Our Mission

The Children's Burrow invites children to discover and create meaningful connections through nature-based explorations as they cultivate an emerging understanding of themselves, their communities, and the natural world.

Our Vision

All children experience the joy and wonder of learning in the natural world.

Our Programs

The Children’s Burrow offers nature-based programs for children ages 3-5 at Tyler Arboretum.

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Our Approach

Our nature-based curriculum provides opportunities each day for child-led, experiential learning in a natural setting. Children delve deeply into areas of interest through exploration, inquiry, and investigation.

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Inspired by the beautiful colors popping up all around us, kids @childrensburrow explored painting with natural materials this week. Such creative, colorful process art! 🌸🎨
Building friendships through shared discoveries at The Children's Burrow. ☀️
At The Children's Burrow, kids have been so excited to see the turtles’ return, ducks’ arrival, and tadpoles’ emergence. We feel so privileged to be at @tylerarboretum where nature is both our classroom and teacher.🐢🦆🐸
From giant pinecones to tiny monarch eggs, the world is always changing around us. We are so thankful for Tyler Arboretum employees and volunteers for taking the time to share their expertise, observations, and collections with us!

Testimonials

  • One of the Children's Burrow ideals had to do with helping kids to distinguish between risky and unsafe behavior; now we find him taking thoughtful risks on the playground, exploring climbing walls and trying new slides, which were things he wasn't as keen on before. This was a magical year for our little guy and I only hope many more children are able to experience something like this.

    — parent of 3-year-old

  • This was the preschool experience I wish I could have had as a kid! Before my son started, he was a little bit afraid to approach other kids at the playground but soon after attending the Children’s Burrow, he would jump right in! He always was excited to go to school and he thrived in the fresh air and beautiful setting of Tyler Arboretum (a fantastic classroom). Gillian and Betsy are kind, empathetic, patient, and caring. I always knew my son was in good hands when I dropped him off. I could not recommend this program enough!

    — parent of 5-year-old

  • Our son had the best year of his life at The Children's Burrow. He enjoyed learning outside, making new friends and exploring nature. We can't recommend this school enough!

    — parent of 4-year-old

  • The Children's Burrow was a wonderful experience for my son. He was very shy at first but within a couple of days he was so at ease and never wanted to miss a day. He loved playing outside and exploring. I'm so glad he was able to get dirty, get wet, run, and discover his natural world. He became so confident and a different side of his personality emerged during his time at the Children's Burrow. Betsy and Gillian are simply wonderful! We loved getting the weekly emails with the photos of the kids' explorations. I'm sad that my boy has aged out of this program. We will miss it a LOT!

    — parent of 6-year-old

  • We were absolutely thrilled with The Children’s Burrow! Betsy and Gillian are thoughtful, kind, and intelligent teachers. We are so grateful that our son had the opportunity to experience nature’s classroom. The Children’s Burrow provided him the space to explore and learn about himself and the world around him.

    — parent of 5-year-old

“Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life.”

— Rachel Carson