Youth Education Programs
Friends of the ACFL’s programming is entirely FREE, but we prioritize member registration before opening spots to the general public.
If you would like to become a member and learn about these opportunities first, please head to our Support Us page prior to registration opening to ensure that you have first access to the registration information.
Join our exploration- and discovery-based after school programs throughout the school year! We will spend our time together making observations, asking and answering questions, and getting personal with the natural world around us. We will also engage in team building, social-emotional learning, and plenty of nature play.
Playing and discovering nature are integral parts of childhood development and these activities encourage our young community members to become leaders as environmental stewards and change makers in our world. Plus, we will make friends, have fun, and take learning outside of the classroom!
During each session (Fall 1&2, Winter, and Spring), we will meet on Wednesday afternoons from 3-5pm at different trailheads throughout the ACFL. Our sessions are separated by grade so we can offer programs specific to each group’s interests and abilities.
Please read the After School in the ACFL Handbook HERE before registering to learn more about our schedule, things you’ll need to send with each child, and more information about the program.
After School in the ACFL: Our School Year Program
2026 Fall Session 1: Grades 1 - 2
Wednesdays | Sept 9 - Oct 7 | 5 weeks | 3-5pm
Priority Registration: Aug 15 | General Registration: Sept 1
2026 Fall Session 2: Grades 3-5
Wednesdays | Oct 21 - Dec 9 | 6 weeks | 3-5pm
Priority Registration: Sept 15 | General Registration: Oct 1
After School in the ACFL: Yearly Calendar
Fall Session 1: September - October | Grades 1 - 2
Fall Session 2: October - December | Grades 3 - 5
Winter: February - April | Grades K - 2
Spring: April - June | Grades 3 - 5
Forest Discovery Day Camp: Our Summer Program
Forest Discovery is for campers ages 6-8, 8-11 and new in 2025, 12-14, with a maximum capacity of 15 participants per session. Sessions for the younger campers are half-days (3 hours long) and for the older campers, full days (9am-4 pm). Sessions run 4 consecutive days (Monday-Thursday or Tuesday-Friday) and are led by two Friends of the ACFL educators. Due to high demand for this program, children can be registered for only one session per summer.
Click here for the Forest Discovery Handbook
For over three decades, Friends of the ACFL has held Forest Discovery, our free environmental education summer day camp. Children who are enrolled in Forest Discovery Summer Day Camp will have the opportunity to explore and experience the ACFL’s rich ecosystems through activities relevant to the group's interests. Observational skills, critical thinking, social-emotional learning, and team-building will be practiced through art, science, writing, reading, and physical activities. Forest Discovery helps nurture a connection with the ACFL and deepens a sense of place in our young community members. Campers will gain a sense of camaraderie with each other and the natural world and, of course, have a blast!
Summer 2026 Schedule
As a thank you to our members for supporting our programs we offer member priority registration for all of our programs. Learn more about being a member.
Science Sleuths: Our Spring Break Camp
2027 Spring Break Camp Schedule: coming soon!
Join Friends of the ACFL for our science and inquiry-based spring break camp for students grades K-5! Every day our science sleuths will do investigations and experiments to learn about the forest around them and build their connection with our wonderful community forest.
Our three hour, half-day schedule is perfect for kids who are looking for some independence and to make new friends while exploring the forest. Each day we will explore a specific theme through asking questions, making art, and getting to know the forest. We will also have time to play, share stories, and team build throughout the week.
Please read the Science Sleuths Handbook HERE for more information!
Registration
Thank you for another fun filled science sleuth camp!
Young Explorers: A Half Day Conference Week Camp
Young Explorers runs one week in February and October during the Anacortes School District Half-Day Conference Weeks.
Our young explorers learn about the ACFL and themselves while completing hands-on activities and playing in the forest. This camp focuses on nature inquiry, and using critical thinking and teamwork skills to uncover some of our forest’s mysteries. Every day at camp your child will get the chance to be a scientist, artist, problem solver, and member of the forest community. Each day we will explore a specific theme through asking questions, making art, and getting to know the forest. We will also have time to play, share stories, and team build throughout the week. Plus they’ll come home with stories to share and great ways to get the whole family outside!
Please read the Young Explorers Handbook HERE for more information!
2027 Feb Young Explorers
Tues - Fri | Feb 9 - 12 | Grades 3 - 5
Registration dates TBD
2026 Oct Young Explorers
Tues - Fri | Oct 15 - 16 | Grades 1 - 2
Priority Registration: Sept 1 | General Registration: Sept 15
Public School Programs
Thanks to our dedicated donors, business sponsors and members, we are proud to offer no cost education programs for every kindergartener, 3rd grader and 7th grader in the Anacortes School District (ASD). Our programs focus on bringing the ACFL into each classroom and getting students out into our cherished community forest lands. Each grade level program is aligned with classroom learning standards and focuses on observations, inquiry and developing a personal relationships with the forest. Read more about each grade level program below.
Kindergarten Programs
ASD kindergarteners spend the year exploring the theme, “Trees and Me”. During our year round programming students use their senses to gather information about trees and the forest around them, while discovering the ways humans and trees are similar and different.
3rd Grade programs
3rd graders throughout ASD follow the theme of “Observations and Adaptations” as they learn about traits and relationships throughout the forest. These programs build around forming connections with specific plants and animals in the forest and learning about how they contribute to the web of life that is our forest ecosystem.
7th grade programs
7th graders engage in project-based learning to explore the theme of “Ecosystems, Selective Pressures and Adaptations”. During classroom visits and field trips, students investigate the process of natural selection and resulting adaptations in native organisms. This series of ACFL-based learning culminates in a project where students create the perfect beast using adaptions they have learned about, or creating their own.
Homeschool Field Trips
Our homeschool program provides place-based learning opportunities for students to practice science, creative and communication skills, and get outside in our beautiful community forest lands! These field trips are designed to be flexible for K-5 students with modifications and extensions for a variety of learners. All programs are planned to be roughly 3 hours long, but specific length can be tailored to meet the needs of your group.
Curricula Offered:
Plants of the ACFL
Students will learn about native plants through a group game, a nature journaling activity, and a scavenger hunt about ecosystem services of native plants. Students will use movement to connect with plants, inquiry and critical thinking skills to make and record observations, ask questions, and make connections.
Habitat Detectives
Students will learn about animals that live in the ACFL and the adaptations that help them survive. Students will play a game to simulate how bats use echolocation, “adopt” a forest animal to learn about its adaptations and habitat requirements, and explore how organisms are connected to each other.
Forest Senses
Students will use their senses to get to know, and become more comfortable in, the forest. Students will practice skills like matching, making and recording observations, and engaging in inquiry about the natural world around them.
Pollinators & Flowers
Students will practice observational, SEL, and creative skills to learn about local pollinators and investigate their role in the forest ecosystem. Students will explore how pollinators are specially adapted to their host plants, and even be challenged to create their own pollinator/plant pairing!
Beaver Engineers
Students will use engineering and critical thinking skills to explore how beavers support forest health. After completing a scavenger hunt focused on beaver evidence in the ACFL, students will get to try to build their own dams!
To schedule:
Groups must schedule with a minimum of 10 students. There should be at least one adult chaperone for every 5 students.
Please plan on submitting program requests no later than 4 weeks in advance of the desired program date. We may not be able to accommodate all dates.
We have limited capacity to schedule these programs during peak programming times: April - May, July, Oct - Nov.
Programs are free, but please consider supporting our work by donating or joining as a member!
To schedule a program, please reach out to programs@friendsoftheacfl.org.
*Friends of the ACFL’s programming is entirely FREE, but we prioritize member registration before opening spots to the general public. If you would like to become a member and learn about these opportunities first, please head to our Support Us page prior to registration opening to ensure that you have first access to the registration information.
If you have any questions about our youth programs, please email our Programs Team at programs@friendsoftheacfl.org.