Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brittany Murdock. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Brittany thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Shortly after moving to Utah my family and I took a drive up American Fork canyon to enjoy the fall leaves. A couple of miles up we stopped to throw rocks in the river, not anticipating the crossroads ahead. We tossed little pebbles, then bigger rocks and then my husband, Michael, wanting to show the kids a big splash, planted his feet firmly and sent a large rock tumbling down into the water. Seconds later we realized that Michael’s foot had landed square in the middle of a large wasp’s nest.

Our family of four was quickly under attack, receiving over a hundred stings in total. Our baby and 3-year-old were screaming and Michael and I were frantic. We raced back to the car to escape the wasps and drove quickly home. We spent the next several days taking warm baths and pulling stingers out of our swollen scalps.

Once we had healed and were ready to get back to the mountains, our three-year-old son refused to get out of the car or get anywhere close to anything creepy-crawly. It was at this time that I started researching nature education. With a beginner’s mentality, we started small by spending gentle time outside and using books to study the many amazing things minibeasts do to help our earth. His understanding grew from tolerance to passion and we soon found ourselves spending hours a day catching and releasing butterflies, dragonflies, grasshoppers, spiders, snails, and anything else that crawled our way.

As my son’s passion pressed on, our love for nature education in its most basic form became a way of life for our family, growing to weekend trips to herp (find and study) scorpions, lizards, snakes, and toads. In the summer of 2016, I decided to start a neighborhood group called Bug Club, consisting of 12 little nature lovers. Parents and children alike fell quickly in love with the idea of prioritizing grit and stewardship as a part of their general education. That fall it transitioned into a 2-3 day/week neighborhood preschool with 24 students and has been growing ever since.

As we have grown we have added an incredible teaching staff and administrative team, including our stellar Operations Manager, Carlie Davis. With Carlie’s added vision and energy and the staff’s persistence, Wasatch Nature School now serves over 500 children a year.

Brittany, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

We are lovers of the outdoors, early childhood education, and learning through play. We got into this business because there was a lack of this type of experience for children in the community and we were looking for something different than the typical mainstream offerings for early childhood experiences, not only for our own children but for all children and families in the community. We provide forest preschool, forest kindergarten, and advanced nature studies for older children with the hopes of inspiring individuals to love and care for the earth and all living things, celebrate outdoor experiences in all weather, thrive in every season, and encourage lifelong learners who engage in discovery and joyful adventures. We hope to accomplish this by facilitating learning through well-designed play experiences in the outdoors with our student body and families!

We combine the philosophies of Montessori, Waldorf, Charlotte Mason, and Reggio Emilia, with nature as the foundation and inspiration for all learning!

We are most proud of the growth and outreach that is taking place as well as the knowledge that we are empowering parents to seek out early childhood experiences that truly nurture the growth and wholeness of the children, and in turn, the whole family, and even the community. We started off a few years ago with one small group of students who met in a basement and went on nature walks, to now serving over 500 students a year!! It is incredibly humbling and we can’t wait for the continued growth in the future!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Like many businesses, March 2020 was a pivotal time for Wasatch Nature School. Prior to Covid, we were spending half of our days outside and half of our days inside. With the Covid-related restrictions and tuition being our only source of income, the path ahead looked grim. We felt that the only choices we had were either to move completely outside to allow for less contact or to close our doors.

It took an incredible amount of elbow grease and ingenuity to persevere through our transition to full outdoor education. If Carlie hadn’t joined the admin team at this time we never would have survived. There were adaptations that needed to be made, a curriculum that had to be altered, expectations to be managed, and Covid restrictions to stay ahead of. Our decided approach was to abide by the provided guidelines that would allow us to remain open through the ‘orange’ status of Covid severity in our area. The kids were taught to stay ‘eagle wings’ apart, to wear masks, to appropriately wash hands and everything was sanitized daily.

Through this challenging time, we were able to not only keep our doors open but also tackle our dream of a completely outdoor program. With Carlie’s amazing leadership we were also able to add a summer program to do our part to fight against the increasingly reclusive and indoor lifestyle that was being required nationwide.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

As with any new idea, nature education requires all of us to question our beliefs about standard 4-wall education. It can feel crazy sometimes to send 3-year-olds outside in below-freezing temperatures. It takes constant reminders of our belief that “There is no such thing as bad weather, just unsuitable clothing.” -Alfred Wainwright.

Teachers, admin, students, and parents all must be willing to regularly challenge our personal beliefs around the cost of comfort. Sunny days never go unappreciated. Moisture pushes our limits as people, and simultaneously, sustains the human race. By being willing to unlearn that people are entitled to physical comfort, we learn to appreciate the world around us and the true value of perseverance.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.wasatchnatureschool.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wasatchnatureschool/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wasatchnatureschool
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/wasatch-nature-school-orem?hrid=rtoBxHMMyxfQix06A8Y5lg&osq=wasatch+nature+school

Image Credits
Kelly Niederhauser Becky Soderquist Suzy Englund Annaliesa Jack Anne Deucher Anne Roth Kristy Nuttall Sarah Cobb Carlie Davis