About Us

Judy Jacques is the founder and program guide of Durham Nature School.

She is an Ontario Certified Teacher (OCT) with a Master’s degree in Elementary Education and is a Certified Forest & Nature School Practitioner through Child & Nature Alliance Canada (CNAC). Judy brings over 10 years of experience designing and leading outdoor, play-based learning programs for young children.

Judy grew up immersed in the natural landscapes of Uxbridge and Haliburton, where time spent in forests, fields, and along lakeshores shaped her lifelong connection to the natural world. She later spent more than a decade homeschooling her own children, grounding their learning in nature connection, environmental science, and curiosity-driven exploration.

Through years of teaching, tutoring, and leading outdoor programs, Judy has seen firsthand how children thrive when learning happens outdoors — developing confidence, calm, creativity, and a strong sense of belonging. Her work blends the intentional structure of classroom learning with the child-led philosophy of forest schooling, offering children the best of both worlds.

Judy has led a wide range of programs, including nature camps, outdoor STEAM experiences, and art-based nature programs for homeschool and traditionally schooled children. She has worked in private and alternative school settings where outdoor learning was central to the curriculum.

Durham Nature School was created to offer children nurturing, holistic, and developmentally appropriate learning experiences — ones that honour play, curiosity, and connection to the land while gently supporting literacy, numeracy, and social development.

When not guiding children outdoors, Judy can often be found hiking forest trails, observing birds and wildlife, photographing nature, tutoring early readers, or enjoying creative pursuits such as knitting, writing, and singing in a local choir.