2025-26 Updates
Our teen program is full for the 25-26 unschool year.
Narwhals: Self-Directed Teens at NC
Do you have an interesting trip, person, or activity that you want to share with some self-directed teenagers? We welcome Visiting Specialists and organize trips on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, Sept-May. Contact Narwhals Facilitators >> narwhals@naturalcreativity.org
Narwhals at a Glance
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Oldest age band at NC
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13-18 years old, capped at 20 in the group
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NC days: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and/or Thursdays. Some come 1, 2, or 3 days/wk
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Morning and Afternoon Group Times for games, community-building & info-passing (same as other age groups)
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Block offerings 1-2x/day - Offered by outside facilitators or NC staff
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Self-directed! Do your own thing. This may involve doing your own projects or activities initiated by facilitators.
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May go off-site for lunch (a group usually goes out about 11:30am)
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Open tech usage within the Narwhals room (with emphasis on active creation and research); mitigated through tech agreement
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Biweekly check-ins with facilitator about their projects, goals, mental health, etc.
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Assistance in identifying and pursuing post-secondary opportunities, such as college and/or employment.
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Narwhals-specific trips and annual big adventures (Walk Around Philadelphia, day- or overnight trips)
The Narwhals
At age 13, young people at Natural Creativity are eligible to join the oldest group at NC: the Narwhals. Their inclusion in the group is determined by their interest, maturity level, and consultation with Narwhals facilitator. If a young person determines that Axolotl group participation (the group before Narwhals) is a better fit, they remain in Axolotls. We encourage age-mixing throughout the day; there are no restrictions to who anyone spends time with. However, only Narwhals are allowed in the Narwhals room (aka comfy couches for lounging teens).
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Narwhals are actively growing in their independence, self-expression, and creative problem-solving. Narwhals may use their time at NC for social pursuits, independent or group projects, a place to do independent study (inspired by a formal class like community college or Outschool, or not), or some combination of the above.
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Around age 16 or so, Narwhals may become more interested in community college, employment, and/or preparing for four-year college, They may continue those pursuits while maintaining connections to the NC community.
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Every year, we welcome a bulk of former Axolotls into the group, as well as a few from outside NC. In a given year, about 3/4 of Narwhals have done some version of unschooling/self-directed education their whole lives, while the other 1/4 has done 1-4 years of conventional school at some point.
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How does a high school diploma work for homeschooled high schoolers?
The end-of-year homeschool evaluations is similar to younger ages and includes a transcript that can be used for college and other pursuits. Read all about here: FAQs for Teen/High School Homeschooling Portfolio Evaluation.
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Big Narwhals Events
Depending on numbers, ages, and staff capacity, we do one of these each year:
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Walk Around Philadelphia (100 miles) (2020, 2022-23, 2025-26)
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Trip within 500 miles driving (NYC, DC, Pittsburgh, etc)
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Big trip on an airplane (like Colorado, May 2024)
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Camping trip (French Creek State Park, or elsewhere)
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Note: Due to the constantly changing nature of working with self-directed teens, the Narwhals program shifts and changes each year in response to the particular makeup of that year's Narwhals. Inquire to us if you want to learn more about the current iteration of Narwhals.
History of Narwhals (2019-)
The group formed in 2019 when there was a critical mass of 11 young people in the 11-13 year-old range who were looking for something a little more organized as a group. They gathered with Tess the Facilitator on Thursday afternoons in the community hall at FUMCOG for 3 hours, playing games, doing teambuilding activities, and going on trips. Each year, Narwhals has expanded and evolved with its changing participants.
In 2020-21 ("The Covid Year"), the group was made up of 7 Narwhals and facilitators Tess and Shane. We made the most of our time outside: We WALKED. First, we walked 100 miles around the border of Philadelphia, part of a project designed by JJ Tiziou. You can read JJ's blog post about the last day of the walk here.
Narwhals in Ivy Hill Cemetery, about 1/3 of the way through the first Walk Around Philadelphia (October 2020)
Narwhals Walk Around Philadelphia logo designed by Apollo L, original Narwhal
After those 100 miles, we. kept. walking. We walked all of Market St, Frankford Ave, Ridge Ave, Germantown Ave, Broad St (12 miles on the coldest day of the year!), and more. We got VERY good at the art of frolicking: Picking a neighborhood, finding its green spaces, and exploring. No map, no plan, no covid spread, and lots of fun.
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In Spring 2021, the group participated in a Pilot Program - NC's first attempt to offer a structured "curriculum" to young people. The pilot program featured six projects, a few "themed studies," and a presentation. This program was the seed for the Launch Program, which began in 2023.
When we moved into the Pulaski space in December 2021, the Narwhals were the first ones to unpack boxes and write on the whiteboards. In their first 6 months in the space, the group designed and painted a mural in Narwhals rooms that remains to this day (each Narwhals is represented by an animal on a vehicle). During the 2022-23 unschool year, another group of Narwhals completed the 2nd Walk Around Philadelphia. The group also did monthly Big Questions, presenting to each other. In Fall 2023, in response to the growing age and maturity of the Narwhals, the Launch Program was created for the seven eligible Narwhals at the time (all age 15+).
On a given Narwhals day (Tues-Thurs), teens can be found around NC, lounging in the Narwhals room (the only room that is restricted to a specific age), getting lunch from nearby takeout spots, working on personal projects, learning from a Visiting Specialist, scheming about birthday celebrations for each other, on trips in the city, and in their own worlds.
Where does the name "Narwhals" come from?
In September 2019, the group was tasked with naming themselves, their first collaborative challenge. Someone had a Narwhal stuffed animal and others liked the animal. We created a backronym, deciding that "Narwhals" stood for: Nearly Adult Really Weird Human Animals Learning Stuff.
"Launch" is not a backronym (yet).