LEARN WITHJUNIOR NATURE CLUB

A free, six‑week series designed to help pre‑schoolers connect to nature.

2026 Fall Session: Tuesdays or Wednesdays from 10:00-11:00 a.m.

Theme: Exploration of Senses

September 15 Our Senses
September 22 Touch
September 29 / 30 Hearing
October 13 / 14 Sight
October 20 / 15 Taste

Junior Nature Club supports Crossroads’ mission by fostering early connections to nature, encouraging curiosity, and building a community grounded in environmental learning and stewardship. Each week features themed stories, games, hands‑on activities, and outdoor play that inspire families to explore and care for our shared environment.

Classes are your choice of Tuesday or Wednesday from mid-September through mid-October. This is a family program so parents or guardians are expected to remain with the group throughout each class. Siblings and family members are welcome to participate. The class meets rain, snow or shine. Come dressed for outdoor exploration. We meet rain, snow, or shine, so come dressed for outdoor exploration. If the weather is too severe to be outside, we’ll move activities indoors.

Space is limited so please register here.

"I promise to be a friend of nature,

of the soil and the water,

of the plants and the animals,

for as long as I live."

- Junior Nature Club Pledge

Connect With Nature

Access to nature is an exceptional way to promote healthy habits, develop motor skills, problem solve, and create lasting connections with siblings and friends. Crossroads’ Junior Nature Club promotes a consistent connection to nature through various activities, games, and unstructured play all within natural settings.

Even during the worst weather Wisconsin can provide, Junior Nature Club can offer indoor activities that connect to the nature around us. Whether we are painting in the snow, digging through the soft dirt, making birdsongs, or making nature art, kids will get a chance to connect with nature in meaningful and fun ways.

Explore With Your Senses

Young children readily learn through using their senses to engage with the world around them. Its our goal to provide experiences that allow young children as many opportunities to use and develop their senses through the activities we provide.

We may work with listening skills through story time or sounds in nature. We may explore colors and our sense of sight through color walks or matching games. Or we might get our hands involved by building a bird’s nest or digging in the dirt. We might even explore our sense of smell and taste through garden exploration!

Engage With Other Families

Junior Nature Club is not a pre-school or daycare, instead it’s an hour-long program allowing children and parents or guardians to socialize and connect with each other to build lasting bonds of friendship and community bonding.

Children playing and exploring together are fast to form friendships, problem-solve challenges, and develop social skills. Meanwhile, parents and guardians can find connections to other family groups, learn about nature themselves, and take a few moments out of their day to explore nature as a community of people.