Teach With Initiative’s Academic-Based Programs bring learning beyond the classroom and into the natural world. Designed especially for homeschool students and curious learners, these programs integrate literacy, mathematics, science, and creative inquiry through hands-on, outdoor experiences.
Using nature as a living classroom, students read, write, observe, measure, question, and experiment in meaningful, real-world contexts. Lessons are intentionally designed to encourage curiosity, critical thinking, collaboration, and reflection—supporting academic growth while fostering confidence and independence.
Our academic programs emphasize process over product, allowing learners to explore ideas deeply, build foundational skills at their own pace, and develop a genuine connection to learning. Through journaling, problem-solving, scientific investigation, and creative expression, students engage with academic content in ways that feel purposeful, engaging, and memorable.
At Teach With Initiative, academic learning is active, responsive, and rooted in experience—education done differently, where understanding grows through exploration and connection.
Upcoming Academic-Based Programs:
Program Overview
Young children learn best through play, movement, repetition, and sensory experiences. This program uses the natural environment as a concrete learning tool to make math meaningful, joyful, and accessible.
Student Outcomes
• Build strong number sense
• Develop positive math identities
• Learn through play and movement
• Connect math to the real world
• Feel confident and curious learners
Core Math Strands Covered
• Counting & Cardinality
• Number Sense & Operations
• Measurement & Data
• Geometry & Spatial Reasoning
• Patterns & Algebraic Thinking
• Problem Solving & Mathematical Practices
Coming July 2026!
Program Overview
This program uses the natural environment as both classroom and textbook, allowing students to explore math concepts through hands-on, real-world experiences. Lessons emphasize problem-solving, collaboration, observation, and inquiry while meeting grade-level math standards.
Student Outcomes
• See math as meaningful and real
• Build confidence and engagement
• Strengthen problem-solving skills
• Develop a deeper connection to nature
Core Math Strands Covered
• Number Sense & Operations
• Measurement & Data
• Geometry
• Fractions & Decimals
• Algebraic Thinking
• Problem Solving & Mathematical Reasoning
Coming July 2026!
Program Overview
The Art of Scientific Inquiry invites children to engage with the natural world as scientists and artists simultaneously. Students observe, question, investigate, create, document, and reflect—using science to understand and art to express meaning.
Science provides the questions.
Art provides the language.
Literacy documents the thinking.
Place provides the context.
Student Outcomes:
- Observe the natural world closely using scientific practices
- Ask questions, make predictions, and test ideas
- Communicate scientific understanding through art, writing, speaking, and movement
- Develop a sense of responsibility and care for local ecosystems
Coming July 2026!
Curriculum Overview:
Young children build literacy through experience, conversation, movement, and play—and the outdoors offers rich opportunities to notice, wonder, and tell stories. In this program, nature becomes both a book to read and a place to express ideas through drawing, speaking, and early writing, nurturing literacy alongside curiosity and connection to place.
Student Outcomes:
• Share ideas using words, drawings, and labels
• Build vocabulary through sensory experiences
• Speak clearly, listen respectfully, and take turns
• See themselves as readers, writers, and explorers
• Develop care and curiosity for the natural world
Core Literacy Strands Covered:
• Foundational Reading Skills
• Listening Comprehension
• Emergent & Early Writing
• Vocabulary Development
• Speaking & Listening
• Language & Grammar
• Inquiry & Curiosity
Coming July 2026!
Curriculum Overview:
Literacy grows when students are given authentic reasons to read, write, speak, and listen. Nature provides rich, meaningful contexts for inquiry, storytelling, reflection, and analysis. This curriculum treats the outdoors as both text and inspiration, fostering curiosity, critical thinking, and voice, while grounding literacy skills in real-world experiences that feel purposeful and engaging.
Student Outcomes:
• Read closely and critically
• Write with clarity and voice
• Speak confidently and listen actively
• Build strong connections to place
• See themselves as authors and thinkers
Core Literacy Strands Covered:
• Reading Comprehension & Analysis
• Informational & Literary Texts
• Writing (Narrative, Informational, Opinion)
• Vocabulary Development
• Speaking & Listening
• Language & Grammar (embedded)
• Research & Inquiry
Coming July 2026!
