For schools
Outdoor enrichment for independent schools, grades K–5.
Fire & Knives is an enrichment program where kids make fire, use real tools, take healthy risks, and discover how capable they are.
What kids learn
- Fire making
- Knife skills
- Shelter building
- Tool safety
- Plant ID
- Outdoor cooking
- Bushcraft
- Water
- Compass work
We bring everything.
Two background-checked instructors per group, and every lead instructor is first aid and CPR certified. Every tool and fire kit, counted out and counted back in; nothing goes home. The curriculum, the waivers, the certificate of insurance, and the parent communication. You provide space, a roster and one contact.
Small on purpose.
Fourteen kids at most, seven to one instructor. Kids learn best with lots of support, so we aim to keep the same instructors with a group all term, and kids build trust with a familiar adult.
A progression.
Lessons are scaffolded, so kids build confidence, independence and critical thinking week by week.
- What kids see
- I made a fire. I used a knife. I built a shelter. I figured it out.
- What educators see
- Confidence, judgment, responsibility, resilience, and a class that fills.
Fits your calendar.
6–8 week after-school blocks, vacation weeks, and summer programming.
The practical part
How it works, practically.
- Format
- After-school enrichment. Vacation weeks and summer programming on request.
- Term
- Six to eight week blocks, once a week.
- Session
- Sixty to ninety minutes at the end of the school day.
- Group
- Up to fourteen children with two instructors, seven to one.
- Grades
- K through 5, grouped by grade where numbers allow.
- Space
- An outdoor area on or near campus. A playground works; woods are better. An indoor room for dangerous weather.
- Weather
- We run in weather. High wind, lightning or dangerous cold moves the class inside.
- Enrollment and billing
- You list the program in your enrichment catalog and enroll families. Fire & Knives invoices the school per enrolled child.
- Paperwork
- We bring the waiver, the certificate of insurance naming your school, and the parent communication. You provide the roster and one contact.
- Where
- Greater Boston today, and new schools as we expand.
From The Park School
From the school that ran it first.
The most talked-about class in your catalog won't have a screen.
“The most popular enrichment offering at the Park School of all time. Our next sessions are already filled up with a waiting list.”
“This was by far Ava's favorite enrichment course this year, and it had a genuinely meaningful impact on her.”
“Sina has always been a cautious "indoor cat," but since Fire & Knives we have noticed new animation, curiosity, and exuberance about being outside, taking risks, and self sufficiency. He is so proud of what he has tried and achieved.”
“Sophia loved Fire & Knives. It gave her a renewed sense of confidence, respect, and resilience with nature. Not only does she feel more comfortable in nature, but she also made new friends.”
A school reference is available on request.
Love the program. Unsure about the name?
Prefer a different name for your school?
We also offer our programming as Outdoor Skills Club. The same curriculum, instructors and safety approach, with a name that may fit your community more comfortably. Ask us about using Outdoor Skills Club in your enrichment catalog and family communications.
Let's talk
Request the program overview.
We started outside Boston and are beginning to bring Fire & Knives to new schools. Tell us who you are and where. We reply with a one-page overview you can forward to your head of school or your director, and a time to talk.
Run a recreation department? Tell us about your community program.