Luna and Eagle Nature School

Our Teachers

Sandra is the director and head teacher at Luna and Eagle Nature School. She is a mother, maker, healer, and advocate for earth, and indigenous teachings. Family reading before bed is time treasured. Laughs and cuddles too! And making a plant based meal that is kid approved. She enjoys making herbal delights from teas to syrups, meditating on the balcony when cars are not idling, listening to music while cleaning and singing her way through life! Favorite outing: Nature walks and book hunting. She lights up when she finds something on her wish list at a yard sale/flea market. And like that time her 6 year old made their first basket on the last basketball game of the season or when her 9 year old did their first back bend kick over after practicing and practicing.

Folks from all walks of life are growing children in this concrete coastal chaparral. We’re learning everyday how to care for each other and for the natural world in our backyard. I welcome you to join the Luna and Eagle Nature School community!

Music of the day: Baby Loves Jazz and Dan & Claudia Zanes

Book of the day: I Know the River Loves Me / Yo se qué el río me ama

Tip: Tea parties with children is a good way to give them herbal teas from plants containing vitamins and minerals. Make it fun!

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Philosophy

At Luna and Eagle Nature School, we believe that children are born intuitive, and connected to themselves. Children become disconnected when we tell them not to feel their feelings or not to engage with the world around them. “It is our goal to provide an environment that helps each child to feel confident and capable, and allows children’s own interests to help facilitate their learning and engagement. We believe that children grow, learn and thrive by exploring the world around them.”

We believe children are wired for empathy, connection, cooperation, and kindness, and we encourage positive behavior. We understand that every child is an individual with a unique way of interpreting the world and their emotions. Teachers observe how a child responds to their environment, validate every emotion (anger, frustration, fear, sadness), and guide children back to a sense of harmony with themselves, others, and the environment. We practice breath work (e.g. Bunny breath and dragon breath) and a short meditation daily.

At Luna and Eagle, children are developing a relationship with the natural world in a backyard ecosystem, and an indoor nature and play-based learning environment. Children who see Water, Air, Fire/Sun, and Earth as relatives, develop a respect for the environment that creates a lifelong emotional attachment. Our program models the Haudenosaunee philosophy (as well as other Indigenous philosophies across Turtle Island) of reciprocity with nature by expressing gratitude, and taking care of the land. We connect with nature through science, art and play!

Our focus is on developing a healthy body, mind, and spirit.

**Please note: We are a small class size. We are only accepting 7 children into the program daily. Smaller class sizes mean better interpersonal relationships.

Location

Luna and Eagle is nestled on a tree-lined street in the Cal Heights neighborhood of Long Beach (Puvungna).

Our indoors learning environment is crafted so that children may explore various activities based on their interests. Some of our favorite areas include a makerspace for tinkering, engineering, drawing & painting, dramatic play area (for social and emotional development), and light exploration area (sparks children’s creativity and investigation).

Housed in the art and science area is our guinea pig habitat rescue. Children can practice empathy for one of nature’s smallest furry creatures by occasionally adding hay to habitat or feeding one of the boars, Bunny, a carrot. Children share the responsibility for the care of the guinea pigs and some of the houseplants. In October 2022, a kitten, about 7 weeks old, adopted us (meowing at our door). Stormy is our “house kitty” and a welcome addition to the Nature School.

Children have outdoor time everyday. We are currently developing the backyard patio space What’s in store for the future? A tiny backyard ecosystem featuring a diversity of habitats: vegetable garden, herbal garden, fruit tree, berry shrub, and compost bin. A water feature, sand table, and outdoor chalkboard. Depending on the day, children will have the opportunity to walk (or ride in a wagon) for a sound walk, sight walk, or bird watch. Seasonally, we can observe how crayons melt in the sun (solar energy), leaves change colors, and the clouds grow dark.

A spider, roly-poly, grasshopper, or lizard are relatives and we treat them respectfully. At one time we had a resident alligator lizard, Mulch, living in the compost bin for almost 2 years. She was joined by another alligator lizard, Asparagus, before the heatwave in 2022 sent them packing.

Donations list:

Garden tools

Rain barrel

Wood for building mud kitchen

Rain jackets (sizes 3T - 12)

Rain boots

Seeds

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About our program

Turtle Island Foodway

At Luna and Eagle, we serve a healthy snack and lunch. We believe there is a direct link between nutrition and brain/gut health in children. We serve mostly organic fruit and vegetables, free range turkey, chicken, wild caught fish, a variety of grains, beans, nuts and seeds. A diet beneficial for the micro-biome in our belly and for the care and protection of the earth.

As the school garden grows, we will offer a farm to table menu. Eating locally and seasonally is what we strive for! A house chef is on the horizon.

As the program grows, we will invite a music specialist, a yoga instructor, and a Spanish immersion teacher to the team.

Admissions

Join the Little Luna and Eagle Eco-School community in four easy steps:

1. Explore our website

We’ve provided information about our philosophies and offerings to help you decide if our program may be right for your family.

2. Tour our program

Come see what makes Little Luna and Eagle Eco-School unique. Please schedule a tour or attend an Open House event.

3. Submit an Enrollment Application

If you would like to enroll, please submit an application. Please note that we require tours for all prospective families. Please do not submit an application if you have not visited the program.

4. Enroll

After reviewing your application, we’ll send an enrollment invitation. Upon accepting your invitation you’ll pay your enrollment fee, fill out enrollment documents and review our Parent Handbook.