Nature-Based Learning: BCNS & Mass Audubon Habitat Partnership

At BCNS Preschool, curiosity doesn’t stop at the classroom door. Through our partnership with Mass Audubon’s Habitat Education Center & Wildlife Sanctuary in Belmont, our Pre-K students spend select mornings learning outdoors - exploring the woods, observing wildlife, and connecting deeply with the natural world alongside BCNS teachers and Habitat guides.

Younger preschool classes also enjoy the partnership right at BCNS, with Habitat naturalists visiting the school throughout the year to lead nature-based lessons and sensory explorations in our own outdoor play space. These visits help spark early curiosity and build a foundation for future Habitat adventures.

This program offers the benefits of a nature preschool curriculum combined with our Reggio Emilia philosophy.

Three children sitting on a large rock by a calm river, surrounded by green trees and leaves, with their backs to the camera.

The Benefits of Nature-Based Learning

In an era where children spend more time indoors, our partnership ensures that nature is not just a backdrop, but an active participant in their education.

Real-World STEM Learning

Nature provides the ultimate laboratory. Children engage in authentic scientific inquiry: tracking animal footprints, identifying plant life cycles, and observing seasonal changes firsthand.

Physical Confidence & Resilience

Navigating the uneven terrain of the woods builds motor skills, balance, and physical confidence that a flat playground cannot replicate.

Sensory Regulation

The sights, sounds, and textures of the forest offer a rich sensory experience that naturally calms the nervous system and fosters deep focus.

A woman and a young girl look into a small mesh net held over a river, possibly for catching fish or exploring aquatic life. Other children sit nearby on rocks.

Outdoor STEM & Exploration Activities

  • Explore seasonal changes and local wildlife

  • Conduct hands-on science and sensory investigations

  • Practice care and stewardship for living things

  • Build resilience, collaboration, and confidence outdoors

Environmental Stewardship

BCNS Preschool and Mass Audubon share a belief that the best learning happens through exploration, empathy, and connection.

Together, we help children see themselves as part of something bigger - their community, their environment, and their world.

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FAQs: Habitat Program Details

  • Our Birch (Pre-K) classes visit the sanctuary regularly (every other Monday) for immersive field study. For our younger Maple and Oak classes, the experience comes to them! Habitat naturalists visit BCNS to lead age-appropriate nature workshops on-site.

  • Field visits take place at the Mass Audubon Habitat Education Center & Wildlife Sanctuary, located right here in Belmont. This allows children to explore woodlands, ponds, and meadows within their own community.

  • Families are responsible for drop-off and pick-up directly at the sanctuary on Habitat days. Many families choose to coordinate carpools to make this easier and build community connections. BCNS helps facilitate carpool planning.

  • Children engage in hands-on STEM learning, including wildlife tracking, plant identification, and seasonal observation. Beyond science, these visits build physical resilience and a sense of environmental stewardship.