PROGRAM
At Natural Creativity, young people explore collaboration, creativity, and compassion in a close-knit environment that values each individual and their role in the larger community. Facilitators focus on fostering personal development, relationships, and community growth.
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PROGRAM DAYS: MONDAYS: Sensory-friendly, intentionally small, under age 12 (max 15 young people). Staff are especially focused on neurodiversity-affirming structures.
TUES-THURS: Bigger program days, open to diverse ages and needs
FRIDAYS: NC Academy (teen academic classes)
Families enroll for 1, 2, 3, or 4 days; 2 is average, and families sign up for the same day(s) each week.​
PROGRAM HOURS: 9AM - 3PM (different for Friday NC Academy)
ENROLLMENT AGES: 5 - 18 YEARS OLD
PROGRAM YEAR: SEPTEMBER - JUNE
PROGRAM FEES: SEE FEES HERE
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Enrollment Timeline​
March - Enrollment conversations begin for the upcoming fall
March thru August: Executive Director meets with families about enrollment
Early September: Enrollment closes
Beginning of program: 2nd-3rd week of September
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We welcome inquiries throughout the year, however we are not able to take new young people after early September.
We are proudly located on the border of Germantown and East Falls in Northwest Philadelphia. Our space features a library, a woodshop, maker space, kitchen, lots of art materials (similar to those found in a progressive classroom), and raw materials for imaginative play or creative design and building work. We have lots of places for communal and independent projects and age-mixing. When we want to go outside, we go to our big lawn, our private playground, or nearby McMichael Park or Cloverly Park. Teenagers have autonomy to go off-campus on their own (with parental permission).
DAY TO DAY
Every day is different at NC. We make sure we have enough time and space to facilitate emergent creativity and self-direction.
At a minimum, every day at NC contains:
9:30-10am: Morning group time (separated by age groups - info passing, social-emotional learning, anti-racism learning, and games)
10-10:15am: All-community meeting (15 min altogether, for info passing and community building)
Throughout the day: Invitations from facilitators and outside content specialists to try new things
+ Opportunities to follow one's internal motivation​s alone or with a group, without impeding on other's autonomy.
2pm: Clean up tasks (every young person does a job that contributes to the cleanliness and maintenance of the space)
2:30-3pm Afternoon group time (30 min)
PARTNERSHIP
​Partnership is the egalitarian orientation that guides all relationships in our space: among young people, young people and adults, and our organizational partners.
Every young person is partnered with a staff facilitator, who works with the whole family to identify and pursue goals.
Partnership also refers to how we work with other organizations. Learn more about our community partners here.
OK but what does "every day is different" actually mean?
We know it's vague! Check out our FAQ page for more.
How do you apply antiracist and antioppressive practices in your program?
Thanks for asking! We are proud to be continuously evaluating and implement strategies that are inclusive in practice (not just in theory). Check our our FAQ page for our ever-growing list.
