The MANA Approach
Makers. Art. Nature. Awareness.
MANA means Makers, Art, Nature, and Awareness. Four strands woven into every day of learning.
Learning happens through making.
Children build their visions. Academics become meaningful because they are needed to complete authentic projects.
The MANA Makers Studio includes
- Tools and art supplies
- Building and design materials
- Engineering challenges
- Woodworking opportunities
- Recycled invention supplies
- Open-ended creative resources
Architecture partnership
Ideas become real spaces.
MANA is proud to partner with Donaldson + Partners Architecture in Santa Barbara. Throughout the year, students visit a professional architecture studio, collaborate with architects, and experience how ideas become real spaces.
Iteration becomes a way of thinking. Instead of fearing mistakes, children learn to improve through experimentation, feedback, and persistence.
1 / 7 · Inside a hands-on day at the MANA makers space
Creativity isn’t an elective. It’s how children learn to express themselves.
The MANA community regularly welcomes artists, musicians, performers, storytellers, and master craftspeople to share their gifts.
One year, children studied the Lakota story of White Buffalo Calf Woman and the Rainbow Tribe Prophecy, performing the story as both a theatrical production and an original film.
Throughout the year children explore
- Visual Arts
- Painting
- Sculpture
- Music
- Songwriting
- Dance
- Movement
- Theater
- Storytelling
- Film Making
- Photography
- Digital illustration
Each child will
- Author a book
- Illustrate their ideas
- Write and record original music
- Participate in theatrical performances
- Create collaborative films
- Share their creative work publicly
1 / 4 · The White Buffalo, an original MANA performance
Nature is one of our greatest teachers.
MANA is located in Ojai, California, surrounded by gardens, mature trees, and direct access to nearby hiking trails.
Children explore the natural world through
- Observation
- Hiking
- Sketching
- Science investigations
- Outdoor reading
- Journaling
- Collecting natural materials for creative projects
Ranch days
Regular days at a nearby 85-acre ranch.
Our learning extends beyond the classroom. Students spend regular days at a nearby ranch where they:
- Care for animals
- Garden
- Learn regenerative agriculture
- Study ecosystems
- Build outdoor projects
- Work alongside experienced mentors
- Practice stewardship of the land
- Experience the rhythms of the natural world
1 / 10 · A child learning to lead a horse with a guide alongside
Emotional intelligence may be the most important life skill a child develops.
Every morning children enter community with intention. Every afternoon they reflect together.
Throughout the day children practice
- Empathy
- Gratitude
- Responsibility
- Leadership
- Conflict Resolution
- Self Awareness
- Listening
- Kindness
- Mindfulness
- Breathing Techniques
- Emotional Regulation
Instead of punishment, MANA practices restoration.
Children are supported in understanding what they are experiencing, identifying their needs, regulating their nervous systems, and repairing relationships.
A personal sit spot in nature.
Every child has a personal sit spot in nature where they spend quiet time observing the seasons, journaling, reflecting, and becoming comfortable with stillness. MANA believes moments of silence are just as important as moments of activity.
Children also learn age-appropriate practices that strengthen focus, intuition, creativity, and whole-brain learning through playful exercises guided by experienced mentors from a variety of wisdom traditions.
1 / 6 · Children and guides practicing awareness together in a circle
Plan your visit
Come experience what learning can feel like.
See what becomes possible when children are trusted, challenged, inspired, and deeply connected to the world around them.
Ojai, California