Nature Preschools
The purpose of Mass Audubon's innovative, licensed Nature Preschools is to provide a high quality environment for young children that helps them grow as learners, curious thinkers, community members, and life-long stewards of the natural world. Through hands-on activities, exploration, movement, and play, we support children's curiosity and wonder using our wildlife sanctuaries as outdoor classrooms.
Licensed Nature Preschools
What could be more magical than a preschool where each child's innate connection to nature is celebrated? Each nature preschool provides opportunities for young children to learn through hands-on, nature-based experiences that address their developmental needs as they explore the varied habitats at our wildlife sanctuaries.
- Arcadia Nature Preschool, Easthampton & Northampton
- Pathways to Nature Preschool, Boston Nature Center, Mattapan
- Drumlin Farm Community Preschool, Lincoln
- Ipswich River Nature Preschool, Endicott & Wenham
- Fern & Feather Preschool at Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, Edgartown
- Nature Preschool Explorers at Long Pasture Wildlife Sanctuary, Barnstable
- Stony Brook Nature Preschool, Norfolk
- Habitat Nature Preschool, Belmont
Public Preschool Programs
See AllIn addition to our licensed nature preschools, many of our wildlife sanctuaries around the state also offer weekly public programs for preschool-age children. These programs give preschoolers a chance to explore the outdoors with enthusiastic classmates and educators, discovering nature close to home in the fall, winter, and spring.
Trailside Explorers
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Blue Hills Trailside Museum, Milton
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Saturday, June 1
10:00-11:30am
Families - children 3 - 6 years
Preschool Nature Detectives
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Magazine Beach Park Nature Center, Cambridge
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Thursday, June 13
10:00-11:00am
Families - children 2 - 5 years
Ipswich River Nature Preschool Summer Program: Potions and Experiments
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Endicott Wildlife Sanctuary, Wenham
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5 classes starting
Monday, July 8
8:30am-12:00pm
Age 2.9 - 7
Preschool Nature Detectives
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Magazine Beach Park Nature Center, Cambridge
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Thursday, July 11
10:00-11:00am
Families - children 2 - 5 years
Ipswich River Nature Preschool Summer Program: Keeping Cool
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Endicott Wildlife Sanctuary, Wenham
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5 classes starting
Monday, July 15
8:30am-12:00pm
Age 2.9 - 7
Preschool Nature Detectives
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Magazine Beach Park Nature Center, Cambridge
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Thursday, July 18
10:00-11:00am
Families - children 2 - 5 years
Teacher Professional Development
Natural Connections for Early Educators
Mass Audubon educators will teach you how to make the outdoors into a relaxed and safe classroom. When you shift teaching your curriculum outside, you and your students can take advantage of the calming effects of nature, better air flow, and increased spacing for social distancing.
Our series of professional development workshops, available in-person or online, cover:
- Resiliency Building: Children, Nature, & Social-Emotional Development
- Calming Sensory Stimuli: Art & Music Found Outside
- Expressing Yourself: Nature-inspired Language & Literacy
- Adapting to Change: Building Early Science Literacy
- Going the Distance: Socially-distancing Math Lessons in the Natural World
- Spreading Your Wings: Fine & Gross Motor Development
Resources for Early Educators
Mass Audubon is committed to early childhood education. Our preschool programs encourage curiosity and wonder through hands-on nature exploration, movement, and play—a tradition we've upheld for nearly 100 years.