Mountain Mondays Overview
Turn away from your screens, and walk out into the forest to experience the magic of Spring with our experienced nature connection mentors. After a long cold winter cooped up indoors, it’s one of the great joys of the year to step back out into the forest and greet the world as it wakes up.
The vibrant green of new growth is the perfect backdrop for another season of adventures in the wild. We’ll play games, go exploring, tell stories, learn new skills and connect with nature and community. It’s an exciting time to be in the forest with new discoveries and learning each week.
Our core curriculum has been carefully crafted since 2011 to provide a progressive learning journey and comprehensive foundation in deeply relating to the natural world. Through games, stories and exploration children learn:
Outdoor Safety and Awareness • Animal Tracking • Edible and Medicinal Wild Plants • Wilderness Survival Skills • Bird Language • Ancient Crafts
Ecology • Community • Self-Discovery, and much more
Age Groups:
Ages 6-8 (Only 4 spots remain as of 1/24/23)
Ages 9-12 (Full with waitlist)
Time: 9:30am - 4:15pm
Dates: Mondays, February 27 - May 22
Breaks for Earthskills Rendezvous April 17
12 sessions total
Price: $755
- Monthly payment plan available
- $100 non-refundable deposit due at registration
- Limited Partial Scholarships available (see below)
Registration
Registration is now open.
Why Choose Forest Floor?
We help children have fun, be healthy, and achieve their fullest potential with nature connection mentoring.
- Health benefits of nature connection
- Learn wilderness skills & traditional crafts
- Meet new friends and reunite with old ones
- Unforgettable adventures every day
- Skilled and caring mentors
- Exciting wilderness experiences
- Convenient in-town drop-off & pickup
- Boost long term cognitive & social development
Logistics
Drop-off/Pick-up Locations
All programs take place at Shope Creek Wilderness, with the exception of Blacksmithing and Heartwood: Oaks, which are based at Haw Creek Commons.
For programs occurring at Shope Creek Wilderness, parents may drop off and pickup at the program location or at Haw Creek Commons for van transportation.
For Blacksmithing and Heartwood: Oaks, parents must drop off and pickup at Haw Creek Commons.
Shope Creek Wilderness
472 Shope Creek Road, Asheville, NC
Drop-off between 9:45 am - 10:00 am
Pick-up between 3:45 pm - 4:00 pm
Haw Creek Commons
315 Old Haw Creek Road, Asheville NC
Drop-off between 9:30 am - 9:45 am
Pick-up between 4:00 pm - 4:15 pm
After Care
We are currently exploring a number of potential After Care possibilities. If you are in need of After Care to make this program work for your family, or if you would simply be strongly interested, please send us a quick email at [email protected] letting us know and we will keep you posted on our progress.
Clothing and Gear
Our programs are all-outdoors, with rain shelters available as needed. Children must arrive each morning fully prepared with a backpack, packed lunch, and clothes appropriate for being out in the weather. Families new to Forest Floor may need to purchase additional gear to ensure their children will be fully equipped for wet and colder weather as the season progresses. For a full packing and clothing list see our FAQ.
COVID-19 Cancellation Policy
A family is eligible for either: (1) a full refund if the cancellation occurs before the start of the program; or (2) a pro-rated refund for any unattended program days; under the following conditions:
Forest Floor cancels any programs due to COVID-19 or the Sars-Cov-2(novel coronavirus) pandemic.
A family needs to cancel because they are directly adversely impacted by COVID-19 (job loss, illness, or caring for sick family members).
AND in the event of cancellation (either on our part or yours)if you are in a position to donate your registration as a scholarship it would be a huge help to both Forest Floor and families in need.
Please note: Our standard cancellation & refund policy will apply for all cancellations other than the two conditions listed above. See our FAQ for details on our standard refund policy.
Scholarship Information
Overview
We offer limited partial scholarships to individuals who otherwise could not afford our programs. We prioritize scholarships for people of color and single parents with financial needs. We understand that people of color experience more financial and institutional barriers to participation, and wish to help counteract that by offering scholarships.
Donate
If you are a family with means, please consider donating to our scholarship fund. Donations of a 1/4, 1/2, or FULL scholarship can be made during the standard registration process. For more substantial donations please contact us to discuss details.
Apply
Limited partial scholarships are available. Scholarship funds are generated exclusively from generosity of donations toward the scholarship fund. Scholarships are limited to the sum of these funds and are awarded based on equitable distribution. Full scholarships will be considered for families in great need, but most scholarship applicants should expect to pay at least half of tuition.
To apply for a scholarship FIRST please register for the program/camp, choose the payment plan option, and only pay a $100 deposit at time of registration.
AFTER RESERVING A SPOT, please follow the link below to fill out the application.
If your scholarship request can't be approved or isn't the amount of discount that you need, we will provide a full refund of the deposit.
COVID Safety Policies
Homeschool 2023
Our COVID-19 safety policy is based primarily on pre-screening and monitoring. It is our current position that the single largest preventative factor at our programs is the fact that we are open-air and outdoors.
Pre-Screening and Monitoring
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Any child arriving in the morning with signs or symptoms of COVID-19 will not be permitted to attend programs that day. If during the program day a child displays signs or symptoms of illness they will be separated from other students and parents contacted to pick them up.
- All staff will be self-monitoring for symptoms of COVID-19. If they develop symptoms, they will notify their supervisor and stay home. Any staff person who develops symptoms of illness during the work day will be separated from students and other staff and sent home ASAP.
Masks:
- As of Fall 2022, we will no longer require masks to be worn on our shuttle vans transporting students
- Children and staff will not be required to wear masks, but will be fully supported if they choose to do so.
We will do our best to fully support any child or staff who self-selects for more restrictive social distancing or mask wearing than the policies outlined above.