Summer Programs — Part II — offer fun, outdoor experiences

Set on the historic lands of Sylvester Manor, the Summer Youth Program allows children to spend their days among the trees, soil, and wildlife, discovering the joy and curiosity that come with being immersed in nature.

Midsummer is an extra week at the beginning of summer, June 22-26, and is available for a limited number of children. A festival of flowers and crowns and maypole intertwines with the children performing Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream” to welcome summer.

The Traditional Summer Program encompasses encounters in nature while integrating environmentally infused content. Children have first-hand experiences growing and harvesting on a working farm, livestock and fiber and the magical essence of the forest as they sing and dance under her canopy.

Meadowlarks (ages 2-3 ½) 

Little Sprouts (ages 3 ½,-5) [must be 3 years old by January 1, 2026]

Young Farmers (ages 6-8)

Fig & Forest: A Culinary Adventure  (Ages 9-11) 

Pairing food, art, storytelling and music, daily activities may include understanding kitchen safety and what makes up a commercial kitchen, the origins of culinary arts, visiting the farm, foraging for ingredients, learning about sustainable farming practices, enjoying a hayride, taking care of the Children’s Garden and experimenting with local guest chefs. 

Forest Theatre (Ages 7-15) Dancing Moths (ages 7-11); Wing & Song (ages 12-15)

The children will move through music and dance as a basis for culture and communication through poignant storytelling and spirited movement. Each program will culminate in a uniquely authentic performance, in the forest.

Endeavors in the Afternoon (Ages 6-11)

A new program, Endeavors takes the place of the previous Extended Day Program. Each week’s theme invites children to explore the world around them through animals, imaginative stories, music, movement, forest structures, film making, artifacts and more. 

DIRT Extended Day (Ages 3 ½-5) 

Dig. Inquire. Roam. Try. (DIRT). A new afternoon program, where children are free to express their wonder in the elements of play in the natural world–sticks, dirt, mud kitchen, storytelling, painting in the wild. 

STEM @ Sylvester Manor (Ages 8-12) 

Using the Manor grounds as their laboratory, kids will engage in hands-on discovery learning. Young scientists will ask questions, make observations and create solutions. Led by Shelter Island School Math Teacher, Jimbo Theinert, kids will learn everything from building structures using natural objects, to creating mixtures and solutions, to identifying native plants and animals, to experimenting with leaves and creating physical sensory boards.

O.W.L.S. (Outdoor Wilderness Living Skills) — Ages 8-12. 

O.W.L.S. teaches kids how to identify, avoid and deal with common hazards encountered outdoors, while exploring all of Sylvester Manor’s terrain: Farm, Field, Forest and Wetlands. Led by Shelter Island native and outdoor enthusiast Jimbo Theinert, the program will immerse kids in an action-packed experience of authentic wilderness training, exploring and skills building.

Junior Farm Crew (Ages 10-14)

Junior Farm Crew has a hands-on week working alongside farmers as true apprentices on the land. This isn’t a class about farming. It’s farming.

From pulling weeds and transplanting seedlings to harvesting crops and learning what makes healthy soil tick, participants will experience the rhythms and rewards of working a historic farm from the inside out.

Quintessence is an extra week at the end of the regular sessions, Aug. 24-28, and is available for a limited number of children. An enchanted celebration of summer’s end, the week is a collaboration of music and dance, foraging and preparing for a forest to table soiree at the end of the week.

Registration is now open for the 2026 season. Visit sylvestermanor.org for session dates and rates. Questions? Email [email protected]