Our weekend playgroups are designed for young explorers typically ranging from 3 to 10 years old. Because we operate in nature rather than a traditional classroom, a mixed-age dynamic is incredibly beneficial! Older children build leadership skills and confidence, while younger children learn through observation. To make sure everyone stays successful, our helpers dynamically split the crew on the trail when needed—ensuring older kids get the rigorous hiking and advanced crafts they crave, while younger children get a supportive, gentle pace with dedicated 1:1 care.

Safety and meaningful engagement are our top priorities. To ensure every child gets personalized attention, mentoring, and support during our outdoor adventures, we maintain an incredibly low staff-to-child ratio that far exceeds standard requirements.

Depending on daily enrollment, our ratios range from a cozy 2:1 (for a group of 4 children with 2 staff members) to a maximum of just over 3:1 (for our largest group cap of 10 children with 3 staff members). This ensures that whether we are hiking, crafting, or exploring, your child is always safely supervised, deeply engaged, and never lost in a crowd. Furthermore, for your absolute peace of mind, every single staff member and helper at Jeremy Johnson Playgroups is fully First Aid and CPR certified, and our team leaders always carry a fully stocked, professional wilderness first aid kit on every outing.

We view social friction and big emotions not as a failure, but as a completely natural opportunity for growth! Our staff doesn't act as rigid enforcers. Instead, we give children the safe space to try and resolve minor peer disagreements themselves first to build social confidence. If they need help, we step in as supportive guides to facilitate a gentle conversation. Because of our great staffing ratios, if a child is having a tough emotional wave, one of our helpers can easily step away from the main group to provide supportive 1:1 attention to help them cool down and redirect positively.