Helping grow more than just healthy plants
Time to let your kids unplug and reconnect to the natural world. At Hamilton Pool Farms, we help grow sustainable and resilient kids who understand the connection between healthy soil and delicious, life-giving food, while deepening their awareness of the natural world. Our teaching style and curriculum is influenced by Wilderness Awareness Schools, Waldorf Education, and the Garden-Based Learning Movement.
Classes are taught on our organic, regenerative, biodynamic veggie & medicinal herb farm, surrounded by 65 acres of beautiful land. Each farm school day consists of group games, circle time, farm chores, gardening or farming, chicken time, cow visits, nature activities, art, stories, practical skills training, wilderness exploration, food preparation, and so much more. Our Instagram page is a great place to see photos of things we do at Farm School @hamiltonpoolfarms
Farm School is available year-round, broken down into 10-week semesters that coincide with the seasons - Fall, Winter and Spring semester. Sibling discounts available. We also have a farm-to-table snack/lunch program available – catered healthy organic food prepared by our chef.
Parents are welcome to stay on-site at our Vineyard tasting room during class time to work, read, or relax. We have excellent wi-fi, coffee & tea bar, and food available. Both indoor and outdoor space.
FALL 2023 WEEKLY SEMESTER CLASSES
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Farm Explorers (age 3-6)
FRIDAYS | 9 am - 2 pm
The focus for the Farm Explorers is learning to be comfortable with the natural world, while also practicing respect and compassion for all living creatures - including each other!
The children are introduced to the cycles of seasons and nature through seasonal garden activities, games, crafts, stories, and songs. They practice appropriate “farm etiquette” and the proper use and function of hand tools. Weekly farm chores may include watering plants; starting seeds in pots; harvesting vegetables, flowers or medicinal herbs; or feeding the chickens and collecting eggs.
Activities are nature-based and seasonal such as making flower presses, weaving nature looms, brewing and tasting herbal teas, making salads, observing insects with magnifiers, and sifting compost to find out who lives and works in our soil. The Farm Explorers also take discovery walks during the day to explore our farm space and the surrounding natural preserve.
$575 / 10-week semester
Fall, Winter, Spring
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Farm Builders (age 7-10)
FRIDAYS | 9 am - 2 pm
In Farm Builders we meet this inquisitive age head-on with plenty of farming, building, creating, and exploring.
Farm activities including building their own raised garden beds; then planting, tending, harvesting, and (finally!) cooking. They also learn the function of the plants in our dye and medicinal plant gardens, as well as native and traditional food and medicine sources, and our local wildlife, including insects and birds. The children are exposed to the concept of beneficial insects and their role in maintaining a healthy farm/garden ecosystem.
Examples of seasonal activities include saving seeds in handmade origami packets, building bird houses, creating native bee habitats, making and tossing native seed balls, and making flower presses.
Practical outdoor skill activities include animal tracking, natural navigation, fire building & fire safety, shelter building, wood carving & knife safety, and making cordage and basketry from natural fibers.
$575 / 10-week semester
Fall, Winter, Spring
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Farm & Forage (age 11-15)
FRIDAYS | 9 am - 2 pm
Farm & Forage gives tweens and teens the opportunity to learn about holistic farming practices literally from the ground up. Topics include regenerative agriculture, permaculture, biodynamics, compost making, chicken care, greenhouse management, seed saving, botany, local ecology & climatology, sustainable beekeeping, food preservation, and fermentation. We also study our nature preserve and learn ethical wildcrafting and native plant identification, then make useful products by hand such as herbal medicines, cordage and natural fiber baskets.
The rhythm of the day will feature warm-up games, observation exercises, and current topic presentation, followed by experiential farm activities such as bed preparation, planting, mulching, composting and harvesting. After lunch, we’ll have the opportunity to enjoy the harvest by cooking, preserving, or making herbal medicines in our farm kitchen. We wrap up with journaling and reflection on the day.
$575 / 10-week semester
Fall, Winter, Spring
Looking for our Seasonal & Holiday Farm Camps? Click here.
Typical Daily Rhythm
9:00 - 9:15 am Check-in | Group Games
9:15 - 9:30 am Greetings | Set Intentions for Day | Sit Spot
9:30 - 10:30 am Garden/Nature activity| Farm Chores
10:30 - 10:45 am Snack
10:45 - 12:00 pm Main Lesson & Seasonal Activity
12:00 - 12:30 pm Lunch & stories/riddles
12:45 - 1:45 pm Games | Nature connection & Garden work
1:45 - 2:00 pm Clean up | Dismissal
What makes Hamilton Pool Nature & Farm School different?
Our 100% outdoor program seeks to meet children at their developmental age through a unique curriculum inspired by Waldorf Education, Nature-Based Education, and Wilderness Awareness Schools. Our Farm Explorer program gives our youngest students room for imaginative and explorative play and sensory engagement, while our Farm Builder program focuses on concrete life experiences to engage them in deep purposeful work. As we move up into middle and high school years, the Farm & Forage and Farm Apprenticeship programs give students the power of autonomy, deeper ecological knowledge, and provide the opportunity to learn the basics of holistic farming methods. We also offer seasonal art and native skills classes such as Bee Creative and Wild Hearts.
Who are the teachers?
Click here for the bios of our amazing teaching team.
Do you offer snack and lunch for the students?
Yes! We offer an organic snack & lunch option for Friday and Saturday programs. We can cater to most food allergies and sensitivities. Sign up when you register.
Can parents stay on your property during school hours?
Absolutely! We’ve provided the ideal place for you to hang out after you drop your kids off at the farm. We open our tasting room at 8 am with coffee and tea. There’s plenty of comfortable indoor and outdoor seating with excellent WiFi. We also have lunch and snacks available during the day. Many parents stay and get work done, read, and even exercise - there’s plenty of yoga space under the oaks and running / walking trails nearby.
Do you offer aftercare?
Yes. We offer aftercare on Fridays from 2 pm - 5 pm. The cost is $30 per week and includes a healthy snack. Please contact us directly if you are interested in signing up.
How does your referral program work?
For every new family you refer, you get 20% off one child’s registration fees for the following semester. Refer 5 families, and your registration is free for that next semester! Be sure to tell your referrals that you sent them so we can credit you. Contact us for more information.
What is your policy on COVID / masks?
We are a 100% outdoor school, so do not require masks for attendance. We ask that you keep your child home if they are sick.
What is your cancellation policy?
When you register, you are committing to the entire farm school semester or farm camp program. In order for us to run these programs and keep class sizes low and secure our teachers, we need to plan for our exact number of students. If, for any reason, you need to withdraw from enrollment, you can do so up to 14 days before the first class date. After that date, the enrollment fees are non-refundable.
Do you have a volunteer or internship program?
We are a “beyond organic” regenerative farm that takes pride in our permaculture and regenerative soil building practices to grow our food and take care of our farm animals. One of the intentions of our farm, besides growing amazing food, is to build community. We love to have volunteers at our farm who are interested in learning and growing with us. If you are interested in coming out and working hard with us, register on our volunteer page.
Internship opportunities are available for high school age students and up. If you want to dive deeper into this method of farming, we offer internship opportunities to those that are serious and want to learn about what we're doing and are willing to work hard to learn. Please contact us for more information.
Do you offer field trips or home school events?
Yes! We are a living classroom and provide many educational opportunities for schools, home schools or private parties. Let us know what you want to learn about our farm. We can offer tours, hands-on experience, harvesting and bundling up your own veggies, crafts, art, nature skills, learning about our animals, play and much more. Please fill out an inquiry form here.