STELLAR GARDENS
KEIKI PROGRAMS
BUSHCRAFT & SURVIVAL SKILLS
This class will meet on Thursdays for a three month period from September 5 to November 21, 2024 with Master Bush Crafter Joby Joyner. Your keiki will enjoy their day at Stellar Gardens, located in the Papa'a ahupua'a just south of Moloa'a. They will craft, create and learn essential & enriching survival and jungle skills while they enjoy the land, the stream, the animals (sheep, bees, dogs, cats, and all nature's creatures) and all that Stellar Gardens has to offer.
The skills they may learn include archery, weaving, edible medicinals, tracking, trapping, hunting, friction fire, farming, natural building and so much more!
MEET YOUR MENTOR
Joby was born in the San Juan Islands in Washington State, on an island of only 150 people, with no stores, no cars. In such an environment, one learns and lives closely with actions and consequences within the elements on a foundational level. His first day of school, he remembers nothing being taught of sustainability, and he thought, "if they don't
Joby Joyner
know how to sustain themselves, can I even trust them or their system?" So he focused on developing his nature skills and failed school for many years. Luckily, within his school years, his confidence and skill level in the natural world grew to the point where he was free of the system and able to provide for himself what he felt he needed to survive. It was then that he started to thrive, allowing every math formula and science theory into this life, now being fascinated and inspired by such knowledge. It was then when he realized how powerfully amazing it is to live on earth in society with no subconscious fears attached.
This realization then led him to experience, learn and teach many skills to many different people, skills including:
- Building log homes & natural building
- Teacher of wilderness skills
- Sailing over 30,000 miles
- School garden teacher
- Botanical garden tours
- Structural bodywork
- Wilderness first aid
- Reiki master
- Mediator
- Fiber
- Fire
- Weaving
- Tracking
- Trapping
- Stone tools
- Edible plants
- Medicinal plants
- Animal processing
- Hide tanning
... and more!
Joby believes the most important investment in life is first - learning and teaching sustainable skills, and second, empowering children to take on challenges passed on by all elements and elders to create healthy solutions.
WHAT TO BRING
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Snack & Lunch - preferably with minimal plastic packaging - keiki will be asked to pack their trash home with them
-
Water bottle + there is a Berkey water filter for refills
-
Towel
-
Bathing suit
-
Change of clothes
-
Adventure shoes - bare feet are ok, but this is a working homestead, and there is potential for glass, rusty metal, sheep poop, and more!
PRICING
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$65 per day
-
$55 per sibling per day
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10% discount for a month paid in full
-
15% discount for all 3 months paid in full
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Cash payment preferred
This will be a small and intimate class with no more than 8 keiki with ages ranging from 7-14. So reach out to Melissa for enrollment as spaces will fill quickly:
PAST KEIKI PROGRAMS
A STELLAR SUMMER
June 11- July 25, 2024
Stellar Gardens is excited to launch our first ever Keiki Program. After many years of creating this in our hearts + minds and experimenting with what we'd like to offer, we have finally found committed, enthusiastic, talented and collaborative keiki mentors, and the actual program has finally come to fruition!
We will immerse in nature among Stellar Gardens' several acres of permaculture jungle in the Moloa'a area, while we cultivate mindfulness skills, learn cob building, play in the surrounding fresh water stream, tend to the bees with hands-on beekeeping, create beautiful art, play games, get muddy, dye clothes with plants, harvest food, cook over fire, shepherd the sheep, make hau cordage, put on skits, play charades and chess, paint a mural and whatever else the keiki inspire for this adventure!
We are four mentors, Adriana Saggiomo, Molly Perry, Melissa Nash + Jackson Nash (see photos + bios below). Together we will host a group of up to 12 keiki ages 5-14, with the intention that we will have activities for all ages as well as break into two smaller groups of older kids + younger kids to offer activities specific to each age group. Adriana + Molly will be the primary mentors Tuesday, Wednesday + Thursdays, with Jackson + Melissa floating in and out as needed, while Jackson + Melissa will be the primary beekeeping mentors on Fridays.
While we know many families love to travel during the summer and go to other summer programs, we encourage each keiki to attend for the whole 7 week program. Many of the experiences build upon each other, and it's so wonderful for the children to be able to follow through with a whole project to completion. Of course if you aren't able to attend all 7 weeks, there will be countless activities that every child will love to do and will make lasting memories.
Together, we are creating A Stellar Summer of friends, learning and fun! We are so excited to grow with you!
Meet The Mentors
Adriana Saggiomo
Adriana loves nature, and she really REALLY loves learning! Having been a middle school teacher for 6 years, and raised by a master teacher of project based education she looks at every day as a school day. She is passionate about learning, food, farming, water sports, and the power of reflection.
Adriana’s priorities for this Stellar Summer is to foster a community within the program where fun, learning, safe risks, and growth thrive and build upon themselves. With experience teaching children inside and outside of the traditional classroom, and a background in Quaker education Adriana is excited to facilitate an absolutely stellar summer for your keiki.
Molly Perry
Molly has spent most of her life outside and has a strong affinity for respecting, learning, and preserving the natural world. The things she cherishes most in life are camping, skateboarding, reading, surfing, and listening/playing music as she drinks black coffee and reads a good book. Molly hopes to instill self sufficiency, empowerment, and knowledge as she and the children explore curiosities and dive deep into science and nature - all of course while having a ball!
Molly is passionate about environmental stewardship, equity, food sovereignty and fun. She is a graduate of the University of Vermont with a BA in art/photography and BS with a focus on outdoor education, justice and community development. With her variety of experience from working as a- wilderness leader, teacher, herbalist educator, Americorps and Youth Conservation Core farmer, she comes well prepared to safely guide our keiki as they explore Stellar Gardens.
Melissa & Jackson Nash
Jackson + Melissa are the founding stewards of Stellar Gardens. They have cultivated the land for over 12 years turning it from kind of a junk yard, into a wild jungle of fruit trees, sheep, dogs, cats, bees and their family and friends.
Please see more about them and their journey of creating Stellar Gardens by clicking this link.
What To Bring
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Nature journal - preferably with a blank front & pencil with eraser
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Independent reading book - any book of your child's choice
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Snack & Lunch - preferably with minimal plastic packaging - keiki will be asked to pack their trash home with them
-
Water bottle + there is a Berkey water filter for refills
-
Towel
-
Bathing suit
-
Change of clothes
-
Adventure shoes - bare feet are ok, but this is a working homestead, and there is potential for glass, rusty metal, sheep poop, and more!
Daily Schedule
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursdays
8:45-9 - Drop off
9-9:20 - Opening circle
9:20-10 - Activity
10 - 10:30 - Snack
10:30-12 - Main Focus
12-1:15 - Lunch + play
1:15 - 1:45 - Read/reflect
1:45-2 - Closing circle
2-2:15 - Pick up
Fridays
8:45-9 - Drop off
9-9:20 - Opening circle
9:20-10 - Beekeeping
10-10:30 - Snack
10:30-11:45 - Beekeeping
11:45-12 - Closing circle
12-12:15 - Pick up
*Please note, we will have class July 4
** We will not have beekeeping July 26
Pricing
Weekly - $222/child
Pay in full for the month to receive a ~10% discount
June - 3 weeks $600/child
July - 4 weeks $800/child
Sibling discount
Weekly - $200/child
*Please note that late pickups will accrue a $1/minute fee after 2:15pmT-Th/12:15pm F
Connect with Melissa for signups - stellargardenskeiki@gmail.com
