Our mission is to empower children to become courageous, empathetic, free-thinkers with a sense of responsibility towards each other, their community, and the world.

Please contact us to inquire about space!

We accept applications year-round for waitlist spots and upcoming school years.

Evergreen Garden School is a nonprofit, Waldorf-inspired, mixed-age preschool and kindergarten program for children ages 2.5 (30 months) -6 years old.

We have two locations serving Wallingford and Queen Anne, both of which emphasize the outdoors and learning through experience in engaging, creative, and home-like environments.

Visit each location’s home page to explore our different options for care.

CORE BELIEFS

COURAGE:

Courage helps us navigate life's challenges while giving us the power to face our fears. The world needs resilient people who do the right thing and are prepared to meet life's ups and downs. We instill courage in our students by letting them explore, take risks, make decisions, and try new things.

EMPATHY:

Caring for each other is built into our mixed-aged classrooms as the children are empowered to help one another. Empathy helps children learn to connect and make friends, understand emotions, and become positive and conscientious community members. Through storytelling, free play, and social-emotional guidance, children learn how to understand, manage, and express feelings appropriately and develop empathy for one another.

FREE-THINKING:

We teach students to think imaginatively, deeply, and creatively while providing a safe place to share different opinions and experiences. At Evergreen Garden, children learn to become free, innovative thinkers through imaginative play, creative storytelling, daily discussions, artistic expression, activities, and meaningful conversations.

RESPONSIBILITY:

We help students build awareness of other people, their environment, their surroundings, and the world. We nurture a sense of togetherness and respect for people and the environment by giving students consistent guidelines and age-appropriate responsibilities such as taking care of themselves, each other, their schoolhouse, and school gardens.

COMMUNITY:

We see great value in working together since humans are wired for connection and thrive best when collaborating. Whether it is relationships in the classroom or communication between parents and teachers, we aim to support relationship building, which lays the foundations for a healthy and engaged community. We foster community by hosting gatherings, festivals, and child's play parties and by creating daily time for parents to socialize while their children play together.