Inquiry-Based and Constructivist Learning Theories in Nature

     Children are naturally curious. When they ask questions, make discoveries, and investigate the world around them, they are learning in the most meaningful and lasting ways. Our program leans into that curiosity through inquiry-based learning, where children follow their interests and teachers support them by listening closely, offering gentle guidance, and helping them go deeper into their observations and questions.

     This aligns with constructivist theories of learning, which suggest that children build knowledge through direct experience and social collaboration. In the natural environment, this happens beautifully: building with sticks, sorting leaves, solving problems with friends, and returning to familiar spots over time, all activities which support the construction of knowledge in an active, child-led way. These ideas are rooted in the work of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, who both emphasized that children grow and learn through exploration, play, and relationships.​

     Nature offers infinite opportunities for this kind of meaningful learning. Whether they’re making a trail map, watching worms after a rain, or figuring out how to get a log to balance, children are engaged in real thinking. They are working with their whole selves—body, mind, and spirit.

Influence of Montessori and Reggio Emilia Approaches

     Though we are not a Montessori or Reggio Emilia program, we are deeply influenced by the values each brings to early childhood education.​

     Like Maria Montessori, we believe that young children are capable, independent learners who benefit from freedom within structure. Our outdoor environment is carefully prepared to be both beautiful and functional, with tools and materials that encourage purposeful activity and self-direction.​

     From the Reggio Emilia approach, we embrace the view of the child as strong, creative, and full of potential. We see the environment as an essential part of learning—an invitation to wonder and to engage deeply. We also value long-form play and emergent curriculum that grows out of the children’s interests, conversations, and discoveries. Teachers observe closely, document learning, and help children reflect and revisit their experiences, supporting deeper connections over time.

Nature-Based Education and Place-Based Learning

     Our program also stands firmly within the tradition of nature-based and place-based education, which recognizes the importance of rooting children in their local environment and allowing learning to unfold through direct, sustained contact with nature.

We are inspired by educators like David Sobel, who reminds us that before we ask children to care for the planet, we must give them time to fall in love with it. Regular, joyful experiences outdoors—climbing, noticing, collecting, and caring—lay a foundation for lifelong stewardship.​

     We also share the beliefs of Erin Kenny, founder of Cedarsong Nature School, who advocated for child-led, play-based forest kindergartens where children are trusted to take the lead and where adults observe and support rather than direct. Her work, along with the research of Richard Louv and Robin Moore, highlights the importance of unstructured play in nature for supporting healthy brain development, emotional regulation, resilience, and creativity.​

     At the heart of our educational philosophy is a simple truth: children are already learning. Our role is to protect the space and time they need to do it well. When children are trusted, supported, and surrounded by beauty, they thrive.

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References and Sources

 

* Look these resources up! Very Insightful for all caregivers and parents! 

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• Piaget, J. (1952). The Origins of Intelligence in Children.

• Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes.

• Montessori, M. (1967). The Absorbent Mind.

• Malaguzzi, L. (1993). “For an Education Based on Relationships.” Young Children, 49(1), 9–12.

• Sobel, D. (2004). Place-Based Education: Connecting Classrooms and Communities.

• Louv, R. (2005). Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder.

• Kenny, E. (2013). Forest Kindergartens: The Cedarsong Way.

• Moore, R. (2014). The Natural Learning Initiative.