“They Just Aren’t a Good Fit for Our Program:” Navigating the Implications of “Fit” for Children in Outdoor Preschools

By Rachel Franz (she/her), Twig & Thread Consulting, WANPA Advisory Board

Outdoor schools, including “forest kindergartens,” “outdoor preschools,” and some nature-based programs, sit at an important intersection. On one hand, outdoor preschools are designed for children who might not typically thrive in an indoor setting, especially children who need additional room to run, to move, and to yell. Yet, outdoor preschool educators tend to be the most challenged by children who run off and exhibit other “challenging behaviors” (i.e. aggression, hiding, sensory needs). The concept of “fit” has been long discussed in the outdoor early education community; how do we know that our programs are a good match for certain students and what do we do if we think they are not?

“Good Fit” Practices & Outdoor Preschool Tendencies

What does “a good fit” mean anyway? I believe that this term is very subjective and dependent on both the capacity of the program and the program’s philosophy around behavioral guidance or “discipline.”

Perhaps “fit” is a term like “Kindergarten Readiness” where we shape children to fit the system (instead of shaping the system to best serve children). Can we look more deeply into equitable practices and inclusion, and ask ourselves uncomfortable questions? Are we denying children access to an outdoor childhood because they don’t fit what’s easiest for us as educators?

The late Erin Kenny in Forest Kindergartens: The Cedarsong Way wrote about one philosophy on “fit,” which matches those of many small forest schools across the country. She writes, “I have witnessed outdoor parents who desperately want their child to embrace a program such as ours; however, their child is not a good match. They may refuse to put their hands in the dirt, or cannot express their emotions without whining or crying” (37). Kenny eventually evolved her program to be more inclusive of students’ developmental and cultural realities, but the question still lingers for many families and providers. How can we help a child succeed when they have a tantrum each time their fingers get muddy?

Reasonably, we must look at the current capacity of the program to support a child’s needs. If a child needs a 1:1 aide and we cannot hire additional staff, what can we do to support the family and serve this child? Is there a developmental preschool program nearby where this child would thrive more? If we don’t have the training to support a child with special needs, how can we access the training? How can we evolve our program to be more inclusive?

It can be difficult to encounter behavior each day that jeopardizes safety. It can be especially hard to know when to draw the line when behaviors are challenging but just within teacher’s capacity.  How do the dynamics of the class change when winter comes and cold hands and bodies need almost constant tending? 

The unique additional challenges of outdoor classrooms are an easy place to say “that is just too much”? So, why should we fight so hard to keep these students in our programs?

The Issue with Expulsion & Student Relocation

When we talk about students being a “good fit” for our programs, there is a dilemma. While we don’t want students running away or hurting themselves or others, we must also consider the tremendous impact of asking a family to leave a program on that individual child. In fact, thousands of preschoolers are expelled each year from early learning programs, a rate that is 3 times that of children enrolled in Kindergarten- 12th grade. These expulsions occur during the child’s most formative years.

According to The Institute on Early Childhood Health & Wellness, the impact of suspension and expulsion on preschoolers is tremendous:

“Young children expelled from preschool are more likely to:

• Lose chances to learn, socialize with other children, and interact with positive adult role models.
• Miss out on chances to develop and practice the very skills they may most need, including social and emotional skills.
• Develop ongoing behavior problems leading to later school difficulty.
• Experience harmful effects on development, education, and health.
• View themselves negatively or as not capable of learning.
• Develop negative views about learning, school, teachers, and the world around them.

Families who have a child who has been expelled may:

• Lose access to a teacher or program that may have provided support to their child and family.
• Experience increased stress, including financial challenges, as they look for alternative care. Some parents may lose their jobs when a child is expelled because there are limited alternatives for other care.
• Blame themselves or their child. This can lead to harsh and less effective parenting approaches at home” (National Center for Early Childhood Health & Wellness, 2018).

In fact, many of the skills and attitudes Forest Schools are so great at promoting are directly lost when a child is suspended or expelled. Additionally, expulsion tends to affect certain demographics of children more than others. In this helpful video by NPR’s Cory Turner, the tendency for bias in around preschool behavior is illustrated:

This bias has been cited by countless researchers. Dr. Dolores Stegelin (2018), of the Institute for Child Success, writes: ​

​Importantly, the majority of these young children, at least 42 percent of preschool children suspended, are identified as African American boys. These racial and gender disparities are evident as early as preschool, where black students are 3.6 times as likely to receive an out-of-school suspension as their white classmates. Additionally, while boys represent 54 percent of preschool enrollment, they constitute 79 percent of all suspended preschool children. Research indicates that a child’s early educational experiences greatly influence their development and outcomes later in life, making these data particularly consequential (Segelin, 2018).

Many outdoor preschools and nature-based programs, especially prior to the Washington Outdoor Preschool Pilot, have been writing our own rules on behavior, discipline, and expulsion. Yet, it is critical for equitable access to our programs that we look seriously at the impact of these policies.

Some outdoor preschools have adopted a non-expulsion policy. A non-expulsion policy reads something like this: Our school is a non-expulsion program. We believe that children have the best chance of success if they stay in school. Our educators use best practices to support children’s behavior and safety and work closely with families to support each individual child in their participation in our program.

It is necessary to explicitly publish how behavior is handled and to articulate steps when grievances, challenges, or safety issues occur. It is important to continue to grow our skill set and partner with families and with other agencies, when possible, to offer supports.  

Preventing Inequitable Expulsion & Displacement

Here are some recommendations on how to equitably address “fit” in outdoor & nature-based early learning settings:

• Help children participate first. Provide resources for dressing and having basic needs met (what to pack for lunch, resources for families who need additional gear, etc.). Helping children’s basic needs to be met will help them to be more socially and emotionally equipped for outdoor school, too. Consider the role of your “disciplinary” philosophy in helping children succeed.
• Be transparent. Discuss, record, and communicate your policies and practices to families and community members. If your approach is expulsion-based, explain why and how you will work to make sure this is a last resort.
• Train as a staff and be willing to learn from your students.  Each child has unique needs and learning abilities. Working with staff to find ways to support individual children not only helps children experiencing challenges, it grows skills sets and offers ongoing professional development that benefits the program as a whole.
• Identify resources in the community for developmental screenings, additional supports, and consultation. There are many free resources out there for programs and families! One resource that I love in King County is the Impact Program, and there are so many great ideas in the Seattle Children’s PlayGarden Inclusion Toolkit.
• Educate yourself and connect to your biases. When I was directing at Tiny Trees Preschool, all of our teaching staff would start with a workshop on Implicit Bias in Preschool and begin by taking the Harvard Implicit Bias Test. All educators should spend time examining their biases and considering how it applies to their work in schools.
• Do your research. Early Childhood Organizations across the nation provide resources about expulsion and challenging behavior. Read their joint statement here.

The students who are being pushed out are the ones who need outdoor and nature-based preschool the most.

Outdoor and nature-based schools must very carefully consider how we help children succeed and stay in our programs. We hold a significant space in the intersection of access to nature and early education, both of which are critical to later in life success. Instead of whether a child is a good “fit” for our programs, we must carefully build our programs for the children in our community, for their families, for their needs. Perhaps it means running alongside children like this, even if they seem to be running away.

Works Cited

Kenny, E.K. (2013). Forest Kindergartens: The Cedarsong Way. Vashon, WA: Cedarsong Nature School.

Stegelin, D.A. (2018). Preschool suspension and expulsion: Defining the issues. Institute for Child Success. Retrieved from: https://www.instituteforchildsuccess.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/ICS-2018-PreschoolSuspensionBrief-WEB.pdf

Zero to Three (2019). Preventing expulsion from preschool and childcare. Retrieved from: https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/series/preventing-expulsion-from-preschool-and-child-care

Institute Early Childhood Health and Wellness (2019). Understanding and eliminating expulsion in early childhood programs. Retrieved from: https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/publication/understanding-eliminating-expulsion-early-childhood-programs

NPR (2016). Bias Isn't Just A Police Problem, It's A Preschool Problem. Let's Talk (Youtube). Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watchtime_continue=12&v=ucEAcIMkS0c&feature=emb_logo

Author

Rachel Franz (she/her) is an early childhood consultant and trainer focusing on equitable access to nature and screen-free solutions. She is the National Screen-Free Week Outreach Coordinator and an advocate for mentally healthy, playful childhoods. From 2016-2019, she served as Lead Teacher &  Director of Education at Tiny Trees Preschool and has participated in the Outdoor Preschool Advisory Group for the WA State Licensing Pilot. Rachel is a proud member of the WANPA Advisory Board.