Davis Forest School

We’re in the heat of summer and daydreaming about spring, when the days were still cool enough to gather around a steaming pot of tea made from foraged flowers. 🌼🍵

Pineapplew**d (also called wild chamomile) is one of our favorite plants to discover at Forest School. It’s an unassuming little w**d that, unlike the German chamomile most chamomile tea is made from, has no white petals, just a cheerful, yellow-green, dome-shaped flower head.

Children at Forest School quickly learn to spot this tiny plant, and are always amazed when they first gently crush a flower head between their fingers to release its unmistakable pineapple scent. It’s a wonderful reminder that slowing down and paying attention can reveal all kinds of delightful surprises hiding in plain sight.

After carefully harvesting, washing, and steeping the flower heads, we share a warm cup of pineapplew**d tea together for a simple seasonal ritual that connects us to the place, the plants, and one another. 

And now that it’s summer, pineapplew**d iced tea anyone? 🌿🍍

**d

We are proud to share that DFS has received a 2026 Grant from Swantz Family Foundation for our teen program, Dragonfly Teen Naturalists! Swantz Family Foundation has been an important part of our early years, and we are so grateful for the recognition and support of our work.

At the beginning of this school year, we asked our teens what they wanted more of.

Their answer was simple: challenge.

What we’ve learned alongside them is that young people are often capable of far more than we give them credit for. They want opportunities to discover their strengths, find their edges, contribute meaningfully, and be seen for what they can do.

This past weekend, a group of our teens gathered for a rites-of-passage camping trip as their final journey together this year. For 36 hours, each teen was invited to camp solo — like spokes extending from a central hearth — tending their own fire through day and night.

We gathered on a beautiful 60-acre property in Nevada City. Our stewardship commitment to the land was to help reduce accumulated fuel by tending and burning piles of debris throughout the weekend. Under the light of the blue moon, surrounded by oak and pine forest, we felt deeply connected to both the work and the place.

When the solo ended, families were there to welcome their teens back.

The experience was physically demanding, emotionally stretching, and deeply moving. It reminded us why rites of passage matter. In a culture that offers few meaningful thresholds into adulthood, young people are hungry for experiences that ask something of them, and that honor who they are becoming.

Growth asks us to put ourselves out there. To have courage. To risk something. To step beyond our comfort zone. To allow ourselves to be held by community while discovering our own strength.

We hope to continue creating opportunities for this kind of challenge, reflection, nature immersion, and reverence for youth. These experiences leave a lasting imprint, inviting young people to meet themselves in a new way.

May we continue to trust our youth.

And may we allow this work to change us, too.

—

Special thanks for Jason Spencer for hosting us this weekend, and to facilitators Natascha, Jenna, Kevin, and Ariana for helping make this weekend possible.

We took our Dragonfly Teen Naturalists backpacking to Loch Leven Lakes this past weekend — four strenuous miles in, and four miles back out.

We had no bathrooms and no comforts beyond what we could carry on our backs. Our motto was, “If we forgot it, we didn’t need it.” We had each other and alpine lakes, tired legs, smoky clothes, stunning views, and a pasta dinner that took 2.5 hours to cook over coals and a campfire.

We are so proud of these teens, of how much they’ve grown and challenged themselves over the past few years. This trip is usually the culmination of our year together, but for some of us, it’s also the beginning of the next challenge: a rites of passage camping trip next weekend.

More soon.