SPROUTS
 Farm and Forest Kindergarten
@Tangerini's Spring Street Farm

SPROUTS is a nature-immersive, farm and forest-based early childhood learning program (children 3 through 6 years old) on Tangerini's Spring Street Farm, 139 Spring St., Millis, MA.  Sprouts is the first early childhood program of its kind to be licensed in the state of Massachusetts. 

Our program philosophy is inspired by aspects of Lifeways, Waldorf and Reggio Emilia philosophies, and is modeled after Waldkindergartens, Forest Kindergartens in Germany, where teachers and children are outdoors in all types weather, throughout the year -  an educational approach and program delivery that has existed since the late 1950’s, mainly in Europe, and is becoming more popular in the US and other countries around the world.  In these programs children spend half to a full day outdoors in local woodlands and green spaces, immersed in nature.  

Our unique farm and forest model combines the developmental benefits of unstructured, child-led play in the forest with the invaluable experience of exploring and playing on a farm.  Each day begins and ends with a rhythm and routine providing opportunities for the children to connect with each other, their teachers, and the natural rhythms of the day and the seasons. The days are primarily filled, however, with the opportunity to play - to explore and experience all that the farm and forest have to offer.

Program Details: 

Mission:
Our Mission at Sprouts is to provide a high-quality, nature immersive early childhood learning environment that recognizes the unfolding of the whole being through child-led and adult-facilitated farm and nature-related activities, nurtures the natural inquisitiveness to learn that each child is born with and supports children as they develop and explore their sense of belonging and relationship to the earth and those around them.
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Guiding Principles/Philosophy:
  • Support the rhythm and needs of each child.
  • Build a strong developmental foundation for a lifelong love of learning and a successful, gentle transition from home to school or homeschool arrangements.
  • Explore and learn in and with nature through observation, interaction, experimentation and inquiry, also knows as place-based learning.
  • Support healthy physical development; build strength, balance, motor skills and physical confidence.
  • Nurture imagination, integration of learning and creative problem solving through storytelling, conversation and self-directed play.
  • Model compassion, service to others, cooperation and compromise in a community of caring and learning.
  • Provide a setting rich in opportunities to observe and participate in domestic, practical and artistic activities that evolve naturally in our home-like, nature-immersive environment.
  • Immerse children in the understanding of where their food comes from; picking, preparing and enjoying farm fresh foods, composting to feed the soil that grows their food, and respecting the land and farmers that feed us.
  • Model and guide mastery of self-care.
  • Support children's need to assess and experience risk which enables them to develop good decision-making, judgement, persistence, resilience and self-confidence.
  • Class size is limited to 12 children. There will always be two adult instructors, for a teacher-student ratio of 6:1. 

Registration/Enrollment:

  • Children must be 3.0 years old by June 15th of the school year
  • Quick Reference Sheet and Enrollment Form (print, fill out and mail)
  • Registration is complete and your child's spot is secured once we have received a completed enrollment form and non-refundable enrollment fee of $100.
  • Please make checks payable to Grow, Bloom & Thrive.

Scheduling a Visit:

A visit is required before enrolling your child in Sprouts. Sprouts is a rigorous, outdoor program and is not suited for everyone. We believe that it is important that both you and your child are able to observe and participate in a typical day at Sprouts in order to make the decision whether or not to choose Sprouts for your family. Visits are scheduled on Tuesdays between mid-October and the end of April. Call us at (508)259-1761 (Christine Heer's cell) to schedule a visit. 
The yurt - our heated indoor space for shelter when the weather becomes un-fun:).

Daily  Schedule:
Mid-September-Mid-June, Monday-Thursday

  •  ​2 days/week 
  •  3 days/week
  • 4 days/week
  • 8:45am-12:45pm

A Typical Day at Sprouts:

8:45 a.m.  Sprouts opens for the day!  All parents and caregivers drop children off at the chicken coop to join us for farm chores: collecting eggs and feeding chickens and goats.
9:00     Hike to the yurt - observing the changes on the farm from day to day, navigating the terrain (mud puddles are a favorite!!) and lots of great conversation. (Physical development; strength, stamina, accuracy, agility, coordination of limbs, hand-eye coordination, balance,  muscle tone, physical confidence, observation and conversation, animal tracks, daily and seasonal changes on the path and the farm, mud play.
9:30     Morning Circle: welcoming, sharing, joining in our morning greeting that mirrors the current season.
9:45    Free-Play in the yurt, yard and/or forest.
(Children may build a fort or use tools, track animals, measure shadows, investigate an anthill, climb a tree, get involved in an open ended art/invention project, create mud kitchen delicacies or any other of a number of possibilities. that occur with immersion in nature
10:30     Trail Snack: Nuts, fruit and a drink of water, mindfulness/tuning into our senses - the sounds, smells and sights in our place, in that moment.
10:45    Free-Play in the yurt, yard and/or forest.
(Dress-up, storytelling, floor book/journal, art/imagination station supplies and other activities guided by the current interests that arise throughout the day and week,)
11:30    Preparing for Lunch: children help with preparing lunch sides, setting the table and cleaning up the yurt/yard.
11:45    Lunch: A healthy snack from home accompanied by sides served family-style utilizing ingredients that are available from the farm.
12:10    Cleanup: Clear dishes, wipe table, wash dishes, bring compost out.  Prepare to leave: Everyone takes responsibility for their belongings and helping one another so we leave our space clean and neat.
12:25    Closing Circle
12:30    Hike back to the chicken coop from the yurt.  
12:45    Pick up by parents or caregiver at the chicken coop.

Need More Information?
Christine Heer, Sprouts Director 508-259-1761
Lisa Henderson, Sprouts Assistant Director 508-846-9999
Email: info@growbloomandthrive.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Growbloomandthrive 
Grow, Bloom & Thrive, LLC/SPROUTS: Farm and Forest Kindergarten will not discriminate in providing services to children and their families on the basis of race, religion, cultural heritage, political beliefs, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, disability or toilet training status.