By Linda Chuss

Contributing Writer

 

Collecting eggs from chickens, planting and picking flowers, watching a tractor up close – these are the kinds of the experiences that engage young learners at the Natick Community Organic Farm (NCOF). Children perform these activities in programs at the farm throughout the year, including preschool sessions, vacation week and summer camps, after school classes, and internships for young adults.

Located at 117 Eliot St., the classroom is 27-acre modern, working farm that has been serving the town for nearly 50 years. A non-profit organization, NCOF produces food for the community and teaches students as well as visitors about taking care of the land and animals.

“We see education as our biggest crop,” says Assistant Director Catherine Sullivan. “Through learning and exploring, students are gaining an appreciation for ecology, livestock, fields, and natural systems. They also get satisfaction from making a meaningful contribution by feeding people. The produce they grow, the eggs and maple syrup they collect, and the turkeys they help raise are sold at the farm stand and regular shareholders.”

All the opportunities at the farm are designed to instill responsible stewardship of the land in the next generation. Specific experiences depend on the season and age group. In summer sessions, which run from June 12 to August 18 for ages 3 to 15, participants harvest crops like green beans and tomatoes, feed scraps to the animals, and explore streams and woods. For afterschool, weekends, and vacation week during the school year, activities can range from maple sugar tapping and boiling and planting seedlings in the greenhouse, to shearing sheep.

Forest Gnomes, a special half-day preschool program held from September to June, has the children outdoors 95% of the time in all but the harshest weather. They hike and explore in nature every day and enjoy sledding and swings as well as the animals and crops. Preschoolers have their own backpack of outdoor gear and learn to add and remove layers themselves as needed. Erin O’Brien, Communications Outreach Coordinator, elaborates on the benefits: “Our Gnomes program allows children safe, unstructured play, to practice freedom, learn independently, and develop communication skills in their interactions. The children develop a strong bond with each other, forming a real community.”

O’Brien first visited the farm on a fourth-grade field trip and still recalls picking up sticks in the turkey yard to protect the birds from being harmed by eating them. She was so enthralled that at 13, she became a volunteer at NCOF, and later moved onto staff. Now, some of her fellow students bring their own children, and she sees their long-ago experience as accomplishing its mission.

The farm provides a break from books and screen time and is an unusual chance to learn outside about things not routinely taught elsewhere. That is one reason many attendees, like O’Brien, return for more than one program, with some working after school jobs there as teenagers.

Registration is now open for summer programs and will fill up; anyone interested is advised to sign up soon. Enrollment for the Forest Gnomes session starting in September is also open now, with options for two, four, or five mornings a week. April vacation week program registration will open shortly.

For more information about the programs and to register, go to NatickFarm.org. At the website are photos and videos, as well as details about the farm stand, workshops for adults, and other events. NCOF is open to the public for free visits, every day of the year from 8:00 a.m. until dusk, providing a chance to see the active environment and the students at work and play. Questions can be directed to [email protected] or (508) 655-2204.

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