What is a Tinkergarten class?
Tinkergarten classes are rooted in rhythm and ritual, using movement, song and an engaging and dynamic invitation to help launch play.
Classes last 60 minutes and always start and end with a circle time. Opening circle consists of songs, a featured creature, movement and an invitation to play. Closing circle is quite brief with a quick story if we have time, any short announcements and our closing song.
Play takes up the bulk of class—as it should! Our focus is getting children outdoors and engaged in intrinsic, meaningful self-directed play that supports learning and development at their level. Tinkergarten is your guide to purposeful outdoor play!
Tinkergarten Babies classes are 45 minutes long and, while they embrace the same basic philosophy as the big kid version, the setup is geared towards 6- to 18-month-olds and involves less movement. Caregivers sit in a circle with the majority of materials spread in the center. Play is largely sensory and is geared toward supporting the developing brain as babies explore and make sense of their world.
What does child-led play mean?
There is no supposed to in Tinkergarten. We as leaders are there to facilitate play and support guides and explorers as they discover and learn and grow—not to tell children how they should engage.
We fully support each child’s need to play and explore however they feel is right in that moment—as long as everyone feels safe—and meet them where they are at. If a child wants to explore a puddle while the rest of the group goes on a hike to discover hidden treasures in our park, that is absolutely fine! If a child feels the need to move while everyone else engages in a more stationary sensory play, perfectly OK. Leaders will circle back to ensure each explorer and guide has a pulse on the class, but there is never any pressure to participate in a certain way. And there certainly is never only one way to use materials!
What classes are coming up?
Tinkergarten runs in multi-week seasons (winter, spring, summer and fall) that meet once per week. The summer season is about to begin—Tinkergarten Babies, as well!
Each season, we focus on a different life skill. The spring season is empathy. Below are the season dates as of right now:
Winter 2025 (PROBLEM SOLVING): The week of Jan. 5 through the week of March 2.
Spring 2025 (EMPATHY): The week of March 23 through the week of May 18.
Summer 2025 (COMMUNICATION): TBD
Fall 2025 (WELLNESS): TBD
Winter 2026 (PERSISTENCE): TBD