“Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” -Einstein

Where the Elements are our Element

Is Mother Earth School right for your family?

Faery Garden Preschool meets 3 days each week at TLC Farm Tuesday – Thursday from 9:15 - 12:30 and is for children who are 3 years old by September 1st.
Kindergarten meets 4 days each week at TLC Farm Tuesday – Friday from 9:30 – 1:30 and is for children ages 4-6.
1st Grade meets 5 days each week at Jean's Farm from 8:45 - 2:00. Children generally need to be 6 years old by June 1st to start 1st grade.
2nd/3rd Grade meets 5 days each week at Jean's Farm from 8:30 - 2:30 (times are still approximate)

Our classes spend their days outside on a working farm in all types of weather. The children pee outside or use composting toilets and must be potty trained. They interact with farm animals daily and get MUDDY (like you've never seen before)!! Unique physical challenges exist in the forest/farm setting as well. Children who are generally healthy benefit greatly from these challenges. Considering that there are no perimeter fences at the farms, the teacher:child ratio is 1:4 in the Faery Garden, 1:7 in the kindergarten and 1:12 in the grade school. Though our teachers are quite vigilant, children must be able to respond to verbal requests and should not be prone to wandering off.

Parents are asked to commit to the school in a variety of ways. Before applying, we ask that parents carefully read our parent handbook to find out more about our policies and expectations. Please note that we reserve the right to cancel school in extreme weather conditions.

Application Process

If you feel that Mother Earth School may be right for your child and would like to apply for the current or upcoming school year, please:

1. Fill out an application for enrollment (scroll down for link) and mail it along with your $25 application fee. We begin accepting applications on January 1st of each upcoming school year.

2. Upon receiving your application, we will contact you within one week to schedule a farm tour (farm tours are intended for children and parents; dates are listed on our website sidebar).

3. Please read our website and parent handbook before attending your tour.

Enrollment Process

After meeting each other at the farm tour, the parents, teachers and children need to have a strong sense that Mother Earth School is the right fit for your family. Your child's prospective teacher will contact you within a week of your farm tour to answer any remaining questions and then either invite you to enroll or discuss any concerns that have arisen. If all spaces are full, you will receive an email from the school administrator letting you know that you have been placed on the wait list.

Upon accepting your invitation to enroll your child(ren) at Mother Earth School:

1. You will be contacted within one week by the school administrator (via email) to schedule a contract signing at our school office. This contract signing if for adults only please.

2. Your non-refundable $500 deposit is due at the time of contract signing, but will not be cashed until all paperwork is completed (see below).

3. You will be given paperwork that is due back to the school within one week of your contract signing. This paperwork will include an agreement to support the school cooperatively by offering time toward attending meetings, preparing for festivals, promoting events and supporting the general well-being of the school through volunteer hours. Your child's space in the class will be officially reserved as soon as this paperwork is received by the school and the deposit check clears.

Your contract will indicate your yearly financial obligation to Mother Earth School. The $500 deposit will be applied toward this amount. You will also be given the option to choose to divide your yearly tuition into monthly payments for your convenience. You are agreeing to pay your tuition on time, with a fee incurred for late payments. The contract also contains guidelines in the case that your child does not complete the entire school year with Mother Earth School.

You will also be signing that you have read the parent handbook in its entirity. Due to the unique nature of our program, we need to ensure that parents are fully aware of how you are requested to support your child(ren) and teachers in this experience.

If you are enrolling mid-year, your tuition and supply fee will be prorated and the first week that your child attends school is on a trial basis in order to ensure that the group dynamic is beneficial for all.

Tuition

The yearly cost of tuition is $4500 for the Faery Garden, $5500 for the Kindergarten, $6500 for 1st grade and $7000 for 2nd/3rd grade. All classes require a non-refundable $500 deposit upon contract signing (which will be applied toward tuition) and a one-time materials fee ($150 for the Faery Garden, $200 for the kindergarten and grade school) due by August 15th. For your convenience the tuition (after deposit and materials fee are paid) can be divided up into 10 equal payments throughout the school year, due on the 15th of each month beginning in August and ending in May. There will be a $25 late fee charged every time tuition is received after the 20th of the month. Tuition and supply fee will be prorated for mid-year enrollment.

Contributions

Those families that are able to pay more than the set tuition are asked to pay any extra amount that feels comfortable. That money is tax-deductible and will go directly toward subsidizing the tuition of a family with a lower income that cannot pay the full tuition amount.

Financial Assistance

We ask that families consider the important effect that money has on influencing today's societal trends. Your tuition contribution is a statement of your belief in reclaiming meaningful education for children. All movements need to be funded, and your tuition not only supports the broader movement as a whole, but also gifts your child(ren) the invaluable experience of a deeply nourishing education. Your family become leaders in fueling the momentum of a cultural shift. Please make sure that your financial contribution reflects your level of commitment to systemic change in the educational paradigm. You are modeling empowered citizenship for your child(ren) by directing resources toward the elements of our culture that are in the best interest of the future.

We are making every effort to keep tuition costs reasonable while maintaining the health of our school. Currently our tuition is set as low as possible while still being able to effectively run our school. If you feel strongly that this program is right for your child but are unable to come up with the full tuition amount, we ask that you first explore creative ways of sourcing the money. Being willing to extend yourself financially tends to result in a deeper appreciation for the work being done at Mother Earth School and completes the circle of giving and receiving. We have a limited amount of financial assistance that we can offer and want to reserve that for the families that have the most authentic need.

We may be able to offer needs-based scholarships for our classes. Please inquire about our scholarship application. In exchange for a scholarship, we ask for a commitment to one of the specific volunteer position offered by Mother Earth School.

Financial Assistance Guidelines:

  • Every family MUST pay the $500 (per child) non-refundable deposit regardless of whether you are requesting financial assistance. This is a symbol of your commitment to our school and we cannot make exceptions.
  • We cannot guarantee scholarship money. After filling out a scholarship application, you will be notified of any amount awarded by March 1st. We cannot hold spaces in the class during the scholarship application process unless your child is currently enrolled in the school. We cannot guarantee that your scholarship amount will remain the same from one year to the next.
  • All families are asked to financially contribute at least half of their tuition. You will sign an agreement to donate volunteer hours to the school in an amount that is proportional to the amount of tuition that is being paid.
  • Faery Garden families are not eligible for financial assistance.
Application for Enrollment