about gear and policies when you register. Your child must be five (5) years old by September 1st to meet the age requirement. (If your child is NOT five by Sept. 1st of the enrollment year, they are eligible for the Forest Preschool) Early registration is strongly recommended; spaces are available on a first come, first serve basis. Additional policies related to outdoor learning, gear, etc. are provided upon registration in your confirmation email.

Each day provides a different daily focus, allowing teachers to balance intentional learning experiences with emergent, child-driven explorations. We reference MSDE’s curriculum standards to ensure that children meet homeschool requirements (see MSDE’s homeschool info or components of homeschool instruction video here).

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What about Homeschool Portfolio Reviews?

The children’s nature journals, photos, and other learning artifacts will provide you with documentation to support your child’s learning adventures at Notchcliff. While much of the children's time is devoted to nature play, we also translate our adventures into activities that align with grade level expectations and standards. We use Storypark to document learning and communicate with families. This makes it easy to print out and share during your homeschool review.

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Parent Commitment in the Co-Op: Since this is a "cooperative", a parent from your family agrees to volunteer with the class. (This includes a mandatory orientation and prior background check). Parents provide helpful support to teachers and get a bird’s eye view into their child’s learning experiences. Parent volunteers select volunteer dates in advance. Volunteer slots are based on enrollment. For example, if your child attends on Mondays and there are 12 children in the class, you will volunteer every 12 weeks in the Monday class. If you are also enrolled on a Thursday and there are 10 children in the class, you will volunteer every 10 weeks on a Thursday. For this reason, we will give detailed information about your volunteer commitment in August during our the Sunset Parent Campfire event.

Enrollment Fees:  Registration is for the full program year (Sept. - May) and cost is based on less than you might otherwise pay a sitter.  If you join partway through the year, we will pro-rate your tuition.  If you are experiencing financial need, please reach out. We have limited aid for those who qualify. View pricing here.

Note: If you must cancel your enrollment before the end of the program year, you are responsible for the balance of your registration until another child can fill the spot.

Payment schedule: Initial Deposits are non-refundable and are due at time of registration. Remaining balances will be broken down in equal payments and will be invoiced separately. 

Year-round enrollments: Initial Deposit, then 8 monthly payments (Sept.1 - April 1). 

Other enrollments: Initial Deposit, then second payment due Sept. 1

Have questions about the co-op? Contact chelsea@anbe.org for more information.