Kami Hicks is a dedicated early childhood educator with over 35 years of experience, currently teaching at the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College. As a respected member of the Arkansas Early Childhood Association, Kami has consistently championed the benefits of play-based learning. Beyond her professional accomplishments, she is also a proud mother to three adventurous boys who have boundless energy.  “We as a family, we’re very outdoorsy people. My husband and I did a lot of backpacking, lots of camping, lots of hiking, and I grew up in the mountains and so I’ve had this connection to the forest and wanted to be in the forest a lot. We really wanted that for our kids – to instill in them a love for nature and the forest and life and life cycles,” Kami said.

Kami is a fervent advocate for research-based educational practices. She observed that “children learn best through play,” a principle supported by studies showing that unstructured, physical play enhances executive function, literacy, and social-emotional skills. Kami’s deep understanding of child development led her to seek out learning environments that foster natural exploration and growth—an approach she believed was often missing in more traditional academic settings. “It was very important for me to have my children in a play-based program, because I know that that is how children learn and how they learn best.” 

Kami was introduced to the Ferncliff Nature Preschool when Ferncliff Nature Preschool Director Rachel Parker spoke at an Arkansas Early Childhood Association board meeting, which Kami was a member of, the first year of the Nature Preschool’s operation. Kami recalls Rachel’s presentation really making an impact on her. “Ferncliff is one of those rare gems where they’re really following the science. They’re really following what we know about long-standing child development theory.” Previously familiar with the Forest School model in Europe, Kami immediately recognized the potential of a curriculum built on hands-on, experiential education in a place where nature itself becomes the classroom. 

“Out in nature, I think, is just even better developmentally…They are learning literacy. They are learning math. They are learning science when they’re outside playing freely. They really are getting all of that.”

“Out in nature, I think, is just even better developmentally. And I know there’s a lot of parents out there who think: ‘Well, how are they ever going to survive in school when they leave here? How are they ever going to learn how to read? How will they ever learn math?’ They don’t understand that they are learning how to read. They are learning literacy. They are learning math. They are learning science when they’re outside playing freely. They really are getting all of that. I think a lot of the fears that parents have about preschool, if it’s not academic enough, they have this fear that their child won’t thrive in kindergarten or first grade. It’s really not something they have to fear, because kids are really getting that framework laid neurally in their brains. So they’re ready to do it when they get to that academic setting. And they’re getting this amazing social and emotional development so that they can regulate themselves when they get to public school,” Kami explains, underscoring the transformative impact of a play-based, nature-centered environment.

Since joining Ferncliff, Kami’s children have flourished in an environment that nurtures their innate curiosity and love for discovery. Her oldest now delights in the wonders of nature, her middle child eagerly embraces hands-on adventures, and even the youngest revels in the freedom of self-directed learning.  “My oldest, Barret, loves all creatures, but bugs especially. And here at Ferncliff, obviously, there’s plenty of bugs, you know, in the wild, and he could investigate them and just live, you know, his best life playing with bugs.

My middle child, Bullet, really thrived on getting that it was all a big adventure. Learning the skills that he was really interested in. He was interested in things like building fires and creating things out of nature, like creating tools. He loved using the tools, you know, hammers, all kinds of tools they get to use in preschool.

And my youngest one, Fox, I think he just really liked the choice. And I think for the first time he liked being in an environment where someone wasn’t constantly telling him what to do. He really enjoyed that kind of freedom,” Kami remarked about her children’s experience.

The Hicks family is still active at Ferncliff. Her children attend Wildcraft Days, an outdoor program for kids to learn bushcraft from certified instructors. Kami also has student teachers that she visits on staff at the Nature School. “This is the first year that I have not had a child here, and it’s very strange. It’s very odd. It saves me gas, but it’s very strange because it’s like family out here. We miss it. We love it. It was a beautiful thing for our family. My kids still talk about it. Ferncliff has a very special place in our hearts and our family.”