Programs and Registration

Programs and Registration

About Our Programs

Taproot offers school year and summer programs for children ages 3 to 18 along with events for whole families. Age guidelines for each camp are flexible; we would be happy to discuss your child’s individual needs and abilities to find the right program for them. Contact us at info@taprootnatureexperience.org or call 319.325.0695.

Activities in all of the programs vary from day to day and are highly dependent on the season, weather, group size, and children’s interests, but have included: hiking, sledding, shelter building, atl-atl throwing, yoga and mindfulness practice, bow making, fishing, found nature object art, creek wading, fire making, gold panning, mushroom hunting, cloud watching and quiet observation, vegetable and tree planting, creek exploration, fairy house building, pond canoeing and swimming with life-vests, owl pellet dissection, animal tracking, sand engineering, treasure hunting, native species identification, maple tapping, snow building, campfire tending and cooking, outdoor games, and much more. Read more about our educational philosophy here.

We go outside in all but the harshest weather–An important goal of the program is to help kids learn how to feel comfortable and safe in nature. We encourage parents to send their children with appropriate clothing, and we help kids learn how to wear it.

If dangerous weather prevents us from spending the day outdoors, we may go to the Natural History Museum, the Johnson County Historical Society Museum, the Office of the State Archaeologist, rec center gyms, the Iowa City Public Library, or the Water Treatment Facility, among other indoor locations.

Learn about financial aid and donations here.

Foundations

Days and Dates: Throughout the month, July-May

Registration Deadline: Saturday, June 22

Tuition: $3500 ($320/month, includes 4-day Foundations Kickoff Camp June 29-July 3)
Location: Varies

Building on Taproot’s principles of nonviolent communication and unconditional positive regard, Taproot Foundations is an eleven-month program that will introduce and explore a variety of topics to help students advance their understanding of self-knowledge and self-care. We approach this in a variety of ways, with a heavy emphasis on experiential learning: group activities, monthly 1:1s with teachers, small group and whole group discussions, games, videos, podcasts, and occasional articles or books. We introduce a topic monthly, lead activities, discussions and provide supporting materials to support learning of the topic, and, using an experiment framework, help students learn what works and what doesn’t for them, and to keep and build upon those things that work.

Ecuador Spring Break

Registration Deadline: September 30, 2024

Days and Dates: March 12-23, 2025
Tuition: $4000 ($1500 deposit required; Payment plans available; Subject to change before registration deadline)
Location: Ayampe and Las Tunas, Ecuador

The Ecuador Spring Break trip builds upon the principles introduced in Taproot Leadership Camp and Foundations, providing kids the opportunity to experience a wholly different environment and culture while enjoying the beauty of the Ecuadorian Pacific Coast. This trip is open to current and past participants of the Taproot Foundations program and Taproot Leadership Camp in Grade 8 and above, including recent high school graduates.

Our days in Ecuador will be full and fun! We will be spending the majority of our time in the beautiful neighboring towns of Ayampe and Las Tunas, Ecuador, but we’ll also do day trips to other small coastal towns and beaches. Both Ayampe and Las Tunas are known for their pristine and uncrowded beaches, which are popular among surfers and nature enthusiasts.The towns are peaceful and relaxed, with a small community of locals and expats who live a simple and eco-friendly lifestyle. The towns are surrounded by lush tropical forest and are home to an amazing variety of wildlife, including different monkeys, amazing, colorful birds, and giant sea turtles.

School-Year Programs

After-School Program for Ages 5-12

Hours: School dismissal to 6:00 p.m.
Meeting Place: Upper City Park, Iowa City
Tuition: Depends on the day and pickup arrangements, see below
Group Size: Up to 20 children with three teachers

Fall ’24 Dates: September 3 to November 22, 2024
Spring ’25 Dates: March 24 to May 30, 2025

Kids sign up for one or more days of the week for the entire session.

NOTE: There is no Taproot ASP on Iowa City no-school days

Sprouts Mornings for Ages 3-5

Days and Hours: Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays 8:30 am to 12:30 pm.
Meeting Place: Upper City Park, Iowa City
Tuition: $450 per day (for the entire session)
Group Size: Six children with two teachers

Fall ’24 Dates: September 3-November 22, 2024
Spring ’25 Dates: March 24-May 30, 2025

Sprouts ride in the “Lorax,” our 15-passenger Ford van. Families provide a car seat or booster, which can be installed each day or left in the van for the session.

All-Day Programs for Ages 5-12

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Fall ’24 Days and Dates: Friday, October 11; Monday, October 14; Tuesday, October 15; Tuesday, November 5; Friday, November 22

Spring ’25 Days and Dates: Monday, March 31; Friday, April 18

Meeting Place: Upper City Park, Iowa City
Tuition: $85/day
Group Size: 18 children and three teachers

Kids can spend the day outside with Taproot friends. Destinations and activities will depend on the weather and who signs up,but you can be sure the day will be filled with nature and friendship.

Family Programs

We had a wonderful time at our Family Events this past summer and fall! Stay tuned for more events next spring! Here’s what we did:

Family Fishing at Kent Park
Date: Sunday, July 30 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Place: Kent Park Lake Fishing Pier
Cost: Free (limited space, registration required)

And much more! Read more to find out.

Summer Programs

Sprouts Camp: Ages 3–5

Days and Times: Monday–Friday 8:30 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Weeks: Each week of the summer from June 16 to August 22
Meeting Place: Parents or caregivers deliver and pick up Sprouts at each day’s destination, TBD
Group size: Six children with two Taproot teachers and a Junior Leader
Tuition: $250

Many of you asked for it, so this year we’re expanding Sprouts Camp to the whole summer! We’re also reducing the group size to six children, which will increase the amount of individual attention the teachers will be able to devote to each child. We’re psyched about these changes!

Sprouts is designed to give young children super fun time outdoors in natural settings, with gentle, knowledgeable guidance from experienced Taproot Teachers.

Cambium: All-Day Camp for Ages 5–8

Days and Times: Monday–Friday 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Each week of the summer from June 16 to August 22, 2023
Meeting Location: Upper City Park, Iowa City
Group size: 24 kids split into two groups, but spending most of the week together
Tuition: $440

We will run two sections of Cambium Camp each week during the summer–The Lorax group and Otter group, named for their respective trusty carriages. The two groups of Cambium will be determined mainly by when kids sign up, but if your child wants to be with a friend, please let us know and it can most likely happen.

This winter, Zac and Elesa will be scouting new spots for a long field trip in addition to Wildcat Den State park. We’re excited to find a super fun new Cambium destination! If you know a cool spot within an hour’s drive, drop us a note!

Saplings: All-Day Camp for Ages 8–12

Days and Times: Monday–Friday 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. from June 16 to August 22, 2025 (No Sapling Camp June 30-July 4)
Meeting Location: Upper City Park, Iowa City
Group size: 20 children with three Taproot teachers and a Junior Leader
Tuition: $440

Sapling Camp is a rich, nature-filled experience for children, guided by excellent, kind teachers and surrounded by friendly kids in an atmosphere of Unconditional Positive Regard.

This summer we add Mines of Spain Recreation Area near Dubuque to our long-trip destinations! We’re super psyched to explore this awesome new spot along the Mississippi River. Check the registration description for each week’s planned destination.

Taproot Leadership Camp: Ages 12–18

When: 9 a.m. Saturday, June 7 to noon Saturday, June 14
Meeting Location: Harvest Preserve Main Entrance
Group size: 18 kids, with Elesa and Zac as the main teachers.
Tuition: $1350 (25% deposit required at registration)

This summer TLC begins on Saturday morning rather than Friday afternoon, which is the Iowa City schools’ last day.

Leadership Camp is a 7-day sleep away camp. Participants bring a tent and we camp at Harvest Preserve and go on daily field trips to various activities and events. Because it takes place in Iowa City, it’s possible to make some custom arrangements if kids have scheduling conflicts or have difficulty staying away from home.

Payment and Refund Policies (Revised for 2025)

We know that signing kids up for summer camp has become pretty high-pressure in recent years. It’s stressful for parents–and also for summer camp providers! Taproot’s reservation and refund policies have evolved as needed, to try to keep the process fair and reasonable for all Taproot families, and to protect Taproot’s institutional well-being. In response to increasingly common practices of the last couple years–namely reserving many weeks of camp and then canceling most of them at short notice, requiring Taproot to issue refunds and scramble to fill empty camp spots–we are making some changes to our deposit and refund policy this year. We will be paying close attention to how it works, and we welcome your feedback.

A 25% deposit is required to reserve a spot in any camp. This reservation deposit will not be refunded except in the case of an emergency.

Full payment for summer camp tuition is due by June 6. Before this date, you can cancel your reservation for any reason and receive a refund of all payments over the 25% deposit.

After June 6, if you cancel a camp week with more than two weeks notice, you’ll receive a refund of payments over the 25% deposit. Cancellations less than two weeks prior to the start of the camp week will not be refunded except in the case of an emergency.

Examples of an emergency:

  • Your family has relocated to a different town
  • Your child has a serious or longer-term illness or injury that will prevent them from participating in the camp (more than a minor cold or bug)
  • Someone in the immediate family has an illness or injury that will prevent the kid from participating in camp
  • You needed spots for two kids but only got one
  • You accidentally registered for the wrong camp (and notified us asap)
  • Your family has had a major change in circumstances or finances and cannot manage to get the kid to camp or afford the tuition (in this case, please contact Zac about financial aid or other options so your kid can still come to camp)

Non-emergency examples:

  • You’ve changed or solidified your vacation plans
  • Your child got into a different camp that week
  • Your child’s buddy didn’t register for the same week
  • Friends or family decided to come visit that week

This policy is harsher than in the past, and I’m sorry for that. I want to emphasize that we’re human beings at Taproot, and open to hearing about your unique situation that doesn’t fit any of the above examples. Contact Zac at info@taprootnatureexperience.org or call 319.325.0695.