jen olson

Teacher at Wren’s Nest

Pronouns: she/her

I’m thrilled to be joining the Wren’s Nest community. I’m Jen Olson and I live in Hinesburg with my husband, Josh, and our 2 cats, Cat Cat and Tengo. Through winter we love to take walks in the woods, snowshoe and snowboard, and in summer, enjoy camping, gardening, and time by the river. We enjoy taking care of our old house (built in 1850), learning its history and many “how to’s” one project at a time. I also enjoy cooking and have recently begun practicing yoga. 

I’ve spent most of my adult life in Vermont, having spent summers at Camp Hochelaga in So. Hero, and my undergrad years at UVM. I love calling Vermont home (even if I was raised in CT). At UVM, I received a B.S. in Early Childhood Education, and later, a M.Ed in Educational Leadership. I have a VT Teaching License and have spent 12 years teaching infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, with the last 8 years having been at the UVM Campus Children’s School. 

 I’m a social constructivist - meaning that I believe we (including children) create our own knowledge through experiences and interactions with the world. In my work as a teacher, I observe and seek to understand what children know and think about the world, others, etc. and scaffold learning by providing them with authentic opportunities to deepen and extend their own learning, making the work of any learning community unique!

Since I began working with young children, I have always been enamored by their sense of wonder and the relationships they cultivated with the natural world. It deepened my own curiosity and passion for interacting with and exploring the outdoors, and influenced the role of natural materials in learning inside and outside of the classroom. I’m eager to get to know all of the students and the spaces, critters, and experiences that bring Wren’s Nest students joy!