Join us at our Nature Connection Mentorship Training this June! Scroll down to find out more.
Programs
Red Oak offers year-round programs for youth of all ages. Whether following deer trails through heavy snow, rounding up acorns in autumn, or making a salad from tender spring greens, our programs are tied together by a central thread: supporting youth to know and love the place they call home. Below is a general overview of our year-round and seasonal programs. Click on the links on each to learn more!
Year-round Programs:
Sparrow Song (ages 5-6)
Catkins (ages 7-9)
Kestrels (ages 10-12)
North Star (ages 13-14)
Weekly programs (1 day/week)
Squirrel Tales (ages 6-8)
Fox Tracks (ages 9-12)
Weekend programs (1 day/month)
Seasonal Programs:
Nature Connection Mentorship Training
A long weekend for adults and youth ages 16+
Into the Woods Summer Camps
7 weeks for youth ages 5-12
HeartSong: Winter Series
Singing and connection for teen girls ages 13-16
Teen Wilderness Trips
Backcountry adventures for teens ages 13-16
WinterCamp
A four-day camp for ages 7-12
Nature Connection Mentorship Training
June 25th-28th
Join us this summer for a long weekend of deep nature connection, skill building, and serious play!
In this four-day intensive we will learn the foundations of bird language, tracking, friction fire, wildcrafting, and foraging, along with core relational education and Coyote Mentoring tools such as the art of questioning, nature connection games, council practice, song leading, and storytelling. As we tune our awareness to the land alongside one another, we will strengthen our capacity for leadership that fosters belonging and mutuality amongst a community of humans and land.
Details:
Arrival will be between 4-5:00 on Thursday June 25th.
Closing will be at 2:00 on Sunday June 28th.
Our days will build on each other and so we ask all participants to arrive at the beginning and stay until the end.
Evening sessions will continue until 9pm, so if you live nearby and are traveling each day from home, plan to stay until then!
This course is for you if:
You are interested in deepening your relationship with the land in a hands-on, experiential way and cultivating skills to share it with others
You are an aspiring nature connection mentor
You are already a nature connection mentor and are seeking to deepen your skills
You are an environmental ed teacher and would like to gain curricular ideas and relational education tools
You are a parent who wants tools to support your family in nature connection
You are a parent who’s children attend nature connection programs and you want to experience it yourself!
you are yearning for a meaningful connection with others on the land
Our weekend will take place at the Center for Belonging Folk School, hosted by Liz Rog and Daniel Rotto.
Rustic camping onsite.
Some meals will be provided and some meals participants will bring themselves. Dinner will be provided on the first night, as well as lunch Fri-Sun.
Participants will bring three breakfasts, two dinners, and any snacks along with a camp stove set-up to cook it on.
Meals & Camping:
Ida Rotto: Founder and director, Red Oak Outdoor School
Zac Fittipaldi: Basket maker and craftsperson, Protect Gather Grow
Ann Hunkins: (pending) Internationally Certified Specialist Tracker
Liz Rog: Community Song Leader, cultural activist, and author of the Song Carrier Toolkit.
Elsa McCargar and Conor Murphy: foraging teachers and wildcrafters, The Wilders Way
Facilitators:
Weekly Programs
In these 12-week programs we venture out into forests and fields near Decorah to get to know the local inhabitants and learn through play, projects, and adventures. Where does the robin sleep at night? Is it possible for us to disappear into the bushes as quietly and completely as the coyote? Where is the best spot to build a rain shelter, and why? What do the oaks need to grow tall and strong? What do we need to grow tall and strong? What is it like to ask for what we need in a group of friends? What can we learn from willow stalks as we weave them? These are the sorts of questions that will guide our days together, as we follow our curiosity and creativity in conversation with the land.
Activities include sensory awareness games, adventures in bird language, edible and medicinal plant harvest, weaving and hand crafts, fire by friction, animal tracking, shelter building, story telling, singing, carving, improvisation and adventures in expression, land stewardship, and more!
Ages 5-6
Tuesdays March 3rd - May 26th, 9am-12pm
and/or
Thursdays March 5th - May 28th, 9am-12pm
**Sign up for Tuesdays, Thursdays, or both! Email admin@redoakoutdoorschool.com to learn about our 2-day discount.
Rooted in foundations of play and imagination, the children will build their sense of home in the outdoors. Joining the land in its daily rhythms, we will take up the invitation from the trees to climb, the squirrels to gather food, the beavers to build and the birds to sing, diving into the vital learning that comes with exploration.
Sparrow Song
Catkins
Ages 7-9
March 4th - May 27th
Wednesdays, 9am-3pm
Learning the basics of plant, bird, tree, and track identification, the children will be supported in forming their own unique relationships as both researchers and participants in the life of the forest. Expanding their ecological literacy and sensory awareness, the children will build confidence navigating the land they call home.
Ages 10-12
Thursdays March 5th - May 28th
9am-3pm
As they approach the changes and growing awareness of adolescence, youth are supported by building authentic connections with one another and finding allyship in the more-than-human world. Through skills such as fire tending and shelter building, they will build their sense of competence and growing leadership.
Kestrels
Age 13-14
Check back next season for North Star programs
North Star
North Star is the final season for students completing their pre-teen years at Red Oak. In these ten weeks, participants will be supported to set personal goals for their completion and draw on the skills they have built over their years in Red Oak programs for a final solo overnight on the land followed by a group campout.
Monthly Programs
Through exploring, stories, craft, and adventure, participants are supported to develop a stronger connection with themselves, the natural world and their community. Immersed in nature through the seasons, they will build their sense of competence and comfort in the land they call home. Activities include sensory awareness games, adventures in bird language, edible and medicinal plant harvest, weaving and hand crafts, fire by friction, maple sugaring, stories around the fire, winter animal tracking, singing, carving, and more.
Interested in teen programs?
We are too! Fill out our teen interest form where we are collecting information to help guide the vision for future Red Oak teen programs.
Ages 6-8
October 5th - May 3rd
8 Sundays, 9am-3pm
Squirrel Tales
Ages 9-12
October 4th-May 2nd
8 Saturdays, 9am-3pm
Fox Tracks
Winter Programs
Gathering around the hearth in the deep of winter we will sing, connect and speak our hearts in the coziness of the cold season. Singing together is an ancient form of human connection that helps us to remember on a cellular level that we are not alone and invigorates us with the beauty of our collective voice. Being together to share what is on our hearts and minds brings us fortitude and joy as we navigate life’s changes.
Our primary focus in this 9-week program will be to learn a repertoire of songs that we will share with our families at the end of our time together. Vocal and personal expression, improv games, and council practice will support our singing to be strong, meaningful and connective. We will gather in a beautiful home with tea and snacks and the wood stove to warm us!
HeartSong
Singing, connection and embodiment for teen girls ages 13-16
January 4th- March 1st
9 Sundays, 3:00-5:30pm
Winter Camp
A four-day camp for ages 7-12
9am-3pm
Immersed in the magic of the cold season, campers will learn from the hearty teachers of the winter landscape while tracking, shelter-building, cooking over the fire, telling stories and playing games!
Keep your eyes out for our mid-autumn newsletter where WinterCamp dates will be announced.
2026 Summer Day Camp Registration is Open!
Into the Woods Summer Camps
Into The Woods Summer Camps support youth to deepen their sense of place through earth-based skills, ecological awareness practices, and connection with one another on the land. Our days are centered around play and exploration, building relationships through games, adventures, and spacious time following our curiosity and creativity. Come join us!
Possible activities include: sensory awareness games, adventures in bird language, edible and medicinal plant harvest, weaving and hand crafts, fire by friction, animal tracking, shelter building, story telling, singing, carving, improvisation and adventures in expression, land stewardship, and more!
Chipmunks
Ages 5-6
Week 2:
July 27th - 31st
9am-12pm M-F
Week 1:
July 20th - 24th
9am-12pm M-F
**Our first week of Chipmunks is full, but there are still spaces in Week 2! If those dates don't work for you and you'd like to get your name on the waitlist for Chipmunks Week 1, please email admin@redoakoutdoorschool.com with the subject line "Chipmunks Waitlist". We hope that we may still be able to accommodate your family!
Bobcats
Ages 7-9
**Our Bobcats camps are full, but if you'd like to get your name on the waitlist, please email admin@redoakoutdoorschool.com with the subject line "Bobcats Waitlist". We hope that we may still be able to accommodate your family!
Week 1:
July 6th-10th
9am-3pm M-F
Week 2:
July 13th-17th
9am-3pm M-F
Coyotes
Ages 10-12
**Our Coyotes week is full, but if you'd like to get your name on the waitlist please email admin@redoakoutdoorschool.com with the subject line "Coyotes Waitlist". We hope that we may still be able to accommodate your family!
July 13th-17th
9am-3pm M-F
Night Hawks
Ages 10-12
July 20th-24th
This camp is open to returning campers who have attended 2+ years of Red Oak summer camps, or the equivalent in yearlong programs.
This camp will be held from 9am-3pm Monday-Wednesday, with a campout from 9am Thursday morning until 3:00pm on Friday.
2026 Teen Trip Registration is Open!
Teen River Trip
A canoe trip down the Wisconsin River for teens ages 13-16
July 27th-31st 2026
Guides: Maddy Boler and Amy Arnold
Join us for an immersive experience of life on the river! With the land and water as our teachers, we will canoe, cook over the fire, and uplift ourselves and one another as we travel through the beautiful Wisconsin Riverway - the longest free-flowing stretch of river in the Midwest.
Our days will be spent paddling and learning wilderness skills, while our afternoons and evenings will bring time for relaxation, swimming, games and connection around the fire.
What we’ll do:
Wilderness Skills: Focused on canoeing and water skills, the group will travel by boat, fish and harvest wild foods, and cook over the fire, learning the basics to feel at home in wild places.
Group & Leadership skills: Through group challenges, games, and the necessary tasks of caring for camp and one another on a small group expedition, teens will build leadership skills, learning how to listen for and find their flexible and responsive role within a group.
Location:
We will meet in Decorah, IA, where we’ll load into a van and drive 2 hours to Spring Green WI. We will put our canoes in the water in Spring Green, paddling daily to reach the Mississippi on the 31st. We will arrive back in Decorah on Friday the 31st in the late afternoon where we’ll share a potluck meal with families and share stories from our trip!
Maximum number of participants: 12 // Minimum number of participants: 6
HeartSong Backpacking Trip
A backpacking and singing trip for teen girls 13-16 years old
August 7th-16th 2026
Guides: Ida Rotto and Sophie Rog
Supporting participants to build confidence in their voices,
kinship with the land,
and connection with each other.
Singing is an ancient form of human connection that helps us to remember on a cellular level that we are not alone. Spending time outside brings our senses alive in ways for which they have been wired for millennia. As we lift our voices under the open sky and tune our ears to the subtle music of the land, we will build relationships with the more-than-human world, remembering that we are a part of the song of the wild.
What We’ll Do:
Singing: Throughout the trip we will rehearse a small selection of polyphonic folk/choral songs, and explore the range of our voices through warmups, playful exercises, and vocal games. As we listen and respond to the voices beside us, we will practice ways that our voices can blend and clash, be soft and loud, boisterous and tender. At the end of our trip we will return to Decorah IA for two days in which we will rehearse for a final performance!
Backpacking & Earth Skills: Our days and nights will be immersed in nature, engaging in activities that invite us into our sense of interdependence with the land. Carrying what we need on our backs, we'll draw on our perseverance and resilience as we hike along rivers and through forests. We'll stop by lakes to camp and cook our food over an open fire. In the afternoons we’ll have time to relax before joining together around the fire for dinner and evenings of games, stories, sharing, and songs.
Location:
We will meet in Decorah IA early on the morning of the 7th where we'll load into a van and drive 6 hours North to the Porcupine Mountains, MI. We will arrive back in Decorah on the evening of Friday the 14th where we will take a day to prepare for our final performance on February 16th.
Please Note:
No formal vocal training or experience is required to attend this camp. However, it is necessary that you can match pitches and sing simple melodies.
Maximum number of participants: 10 // Minimum number of participants: 6
*All non-binary, transgender and cisgender young women welcome.