Outdoor Preschools Set to Open in WA

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Preschools are moving outdoors.  Erin Kenny at Cedar Song Nature Schools says, “children can’t bounce off the walls if we take away the walls.”

In November 2014, Seattle voters approved a property tax to increase funding for high-quality preschools to low-income families.  Tiny Trees is one of the startup preschools.  It will open 6 preschools in 2016.  However, Tiny Trees will open its doors to the outdoors because it is opening outdoor preschools.

Elements Preschool, in urban Lower East Side of Manhattan, NY, is also opening an outdoor preschool.  41% of public school students in New York at Latino.  Although health is not at the forefront of their child-led and nature-based philosophy, play is, and play is a critical component of child development and health.

Outdoor preschools are an excellent alternative for Latino communities that lack access to quality early education facilities.  For example, the cost of outdoor preschools is 20%-25% less than traditional preschools due to reduced facility costs.  This could have major implications given the estimated growth in the population of Latino children.  Currently, one in four (25.8%) US children are Hispanic, and estimates suggest that by 2050, it will be more than one in three.

Click here to watch a video about Tiny Trees.

Click here to learn about Tiny Trees.