We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nikki Kelly a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Nikki , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Nature is my grounding place, and it’s been that way since I was a child. My childhood was chaotic, unsteady, and changed all the time, but I remember having one constant: being free to play in the dirt and the trees and getting lost in the fields of flowers.

I began working with children at a very young age and went on to earn a degree in psychology and Early Childhood Education; my goal was to understand my childhood and how I could support families and children better. I worked at many childcare centers and schools and noticed it was overstimulating and stressful for the teachers and the children. I attended a PLAY conference at Roseville Community Preschool in Sacramento. There was a speaker with so much passion, frustration, and profound wisdom. He said, why are you having the children sit? STOP that! Why are you forcing them to sit and then feeling overwhelmed when they don’t listen? That was the moment I felt something click. I began to change the way I saw teaching and parenting. I went back to my classroom, and told my co-teacher, “We are changing things,” and she gladly let me lead this crazy new idea of a child-led, play-based curriculum in our classroom. The children were outside playing on trees and getting muddy, painting on their bodies, and dancing all day long. It was beautiful to see the energy rise.

I visited my first forest school in Santa Ynez Valley, Acorn Village. The children said goodbye to their parents and crossed a steadily flowing stream with their keens and rainboots, equipped with a full backpack for school that day. My curiosity sparked. We sat on a blanket and drank tea as a group. We felted, sang, and swam in the river, catching tadpoles. This was the day I knew this was what my heart wanted and how I wanted to teach. I had started to make a vision board of what my outdoor school would look like someday and thought about that day all of the time.

During COVID-19, my dreams of teaching subsided as I worked remotely in human resources and planned Zoom events. My passion for life had slowly dwindled. In 2022, I found out I was pregnant, and I instantly knew this was not how I wanted to continue my life; I was meant to teach, inspire, and play. I wanted to play with my child. I commuted an hour to work and back every day; I used this time to listen to podcasts on how to create a business, how to create an LLC, how to understand finances and taxes, and how to run a program. I learned everything I could about forest schools and our local fauna and flora. I contacted everyone I knew in the forest school world, shadowed other programs, and asked them to mentor me. I put in my one-year notice with my company – which they thought was comical, but it was the first step in making this long-game plan real.

I put in my notice, which was the scariest part! I then applied for my LLC and business license, started advertising, and created policies and procedures. I started pre-enrollment and meeting with families. I took each day as a new day with a new task. Starting a business has a lot of little pieces, and I took one little step every day toward the greater goal.

My school opened earlier then planned. I opened in January 2024 with only three children enrolled, two days per week, while simultaneously putting on a parent and me class the other two days. This class was important for me to build community and to teach the foundations of play-based, child-led, outdoor education. I enjoyed sharing the experience with parents to see how good it felt for them and their child to be in nature, even for a short two-hour class.

One year ago this was all just a list of to-do’s, a dream, and a plan. I now have over 20 students enrolled part-time and I have hired three beautiful, loving humans to teach along side me. I felt a huge rush of happiness and a smile sparked across my face when I was in my classroom last week. I was watching the children run freely under the pepper tree laughing and chasing one another. This is what I wanted. This feels right and I made this happen.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Woods Forest School is an all outdoor ( rain or shine) early years nature play program. We are play-based, and child-led which means our curriculum is emergent and comes with the flow of the exploration of our world. This school is born out of a deep love for nature and connection to it from my own childhood. I believe that connecting with nature is a foundational need for children.

Forest School comes with many questions, and to us, it’s quite simple. We are taking a practice that has been a custom for many decades and making it available again. This tradition has proven to be effective in reducing stress and anxiety, and it also contributes to children’s physical, mental, and academic development.

Our environment is designed to facilitate children’s growth by providing them with an open space where they can discover themselves and the world around them. Our teachers are always there to listen and understand the children. Whenever a child has an idea or a question, we encourage them by providing the necessary support, such as a lap to sit on, materials to build, support to climb, or simply an ear to listen. We offer a supportive community where children can develop important skills for personal and professional growth, including focus, communication, critical thinking, and self-directed learning. Cognitive development, which includes memory, problem-solving, attention, perception, and language, is a key aspect of our approach. Additionally, we place equal emphasis on social skills, such as effective communication, empathy, and conflict resolution, which are also essential for children’s development.

The concept of forest school might seem unusual to some, but it is actually a very simple idea that most of us can relate to. As a parent, I want my child to have the opportunity to learn, play, and connect with nature. I believe that outdoor play is essential for my child’s physical and emotional well-being, and will help them develop important skills. Giving the gift of outdoor play is truly a remarkable thing.

We offer our program to children ages 2-6, and open up for summer camp with additional ages up to 8 years old. We are open Monday – Thursday from 9:00am – 2:30pm.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I moved to Camarillo in 2021 and worked from home. It was really hard for me to connect with the community here. Starting a business in a town I had just moved to seemed impossible; I hadn’t made a friend in two years. The strongest relationships I have now, which helped me build a reputation actually ended up coming from my parent-and-me classes. Though I didn’t make much profit, I poured my heart into every class, and over time I felt really connected to the parents and children in the program. When I ended the program to begin my forest school full time, there was feelings of melancholy. Though a lot of the families have either continued with the program or support me through instagram by following and staying connected. I feel genuinely lucky to have met the families I did through that class.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media has a strong impact on being seen. I spent a lot of time taking short clips of moments that I felt represented what I was trying to portray. I spent many hours putting together videos and making relatable content. I also made sure my posts were very clear on what I am, and what services I provide. I paid for instagram ads so that I could reach my target audience. This was crucial in finding the people who want to find me.

I am educated in my field, but just because you have a degree or intelligence in something doesn’t make you the best. Research your field. I constantly read, research and learn as much as I can so that I can share more with my audience. This really helps you stay relevant. I also follow all of the amazing people in our area who are doing similar things to me, and support them. I comment on their posts, I meet with them for coffee, and instead of seeing them as competition I see them as my community. My mission is to connect children with nature, not to make the most money. Yes I would like my business to succeed, but it will if you have a healthy community and when you come from a place of curiosity and growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://woodsforestschool.com
• Instagram: woodsforestschool
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/woods-forest-school-thousand-oaks

Image Credits

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