Forest School Transitional Kindergarten @ Aspen Leaf Preschool
4- and 5-year-olds need to run, jump, climb, explore, and build. They should spend their days playing outside, rather than sitting in a classroom.
At four years old, language and social-emotional skills have typically developed to the point where children play “with” others instead of side-by-side. As they play, children learn to negotiate and problem-solve with others. Our teachers use role modeling and guidance to support children as they learn these important skills.
Aspen Leaf’s Forest School Transitional Kindergarten program offers everything children at this age need. The small class size and low ratio (~10 children total with 2 teachers) offers far more individual attention and small-group time than public school is able to offer. Our nature field trips offer the children the consistent opportunity to explore and play in nature that they’ll likely never experience again.
Three to five times per week, our TK classes take field trips to natural areas around San Diego. We have discovered so many beautiful natural environments in the county. These include canyons, beaches, county parks, and nature preserves.
Our curriculum
Our program prepares children for Kindergarten through a play-based setting and following an emergent curriculum. The areas we focus on are:
Small motor skills. The finger strength to use scissors, hold a pencil, and form letters.
Emotional readiness. A child is able to regulate emotions, and able to keep trying even when things are hard.
Social readiness. A child is able to work out small social problems with peers, and able to work with other children.
Early math.
- Know numbers and the count sequence
- Count to tell the number of objects
- Compare numbers
- Identify and describe shapes
- Describe and compare measurable attributes
Early literacy.
- Recognize and name uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet
- Sort common objects into categories to gain a sense of the concepts the categories represent
- Recognize that spoken words are represented in written language by specific sequences of letters
Emergent curriculum
Teachers structure lessons and activities around the children’s interests. Once a topic is chosen, teachers set up the learning environment to encourage exploration of the topic. The children learn language, math, science and social studies through a variety of activities that are centered around topics that “emerge” from observing children.
Play-based learning
When children play, they are learning about the world around them. When they run, jump, and climb, they are learning about spatial relationships and about how their bodies move. When they build, children engage in mathematical thinking and develop motor skills. When children participate in dramatic play, they are practicing abstract thinking and learning social studies. As children play with their classmates throughout the day, they learn important social skills. These interactions teach them how to negotiate and communicate with peers and adults.
Field trips
Three to five times each week, our TK classes take field trips to natural areas around San Diego. We have discovered so many beautiful natural environments in the county, which is actually the most biodiverse county in America. We’ll visit canyons, beaches, county parks, and nature preserves, where the children encounter and learn about plants, animals, insects, and ecosystems. Places we’ll get to explore include:
- Marian Bear Park
- Bonita Cove
- Chollas Lake
- Embarcadero Marina Park
- Evan’s Pond
- Fanuel Park
- Dictionary Hill
- Juniper Canyon
- Lake Murray
- Maple Street Canyon
- Tecolote Canyon Park
- & many more spots in San Diego County
Benefits of outdoor play
- Builds resilience and flexibility
- More opportunities for collaboration
- Community building
- Critical thinking
- Deep bond/connection with classmates
- Builds comfort and connection to nature
- Develops social, cognitive, and emotional skills
- Allows for open-ended challenges, accomplishments, and encouragement
- Develops environmental awareness
- Fosters creativity and imagination
- Builds self-confidence
- Builds gross and fine motor skills
- Helps reduce anxiety
- Improves mental and physical health
- Improves sensory processing, regulation, and learning
- Increases focus and attention
- Offers opportunities to overcome challenges
- Children learn to take and manage risk
- Offers more independence
- Offers more responsibility
- Problem solving
- Creates connection between family, home, school, and nature
Example daily schedule
7:30-8:45 – dropoff & outdoor play at school
8:45-9:15 – snack & bathroom
9:15-9:30 – load up in van and drive to destination
10:00-12:30 – outdoor exploration and learning
12:30-1:00 – lunch outdoors
1:00-1:15 – load van and return to school
2:00-3:00 – rest/nap/quiet time
3:00-3:30 – snack
3:30-6:00 – outdoor play at school & pickup
Location, schedule, hours
Forest School Transitional Kindergarten will be offered at our Hillcrest and North Park locations:
Hillcrest: 3518 3rd Ave., San Diego, CA 92103
North Park: 3111 30th St., San Diego, CA 92104
Hours: 7:30am – 6:00pm, Monday through Friday, year-round (see our calendar)
Pricing
California’s goal of providing free care for every four-year-old is a great one, but the way it has rolled out Universal Transitional Kindergarten in public schools only has decimated enrollment at preschools across the state, forcing many to permanently close. Nobody can compete on price when the alternative is free.
For families needing childcare all day and all year though, there are the additional costs of daily before-care and after-care and up to 15 weeks of day-camp or childcare when public schools are out of session.
For 2025-2026, we are offering a substantial annual discount for UTK-age students who enroll in Aspen Leaf’s Forest School TK program for the full year (August 2025 through July 2026). With the annual commitment, the monthly cost will be as follows:
5-days (Mon-Fri): $1995/mo
3-days (Mon, Wed, Fri): $1215/mo
2-days (Tue, Thur): $795/mo
With no commitment for the school-year, our standard monthly preschool tuition rates will apply.