Evergreen Explorers Nature Club turns the outdoors into a classroom. Through nature-based learning, outdoor adventures and seasonal projects, our young explorers dig into the world around them. They watch insects, collect leaves, plant seeds, track the weather and see how things change from season to season.
Each activity is built on early STEM learning. Children ask questions, make predictions, observe closely and talk about what they find. These are the building blocks of scientific thinking. Time outside also supports physical health, gross motor skills, sensory development and the kind of focus that comes from unstructured exploration.
Explorers grow curious, care about the environment and come to appreciate the natural world. For parents looking for outdoor activities for preschoolers and hands-on science for kids in the O’Fallon area, Evergreen Explorers offers an enriching mix of play and discovery.
Meet your instructor
Elli
Horticulture instructor
Elli grew up in the country outside Waterloo, Illinois, in a big family, with fields and woods as her backyard. She has loved growing things for as long as she can remember. She turned that love into Elli’s Flowers, a small flower business she runs from home, where she grows, cuts and arranges seasonal blooms for her community.
Elli was homeschooled through high school. She is now studying horticulture at Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) in Belleville, where she is learning the science behind what she has always done by hand: soil health, plant care and growing through the seasons. She brings that hands-on experience and classroom knowledge to her horticulture and gardening classes for kids. Children plant seeds, get their hands dirty and watch their own flowers grow.
Elli is creative in everything she does. She loves all kinds of art, sings at her church and spends as much time outside exploring nature as she can. Fall is her favorite season, when the colors change and the garden gives its last big harvest. Her love of plants, creativity and the outdoors makes her classes a natural fit for curious young learners.
