Our Philosophy
Camel's Hump Farm Nature Center's Mission
Our Mission is to provide the highest level of quality early childhood care possible to children of all learning abilities emphasizing the importance of creativity, investigation and learning through hands-on experience.
Camel's Hump Farm Nature Center opens directly onto our 135-acre nature preserve, giving children a unique opportunity to explore and learn about their relationship to the natural world in a risk-managed environment.
Discovery-Adventure-Creativity-Problem Solving
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learn through play
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have wonder-filled experiences in nature
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social development
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individual attention
Why nature-based education?
Research has shown that exploring the natural world develops children's observation, concentration, creativity and problem solving skills. Our programs, designed in collaboration with Audubon, encourage natural curiosity as a springboard for learning and appreciation of the world around us.
Hover over the images below to see more details about nature-based education.
Research has shown that nature-based education:
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Green plants and vistas reduce stress among highly stressed children. Locations with greater number of plants, greener views, and access to natural play areas show more significant results (Wells and Evans, 2003).
Reduces Stress
Supports Creativity & Problem Solving
Children engage in more creative forms of play in green areas. They also played more cooperatively (Bell and Dyment, 2006). Play in nature is especially important for developing capacities for creativity, problem-solving, and intellectual development (Kellert, 2005).
Studies in the US show that schools that use outdoor classrooms and other forms of nature-based experiential education support significant student gains in social studies,
science, language arts, and math. Students in outdoor
science programs improved their science testing scores
by 27% (American Institutes for Research, 2005).
Proximity to, views
of, and daily exposure to natural settings increases
children’s ability to focus and enhances cognitive
abilities (Wells, 2000).
Improves Academic Performance
Enhances Cognitive Abilities
Children who experience
school grounds with diverse natural settings are more physically active, more aware of nutrition, more civil to one another and more creative (Bell and Dyment, 2006).
Children will be smarter,
better able to get along with others, healthier and
happier when they have regular opportunities for free
and unstructured play in the out-of-doors (Burdette and
Whitaker, 2005).