Earth School Aotearoa at Mangaroa Farms

A Living Classroom

Earth School Aotearoa is a place-based learning community for children, rooted in land, seasonal rhythms, and care for people and place. It is based at Mangaroa Farms, where gardens, bush, paddocks, and shared spaces become part of the learning environment.

Earth School is an independent educational initiative that lives in relationship with Mangaroa Farms. The farm provides a living context for learning - offering real experiences of food growing, land stewardship, and community life - while Earth School brings a learning rhythm that centres children in curiosity and connection.

Learning with the Land

Children at Earth School Aotearoa learn through hands-on exploration, movement, storytelling, creative practice, and shared responsibility for spaces and materials. Time is spent both outdoors and in the schoolhouse, with learning emerging from what is happening on the land and in the seasons.

Rather than separating subjects, learning is integrated across nature science, ecology, food systems, literacy, numeracy, and social learning in ways that feel meaningful and age-appropriate.

A Complementary Learning Pathway

Earth School Aotearoa offers one-day-per-week and seasonal programmes for children aged approximately 5–12. These programmes are designed to complement homeschooling or mainstream schooling, providing an additional learning environment rather than replacing parent- or school-led education.

Families are supported to remain actively involved in their children’s learning, with Earth School contributing depth, continuity, and a strong sense of place.

Mangaroa Farms is a working landscape shaped by regenerative values, food production, and long-term care for land and community. For children, this offers a rare opportunity to learn within a living system - where soil, water, plants, animals, and people are part of daily life.

Why Mangaroa Farms

Being based at Mangaroa Farms allows Earth School to:

Ground learning in real-world ecological processes
Foster respect for food, land, and labour
Build relationships across generations and roles on the farm
Model shared stewardship and responsibility

Earth School Aotearoa also welcomes visiting and international families who are staying at Mangaroa Farms for events, retreats, or longer periods. Where appropriate, children are invited to participate in learning days, and families are welcomed into the wider learning community.

The presence of Earth School adds a gentle educational rhythm to life at Mangaroa Farms, enriching the farm’s role as a place of learning, gathering, and regeneration.