The Great Outdoors: It’s Not Just Nature, It’s a Necessity!
At Stonebrook Day School children interact in and with nature almost every day. We use nature to provide children with authentic learning opportunities that will benefit them for the rest of their lives. Our school building is nestled between two natural play areas sitting on 3 acres of partly wooded land. Stonebrook Playscape is a space that that blends natural materials, features, and vegetation with a creative landform to create complex play spaces with high levels of play value. The playscape also includes a working garden that the children tend to on a regular basis. Stonebrook Forest, of course, has lots of trees of all sizes and differing varieties. Under the canopy of the large pecan and oak trees is a stage. There is also a teepee, fort, crow’s nest, mud kitchen, picnic tables, and plenty of space for young minds and bodies to explore. The Nature Path leading into the Stonebrook Forest offers a diversity of woodland plants and flowers that attract a large variety of birds and butterflies. Our children have documented sightings box turtles, rabbits, squirrels, a groundhog, woodpeckers, and many other spices of birds on their walks.