T394 Royal York Rd, Etobicoke, ON | (416) 820-5233 | www.oaklearners.ca| info@oaklearners.ca

Weekly Recap: We had so much fun! 🌟

Read on for highlights, what's coming next, and a few handy tips for families.

Hi ,

Another incredible week at camp! 🌿 Our campers have been diving deep into hands-on learning and collaborative play, exactly the kind of learning environment Oak Learners was built for. Whether they're in the garden, the studio, or out on the trails, we're watching curiosity blossom in real time.

Thanks for being a part of our community. As partners in this learning journey, your support makes it all possible. We're already buzzing about what's coming next week, and we can't wait to share it with you.

In community,

The Oak Learners Camp Team 💚

🌳 This Week's Recap

What a wonderful, creativity-filled week at Oak Learners! Here's a glimpse into what our campers got up to:

🌿 Outdoor Learning & Nature Exploration: Campers headed on creek and park expeditions for soil and water collection, insect observation, and real field research. They became nature detectives, spotting the hidden science happening all around us.

🎨 Arts & Crafts Studio: Campers created daily art projects, bringing scientific concepts like gravity, absorption, and colour-mixing to life through creative expression.

🔬 STEAM Challenges: Our campers got hands-on with the physics and chemistry of everyday things, from giant bubbles to light refraction experiments.

🧘 Mindfulness & Movement: Through observation and reflection, campers learned to slow down, notice details, and connect with the natural world around them.

🥕What's Coming Next Week

Next week is going to be SO much fun; here's a little sneak peek to get our camper excited! 👀

WEEK 3: Root to Table—The Early Harvest 🌱

From garden to kitchen, campers become true food explorers! We'll celebrate the first flavours of summer while building confidence in the kitchen and learning where our food comes from. Every garden visit and nature trail scavenger hunt will connect our campers to the earth in delicious ways.

Typical Activities Include:

• Garden Art Exploration: Creating stamps and masterpieces using the textures of real fruits and vegetables.
• Seed-to-Snack Sessions: Learning the step-by-step journey of a recipe, from identifying the raw plant to the finished dish.
• Nature Trail Scavenger Hunt: Head outdoors to explore leaf shapes and learn to distinguish between helpful garden plants and those we leave alone in the wild.
• The Senses Station: A fun, low-pressure way for kids to touch, smell, and see new ingredients before they ever take a bite.

Share What Works

Making the World More Comfortable for My Kid

This is my first summer navigating camp life, and I have to say, my 5-year-old is having a blast. But recently, he came home with a problem: his backpack straps were scratchy and bothering his neck.

And here's the thing: at summer camps, backpacks are constantly on. They are carrying them to the park with their lunches, towels, and swimwear and on nature walks. So when those straps started bothering him, it meant discomfort during some of the best parts of his day.

I can't blame him; I have sensory differences with clothing and shoes myself, so I get it. I was that kid that had to have the soft fuzzy velcro straps on the seatbelts because they bothered my neck. So I took to the internet to see if I could find a sensory-friendly backpack, something that didn't have that mesh sewn into the straps. I understand why it's there; it helps the fabric breathe and your shoulders stay cooler when it's hot out. But I didn't find anything. Backpacks were not designed with sensory-averse people and kids in mind. So I got creative.

I grabbed an old cotton shirt with a leopard print, cut it into rectangles, and hand-sewed them onto the top of the straps near his neck. I made sure to sew it directly into the strap so it wouldn't move. It worked. It might not look "cool," but it's softer and doesn't bother his neck. I kept the rest of the straps with the scratchy fabric till I can find either a new backpack or more fabric to cover the straps completely.

As I navigate the world, a world not quite built for sensory-averse parents and kids, I've started to realize: so many things are designed for style, not comfort. And that's where you come in.

I want to hear your tricks. What products do you swear by? What creative solutions have you come up with? Send them our way, and we'll feature them here on Saturdays so other families can discover what works too. 

Oak Learners is a community, and communities help each other.

🎒Why Small Classes Change Big Feelings: The Science Behind 6:1 Learning Environments

Did you know that school is emotional long before it’s academic? New routines, noisy rooms, and social rules all stress developing nervous systems. Understanding the science of small class sizes reveals how the right environment can change everything.

What the research shows

• A recent study following children in the early school years found that distress and difficulties adjusting to school were meaningfully linked to classroom experiences—not just individual temperament. [3]
• Reviews of class size in special and intensive education settings highlight that students with extra learning or emotional needs tend to thrive more in smaller groups, where teaching can be adapted and relationships are closer. [1]
• Children who feel they belong at school and have strong relationships there tend to have better mental health, fewer behaviour problems, and better long-term outcomes, even years later. [10][11]

Small classes aren’t the only way to create that sense of connection—but they make it much easier. When there are six children in a space (instead of twenty or more), it’s easier to notice the child who is quietly worrying, the one who shuts down when they don’t understand, or the one who looks “fine” but is slowly disconnecting.

How We Create Connection at Oak

At Oak, small classes give us room to:

• Pause when big feelings show up rather than “power through” the lesson.
• Co-regulate—that lovely nervous system magic where a calm, attuned adult helps a child feel safe again.
• Offer flexible spaces: maybe a child works at a desk, on a wobble stool, or at a quiet corner table, depending on what their body needs that day.

Follow us on Social for updates on new programs and offerings!