about us
About Village Learning
Village Learning is an educational enrichment initiative for ages 0-18.
Our focus is on group learning, creativity, academics, nature connection, play, nurturing relationships & friendships and educating the heart, mind, body & spirit.
Our educators come from diverse holistic education backgrounds including Steiner, Reggio Emilia, Montessori, Big Picture Education, Nature Pedagogy, Coyote Mentoring and Deep Ecology, to name but a few and these elements are interwoven throughout our programs.
Village Learning is a wholesome, nurturing and inspiring place for children and their families to come together, creating a sense of place and belonging with like hearted community, strengthening relationships with other children and adult caregivers and providing group learning and play opportunities for homeschooling families and others looking to enrich their educational journey.
We offer a range of programs, groups and classes for different families needs, desires and capacities, including drop & leave term programs, parent led groups, one off classes & workshops and open community seasonal celebrations & events. We have options for all ages from toddlers to teens, parents and the whole family.
We are a grass roots, not for profit, community initiative, coordinated by volunteer parents. Our Co-op is funded entirely by our participating families, community grants and donations. We welcome contributions from those who are passionate about holistic education and who would like to support what we are offering the community.
We are honoured to be serving our community in such a meaningful way and to be part of the educational journeys of so many wonderful children and their families.
We look forward to connecting with you in The Village soon!
Location
Village Learning Co-op is set on a gorgeous 40 acre property in Vasse, Western Australia, 10 minutes from Busselton and easily accessible from other areas around the Southwest. We have families who come from Bridgetown, Balingup, Nannup, Donnybrook, Bunbury, Capel, Margaret River, Dunsborough and Augusta.
The property has a plethora of beautiful indoor and outdoor “classroom spaces” including a cosy barn style main school-house building, with kitchen and library, undercover indoor-outdoor learning areas, a beautiful garden with grassy picnic area, nature playground, labyrinth, bushland, dams, an olive grove, winter creek and more.
Our co-op is part of Commonplace Vasse. A closed door member-based initiative and community container, that supports holistic and conscious education, health, wellness, regenerative agriculture and food production.
You can learn more about Commonplace Vasse here
Our Team
Marja, Village Learning Founder & Coordinator
Marja is Village Learnings Founder & Coordinator and dedicated mother and teacher to her two children, Laec 13 and Ever 11.
She is passionate about holistic, meaningful education, and creating intentional opportunities for children (and adults!) to connect, create, contribute and learn together. She has been devoted to creating group learning opportunities and community since she began formally teaching her children at kindy age, and has coordinated and run various educational co-ops, groups and initiatives over the last 8 years.
Marja lives in Cowaramup with her partner Andrew, two children, dog Zali, guinea pigs and chickens. She loves spending time in nature, gardening, crafting, cooking, keeping hearth & home, nurturing relationships and building community.
Andrew, Upper Primary Educator
Andrew is our passionate and inspiring Upper Primary Thursday Program educator. He has a background in Steiner education, Coyote mentoring, Camp leadership, wilderness discovery and deep ecology.
He is passionate about building nature-connected communities, particularly in creating pathways for people to claim their true place in the world. He believes that building meaningful relationships with nature and the people in our lives, are essential building blocks to living a purposeful life.
Since joining the Village Learning Coop and leading the Upper Primary Rewild Program (affectionately known as the Dingoes!) he has forged many rich memories with the Dingoes - from epic capture the flag battles to investigating the tiniest flower, from explorations of our wild coast coast to crafting beautiful seasonal nature mandalas.
Having been committed to nature connection work for nearly a decade, He is very grateful and excited to be part of our vibrant Village Learning Coop and its strong values of connection and community.
Andrew lives in Margaret River with his partner Angela, two stepsons Callum and Tate, daughter Ayla and dog Nala.
He looks forward to seeing you out on country soon!
Jean-Michel, Adolescent Educator
Jean-Michel facilitates our Adolescent Classes and is a passionate Steiner educator with a wealth of Anthroposophical wisdom.
Jean-Michel has been involved in management as well as in adult and secondary education for the past thirty years – predominantly in Steiner education.
He has a range of interests spanning politics, meditation and mindfulness, spirituality and religion, yoga, philosophy and mathematics, reading in general, bushwalking, socialising and discussions.
Jean-Michel is also one of the Commonplace Vasse Coordinators, managing the Adult Education, Health & Wellness Common as well as facilitating weekly yoga and meditation along with regular adult education classes.
Sasha, Kindergarten Educator
Sasha is our beautiful Tuesday Kindy educator. She is passionate about nature connected and interest led learning and is always full of wonderful energy and inspired, fun filled learning opportunities to share and explore with the children.
Sasha has been teaching for over 15 years and loves that she can contribute to the lives of young children and their families in such a meaningful way.
She lives on a rural property in Cowaramup with her husband and 2 year old son, where they are currently building their sustainable straw bale home and enjoying their journey into regenerative agriculture.
Nicola, Kindergarten Educator
Nicola is our wonderful Thursday Kindy educator. She is a mother of 2 older children, whom she also taught at home for several years and is an incredibly thoughtful educator who is passionate about intentional, personalised and meaningful education. She is Montessori trained and also has many years experience in Reggio inspired teaching environments. Nature connected learning comes naturally to Nicola and her background in farming and Veterinary Science, brings a special equanimity, gentleness and care to her teaching style.
Nicola lives on a farming property in between Busselton and Capel with her husband and 2 children. In between teaching and parenting, Nicola also helps to mange the farm and animals, putting her Vet skills to good use, delivering calves, tending to or operating on sick or injured animals and staying grounded to the rhythms of earth and the life cycles of nature.
Rae, Junior & Upper Primary Educator
Originally Primary school trained with extensive early childhood experience, Rae was a co-founder of the Natural Learning Centre in Rosa Brook, which operated primarily outdoors, encouraging creativity, resilience, self-confidence and fun.
Rae provides children with creative 'invitations' to play and learn and she strives to make learning meaningful and enjoyable, and supports them to follow their own interests and curious minds.
"I love how nature play improves all aspects of child development - physical, cognitive, social and emotional. How being within natural surroundings calms children (and adults!), ignites our curiosity and imagination, and fosters wonder, empathy and care for our world."
Taking inspiration from various pedagogies, entwining and overlapping naturally Steiner, Montessori, Reggio (her personal favourite) Rae overall likes to be guided by the children (and extended families) themselves, the environment within which we have opportunities to work and play, and the people/community we have opportunities to spend time with.
In her spare time Rae loves being with her daughters and dog, spending time in nature at the beach and in the forests, reading, writing, gardening, cooking and hot air ballooning!
Village Learning Values & Agreements
Our Village Learning Values & Agreements have been co-created by all of our families, to best support the needs of our community. Please read our Values & Agreements before you apply or register for any of our programs, groups or classes.