Curriculum
Through our weekly rhythms and activities we strive to engage our hearts, minds, and hands every day in a small, intimate group of friends. Through being outdoors and taking in our surroundings, we become observers and scientists, explorers, animal enthusiasts, and gardeners, and through reading nature texts and performing experiments ourselves we bring our observations into clearer focus. Through playing with numbers and using nature tools, we develop our number sense and come to understand addition and subtraction, measurement, and place value. Through modeling and playing together, we learn to speak to each other with care and to listen. We learn to support our friends and navigate and express our own desires and needs with kindness. With the changing of the seasons and the world around us being our subject matter, we use free play, exploring, adventuring, hiking, climbing, running, art, gardening, cooking, natural crafting, movement, story telling, poetry, and singing to develop our sense of self, sense of independence and confidence, and through reaching beyond ourselves and our own world view, we become caring members of the larger community.
Rainbow Chasers Schedule Fall 2026
Monday
9:30 drop off outside in the backyard / play time and number exploration
10:15 inside for art
11:00 oatmeal for snack
11:30 indoor play time
12:00 circle time and read aloud
12:30 outside play time
1:00 lunch
1:30 pick-up (inside)
Wednesday
9:30 drop off outside in the backyard / play time
10:15 inside for baking
11:00 baked good for snack
11:30 indoor play time
12:00 science project
12:30 nature study at creek or pasture
1:00 lunch
1:30 pick-up (inside)
Tuition
Tuition for Rainbow Chasers is $400 and is due on the 1st of the month. It can be paid with cash or check, or through paypal or venmo.
Program Hours and Calendar
Rainbow Chasers takes place from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays. Normally the “school” year runs from the second week of September through the second week of June.
Summer Camps
Each week of summer backyard camp (for kids age 3 and up) has a different theme, and backyard camps are three consecutive days from 9:30 - 12:30. Toasty summer camp mornings are spent entirely outdoors in the shade of the trees and the canopy tent playing, creating art, reading books, as well as playing circle and tag games all centered around the week's theme and a walk to the creek for crawdad hunting and exploring. Children bring a snack from home as well as a water bottle, swim suit, towel, sunscreen, sun hat, and water shoes. When it gets hot, there will be plenty of time sprinkler play and water games. The cost of backyard camp is $120 per week.
Each week of adventure camp (for kids age 5 and up) has a different theme, and camps are three consecutive days from 9:30 to 3. We begin in the backyard with free play time, an art project, and a snack brought from home. After eating we load into the van and spend the rest of our time together exploring a new destination. When we're hungry, we eat a picnic lunch packed from home and continue playing until it's time to return to home base. Pick-up is in the backyard at 3. The cost of adventure camp is $200 per week.
Calendar
June (2026)
11th - last day of LRC
23rd - 25th - backyard camp: fairy gardens!
July
7th - 9th - adventure camp: monsters!
28th - 30th- backyard camp: camping!
August
4th-6th - adventure camp: splash pads!
18th - 20th - adventure camp: creeks!
September
14th - first day of RC
30th - Michaelmas
October
28th - Halloween celebration! Come in costume
November
2nd - Dia de lost Muertos
9th - Diwali celebration
23rd - 25th - fall break (no RC)
30th - Advent spiral
December
7th - Hanukkah celebration
21st - first day of winter break (no RC)
January (2026)
4th - RC resumes
February
3rd - lunar new year celebration
8th - Mardi Gras
10th - Valentine exchange
March
17th- St Patrick's Day
22nd - 24th - Spring Break (no RC)
April
May
June
9th- last day of RC
Attendance
If your child is sick, please keep them home.
If I or my children are sick and adventuring is canceled, you will be notified as soon as possible and a make-up day or days will be offered if possible.
We will follow the North Clackamas School District’s Inclement Weather recommendation for school closures. A weather delay will most likely result in a school closure. School closures will be communicated via text message and email, or you can check www.nclack.k12.or.us for school closure updates.
Arrivals and Departures
Please join us in the backyard at 9:30 for drop-off and let me know if you are going to be more than 10 minutes late (so we don't worry). Pick-up is inside through the back door at 1:30. As a big family with many activities and schooling to juggle, we often have plans and places to go after Rainbow Chasers. If your child is not picked up on time, you will be charged $1 a minute for every minute past 1/ 1:30 pm. That time will be based on the guide’s [my] phone clock. Children can only be picked up by their parents and one other person listed on their enrollment forms. If someone else is going to pick your child up, you will need to give written permission that morning at drop-off.
Clothing
Children will need a full set of rain gear including a hat, rain coat, rain pants, and rain boots as well as a pair of mittens or gloves every day. In winter months children will need full snow gear including a warm hat, a warm, weather-proof coat, snow pants, snow boots, and snow gloves. On chilly days, layers are wonderful and can be removed as needed. We will also need at least 2 full sets of extra clothes. In sunny months, children will need a sunhat and shoes such as keen sandals that can get wet and stay on as we plunge into rocky creeks.
What to Leave at Home
All other toys, all electronics including smart watches, phones, tablets, cameras, video games, etc., jewelry, and makeup.
Food
Snack will be provided on Mondays and Wednesdays during the school year. We will have warm oatmeal with optional toppings such as sunflower seeds, chia seeds, and honey on Monday and bake muffins together on Wednesday. Please pack a healthy, hearty lunch from home avoiding processed foods and sugary treats, and a water bottle.
Communication
The best way to contact me during non adventuring hours is through email or text. While your child is adventuring with us, please text me.