Outdoor Learning & Urban Garden

Five acres of outdoor classrooms, gardens and farm spaces give students daily opportunities to learn through nature.

Nature is a tool to get children to experience not just the wider world, but themselves.

Stephen Moss

With a spacious 5-acre campus, Monarch Montessori offers a natural oasis in the city that brings students and learning outside. Our Outdoor Learning and Urban Gardens offer multiple ways for students to explore outside, including with our fruit groves, raised garden beds, chickens, Peace Path walking trail and seven playgrounds!

Gardening

With 40 raised garden beds and a fruit tree orchard, our school brings fresh produce to our community that is proudly grown and harvested by our own students! Through hands-on experiences, children learn every stage of the gardening process – from preparing soil and planting seeds to caring for growing plants and harvesting fresh produce. Plus, students get to enjoy tasting the vegetables, fruits and herbs they helped cultivate during snack and lunch times, and also work with teachers to cook the food in our on-site solar oven.

Digging into Gardening

Students grow and harvest fresh produce, building a strong connection that the fruits and veggies are more than just food on a plate or a snack to eat.
Gardening teaches responsibility, patience and attention while helping living things grow and thrive.
The children learn science by creating an understanding of how the plants grow from a tiny seed into amazing plants that produce fruits, vegetables and herbs.

Peace Path

On nice days, you will often see classes walking along the school’s Peace Path, a half-mile walk weaving through the natural areas of our campus. The Peace Path is used for meditative walks, opportunities to observe and notice what is changing through the seasons, plus scavenger hunts and simple reflection. The whole school walks the Peace Path together after each whole-school assembly.

Animal Interactions

Monarch is home to many animals, including chickens, turtles, fish and more. Our flock of chickens, which is cared for by our trained Chicken Crew students, is a favorite for our school community! We also regularly partner with outdoor organizations to bring animals to the school for students to learn about and interact with.

As a note, children in First Steps do not touch the animals except when permitted by state licensing for their age group. Older children are able to interact with them and participate in their care. All students are taught healthy handwashing techniques and are supervised for healthy and safe handling of animals.

Community Partnerships

We are proud to partner with outside organizations who share our space and provide valuable professional knowledge about the gardens and their care. These valuable partners support student involvement and enrich their understanding of gardening, composting, nutrition, environmental stewardship and care for the earth.

Children’s Farm, overseen by the Montbello Organizing Committee, has helped create a farm right on our campus! Monarch students, as well as students throughout the district, use the farm to learn about agriculture.