Community Classes

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Review our Community Program Guide for all the details.

Summer

Fall

CURRENT PROGRAMS

This specialized Open Barn program is designed for children with special needs to provide a more accessible experience for the child and their family that might be hesitant to visit the farm due to a child’s complex learning needs or challenges (i.e. sensory needs/responses, language, emotional or social concerns, cognitive learning challenges, physical needs, etc.).
Ages 3-5 with a caregiver
Join us in this fun-filled session where children ages 3-5 will work hands-on with our ponies. Children will learn how we care for our ponies and ride a pony while building skills that involve confidence, independence, safety, and fun!
Children must be under 55 lbs for the health and safety of our ponies.
This class aims to provide hands-on education for beginning and intermediate composters that would like to explore the various composting systems suitable for backyards and basements. We will jump on the tractor and have fun touring the various composting systems used at Bowes. Participants will engage in hands-on opportunities to learn about Bokashi Composting, Passive/Cold Composting, Thermophilic/Hot Composting and Vermicomposting.
Parents and caregivers are invited to bring their toddlers to explore the farm and discover the ways agriculture enriches our lives. Children aged 2-3 can immerse themselves in the natural world, using their senses to experience firsthand the joys of farm life and participate in educational activities tailored just for them based on monthly themes.

Themes:
September: History & Harvest
October: Pumpkins
November: Horses + Rabbits
December: Winter Farm Fun
An immersive, hands-on, getting dirty, learning big, and exploring what it takes to help keep the farm buzzing along! It takes many hands to make light work and YOU get to be part of the team! Activities are based on monthly themes.

Monthly Themes:
February: Winter Birth Celebration
March: Ruminant Animals (Sheep to Sweater)
April: Spring on the Farm
May: Chicks + Chickens
June: Composting (worm farming fun)
July: Pollinators
August: Gardens
September: History & Harvest
October: Pumpkins
November: Horses + Rabbits
December: Winter Farm Fun
Equestrian program for youth and adults. Students will develop over a 6-step program from beginner to advanced. As riders progress through the program they will master equestrian abilities with confidence along the way, learning proper equestrian techniques and equine care. More details HERE.

General Information

If you are still seeking a greater understanding of a sliding scale model, review the pricing options below.

We are unable to either refund or make changes to your program date/time once purchased. Please verify your availability prior to purchase.
Sliding Scales are a model to not only accommodate participants of varying income levels but to allow us to continue providing these programs at a lowered cost. We are able to offer some programs with a sliding scale.
We are a community farm, an educational center, and together, we can help meet funding needs for all to have the chance to grow here. If you're able we invite you to choose a slightly higher rate, it would be a profound way to give forward.
This is entirely up to YOU, based on your personal financial situation. We encourage you to pay what feels right for you! Please keep in mind that your contributions sustain Bowers School Farm and our mission to welcome every visitor to discover and wonder in the world around them. We understand this system is new and we will not complete any type of income verification.
Some programs have higher costs involved requiring us to set a single fee to cover such costs.
The Farm is funded through the Bloomfield Hills School general fund, which is sourced by the state and provides teaching and learning services for students in the Bloomfield Hills Schools. Here at the farm, our top priority is to support our classroom teachers, providing hands-on learning opportunities. Direct expenses for activities that fall outside of the K-12 teaching and learning mission are passed along to participants of community events hosted by the farm. The hope is that our sliding scale system will help our programs continue to grow and thrive.

This is how much we would charge for the workshop if we were not implementing a sliding scale. We aim to welcome all students to attend our programming no matter their financial status and strive to pay our educators a living wage. Sliding scales will continue to let us do both. If you are financially secure and you have the income to pay for ‘wants’ without it affecting your ability to meet your needs then this is the price to choose.
This level is for those who would feel the financial pinch if they were to pay the highest price. If you are able to meet your basic needs, but still trying to gain long or short-term financial security then this level is for you.

We keep our program registration numbers to a low capacity to allow the learner to build a deeper connection with our farm and the farm community. Therefore, there are a limited amount of slots available. Please be mindful that if you purchase a price at the lowest end of the scale, when you can truthfully afford the higher prices, you are limiting access to those who need the gift of financial flexibility. (words from Worts and Cunning)

Previous Programs:

Intro to Gardening and Soil Health

In this introductory course for community adults and teens, we will explore successful strategies for small-scale gardening in Michigan climates and present best practices for improving soil health by utilizing compost.
This is a two part series
Compost focus & Garden Focus
Ages 16+
Farm Investigations: Use Less, Grow More

Join us for projects and experiments to celebrate our beautiful planet! We will get out our shovels and explore how certain materials break down in the “soil food web.” Kids will create a healthy soil mix for their seed of choice and get creative by making an “urban pack kit” that can be used for lunches or meals on the go (a great alternative to single-use plastics).
Literature at the Farm: The Hike

Books! Food! Creative Writing! Farm fun! What could be better? This program focuses on bringing literature to life on the farm. Students will read an award-winning book, participate in farm-related activities, and then create a very special book of their own. Our book for this spring session will be The Hike by Alison Farrell
Farm Investigations: Make the Most of Compost

What IS compost and why is it so cool? Kids will check out our steaming hot compost pile at the farm to learn about all the microbes using scientific tools such as a microscope. They will also explore the inner workings of a worm farm and discover the benefits they provide to our soil.

Hop Into Summer

Ages 3-5 with a caregiver
Summer is nearly here! Hop on over to Bowers to see what’s buzzing. We will learn about our bee hives and sample honey, gather farm-fresh eggs, visit the garden to see what’s growing, and visit our favorite four-legged (and two-legged) farm friends. We’ll wrap up the day with a wagon ride around the pasture, and share a summer-themed story. Join us with your favorite toddler.
Mane to Tail

Ages 4-8 with a caregiver
Join us in an introductory program for your child ages 4 - 8 years. This is a 3-week program with 1-hour classes scheduled each week.
Your child will be shown how to safely be around horses and ponies. The instructor will teach basic riding of a horse or pony while an adult family member leads and acts as a spotter during the riding segment.
Hold Your Horses

Ages 6-14
This 2-part program is designed to provide a foundation for working successfully with and around horses. Participants will gain new insights and skills that will enrich their time spent with and around horses and make them more proficient in their care and safety.
Saddle up in September

Ages 10-15
This is an introductory 4-week equine program. Learn the difference between English and Western riding.