The best kind of learning is the kind that is hands-on, experiential, practical, and useful, with bonus points awarded for learning that is life-long. This is exactly the kind of experience the educators at HealthBarn USA in Ridgewood, New Jersey, a leading voice in family nutrition, strive to provide for children and adults alike. HealthBarn’s motto is “Thumbs Up, No Yucks”, and it’s their mission to make the process of planting, growing, cooking, and eating healthy food feel like play. So when your kids attend a class, camp, or party at HealthBarn USA they’ll be able to sample just-picked produce from the garden, then they’ll learn to prepare simple, delicious meals with the food they’ve harvested. If this is exactly the wholesome, healthy, screenless programming you’d like your kids to experience, HealthBarn USA is offering springtime classes, school vacation camps, and summer camps for children ages 3 and up.
HealthBarn’s 10-week session of springtime classes begin the week of April 1st . Classes will be held outside on HealthBarn’s patio and in the garden, which is always bursting with life during the spring season. Your child will help prepare the organic garden for planting, and will learn about seeds and how to plant them. Over the course of the session, children will be able to see the seeds grow into seedlings and then morph again into plants with vegetables, fruits, herbs, and flowers that will populate the garden. These natural ingredients become the main ingredients for cooking meals and snacks your kids will prepare and taste test.
For those who are staying local for Spring Break this year, the HealthBarn’s Holiday camps keep the fun and learning going from 9:00am - 3:00pm the week of April 15-19. Campers can join in for just a day or two, or they can sign up for a whole week of planting and fresh air (weather permitting), time in the kitchen, nature hikes, crafts and more. Age appropriate programming will introduce kids from their youngest taste testers all the way up to their master chefs to the joys of eating foods that have been nurtured by their own hands.
Once kids have gotten a taste of the HealthBarn experience (see what we did there?) they’ll want to keep their hands in the mix (can’t stop, won’t stop) so sign them up for one or more weeks of the HealthBarn Summer Camps. Camps will run for 10 weeks from June 17th – August 28th . HealthBarn’s award-winning curriculum includes hands-on cooking in their “test kitchen” as well as preparing a naturally delicious breakfast, lunch, and snack each day with freshly picked ingredients from the garden. Meaning that HealthBarn camps are a vacation for you since you’ll get a break from meal prep! Camp themes for 2024 include: Be a Farmer, Be a Chef, Be an Adventurer, Be a Scientist, Be a Green, and Be a Healthy Kid. Registration for summer camp is open now and sessions are selling out fast! Not looking for a full day for your little one? Check out the Summer Seedlings, ages 3-5 held late afternoons when the garden is cooler and the youngest taste testers want a healthy snack. The program run for 10-weeks or 5 week sessions beginning June 17, 2024.
For more information about how to provide your kid with the culinary nutrition learning that will help them make healthy and adventurous food choices now and for the rest of their lives, or to register for classes, holiday camps, and summer camps, please visit the HealthBarn USA website. Private facility tours are available upon request. Then get ready for your kid to wow you with all their newly acquired knowledge. Bet you’ll learn a little something too!
1057 Hillcrest Road Ridgewood, NJ 07450
