A Place to Grow, Belong, and Thrive
Experiential Learning & Therapeutic Farming for Neurodiverse Children and Teens
OHIO Farms is the heart of our experiential program for neurodiverse learners-a living, breathing learning environment where students connect with nature, build confidence through hands-on work, and experience meaningful belonging. OHIO Farms blends therapeutic agriculture, vocational training, animal-assisted learning, and life-skills development into a nurturing space designed for every child’s potential to bloom.
A Few Words About Us…
The OHIO Farms initiative was born out of a shared dream among educators, therapists, and families:
a dream of a place where neurodiverse children—autistic, ADHD, gifted, twice exceptional, and others—could learn not by pressure, but by doing… not by competing, but by contributing… not in isolation, but in relationship with animals, nature, and community.
Our farm program is supported by a multidisciplinary team of teachers, behavioral specialists, occupational therapists, and animal-assisted therapy practitioners. Together, we have built a haven where students are embraced for who they are, and where learning becomes calm, purposeful, joyful, and real.
Who We Are…
OHIO Farms program is run by a team with deep experience in special education, therapeutic intervention, and adaptive experiential learning. Many of us have worked with neurodiverse children for years—teaching, supporting families, and designing programs that respect each learner’s pace and strengths.
After listening to parents, teachers, and specialists across the country, we recognized three urgent needs:
- a safe space for neurodiverse kids to learn real-world skills
- alternative pathways to independence and self-expression
- calm, sensory-friendly environments where nature helps regulate and restore
These conversations sparked the creation of OHIO Farms—an inclusive, structured, rural-style program where children thrive through practical routines, animal care, and farm-based tasks that build competence and pride.
Why a Farm? Why This Approach?
Just as Farm in the Dell discovered decades ago, we know that:
- Animals provide companionship, emotional grounding, and non-judgmental connection.
- Nature offers predictable rhythms and sensory regulation that many neurodiverse learners need.
- Hands-on, outdoor tasks foster independence, responsibility, and executive functioning.
- Meaningful work builds confidence in ways classroom tasks sometimes cannot.
At OHIO Farms, students see their efforts grow—quite literally. Whether they are feeding animals, harvesting vegetables, planting seedlings, grooming dogs, or tending to the land, every small action contributes to something bigger. It is empowering, healing, and profoundly educational.
Why OHIO Farms?
1. A Therapeutic, Sensory-Friendly Learning Environment
Nature, fresh air, open space, animals, and gentle routines create a soothing environment ideal for sensory regulation. Students learn at their own pace with structured support that respects their abilities and needs.
2. Purposeful Vocational & Life-Skills Training
Students participate in meaningful work including:
- animal care (dogs, goats, rabbits, chickens)
- crop cultivation
- greenhouse management
- simple woodworking
- garden-to-table food preparation
- on-farm micro-enterprises
Each activity builds skills for adulthood—executive function, teamwork, time management, and independence.
3. Our Dogs: Partners in Growth and Friendship
At OHIO Farms, our dogs are not just pets—they are part of the teaching team.
They support:
- emotional regulation
- social communication
- sensory soothing
- responsibility and routine
- confidence-building through animal handling
Whether students are brushing, walking, feeding, training, or simply sitting quietly with our gentle therapy dogs, these relationships create moments of joy, calm, and connection.
4. Community, Belonging & Dignity
Every student has a role. Every task matters. Every child is valued.
The farm becomes a community where neurodiverse learners can express themselves safely and freely while building friendships rooted in shared work and trust.
What Students Do at OHIO Farms
Our placements include a wide range of adaptive, supervised, and therapeutic activities:
- Daily animal care: feeding, grooming, gentle handling
- Dog-assisted emotional regulation sessions
- Garden and greenhouse work: planting, watering, harvesting
- Learning micro-enterprises: selling produce, eggs, crafts, baked goods
- Outdoor skills: trail tending, environmental care
- Life skills: cooking simple meals using farm produce, cleaning routines, hygiene
- Movement and wellness: nature walks, stretching, sensory breaks
- Social and communication practice in a non-pressured, real-life environment
Everything is structured, purposeful, and adapted to each child’s developmental strengths.
A Place for Every Child
OHIO Farms brings a new kind of hope to families seeking inclusive, respectful, and truly experiential learning. It is more than a farm—
it is a sanctuary, a classroom, a community,
and a place where neurodiverse children learn to see themselves not through deficits,
but through their gifts.
