Haley Peters - Director
Originally from Southern California, Haley moved to San Francisco in 2018 to pursue a Bachelor's in Anthropology from San Francisco State University. During this time, she began working as an assistant teacher at an indoor preschool in North Beach. It was here that she discovered her passion for teaching preschool-aged children. However, she couldn't help but to notice the problems that arose in an indoor preschool setting. Children spent a large amount of time arguing over plastic toys, and there were no natural materials in sight for them to use for art or imagination games. Children also wept bitterly during drop-off, and the amplified sound of peers crying was overwhelming for the class in the tiny room. Haley decided to pursue her love of human sciences in a different aspect, and pivoted to studying Child Development online at Palomar College. Their Child Development program is grounded in the research of Jean Piaget as well as other noted experts in child development, whose findings made clear the value of young children experiencing the world “with all of their senses through hands-on concrete experiences.” It was during this time that she learned about Forest Schools. Haley began leading her own Forest Preschool class in 2021 with the help of Teacher Bettina and Teacher Mya. Her teaching style is a combination of child-directed and teacher-guided group activities. She believes in allowing children to discover their multitudes of capabilities through art and imaginative play. And, she strongly believes that being in nature provides children with unique opportunities to observe, explore, and investigate — all critical to early childhood development. She opened Caterpillar to Butterfly in the spring of 2023 with the help of Bettina, Mya, Moe, Tallulah, and Camila, and has loved the adventure of running a forest school. Her favorite part of the job is sharing children`s incredible progress and accomplishments with their families.
Languages: English, elementary Spanish
Bettina Alexander - Teacher
Teacher Bettina is a valued member of our school and community. She grew up right here in the peninsula, and she shares her knowledge of local plants and animals with our class on a daily basis. When she was growing up, she helped out in her mother`s Montessori classroom, and she brings that background and wealth of knowledge to Caterpillar to Butterfly Forest School. Bettina, Haley, and Mya have worked alongside each other for years in a forest school setting, and are a terrific team. Bettina`s strengths are her playful spirit, her love of nature, and her ability to connect with young children. Her favorite time of our school day is when our class is moving, hiking, and full of energy! She has raised 3 wonderful, strong-willed children who are now adults, and her daughter Tallulah is one of our teachers as well! In her free time, Bettina can be found hiking with her dog, Timber, or enjoying local music.
Languages: English, Dutch
Mya Peña - Teacher
Growing up, Mya always dreamed of becoming an educator, and we are so proud to see her dreams become a reality! Mya previously led the after-school program at Lafayette Elementary School in San Francisco, and she is thrilled to now be teaching in the great outdoors and guiding our class in discovering the many species of animals and insects that call our forest home. Mya has a naturally calm and lighthearted presence that does wonders in a preschool setting. Her strengths are her patience, sense of humor, and listening skills. Mya has worked alongside Haley and Bettina for years, and brings so much to our school. Her favorite moments during the rhythm of our school day are the calm and reflective ones, when the children are listening to the sounds of the forest and observing the world around them. In her free time, Mya enjoys fashion, movies, and skateboarding.
Languages: English, Spanish
Camila Siqueira de Moura Hough - Assistant Teacher
We are so thrilled to have Teacher Camila on our team! Camila grew up interacting with plants and animals on her grandparents sustainable farm in Brazil. Her love of exploring and open-mindedness has brought her all around the world. Camila’s strengths in our class are her patience and love of adventure. Her favorite time of day is when our class is exploring the trails and discovering plants and animals. Our class loves Camila because she is always happy to help them with whatever they need to accomplish, from packing their belongings to creating beautiful art projects. When she isn’t at forest school, Camila’s passions include fashion and baking.
Languages: English, Portuguese
Tallulah Alexander - Assistant Teacher
Our class is delighted whenever Teacher Tallulah is around! Tallulah has learned so much about working with preschoolers from her mom, Bettina. She is currently studying music at a local community college, but helps our class whenever she can. Our crew loves to hear Tallulah sing and play her ukulele! Tallulah`s soft-spoken mannerisms create a space for children's voices to be heard, and our class loves running around and playing games with her. Tallulah`s favorite time of the day is lunch on our tarp, when she can listen to the conversations between children and watch friendships being made. In her free time, Tallulah loves spending time with her friends and singing!
Languages: English, Dutch
Moe Elias - Assistant Teacher
Moe has a background in teaching college students at Codepath, a nonprofit organization with a mission of helping under-represented communities gain career skills in computer science fields. He is now thrilled to be working at forest school with his partner Haley. He translates his skills as a college teacher to the preschool classroom by speaking clearly and in full sentences to help with children's language development, and by listening carefully when children are communicating their needs. Our class appreciates Moe`s calm and helpful personality. Moe earned his certification from the state of California as a Paraeducator to work alongside his mother in special needs classrooms during his college years. Moe`s favorite time during the rhythm of the day is art, and he is an expert at making paper airplanes. In his free time, Moe enjoys playing guitar and hanging out with the rescue cat he and Haley adopted, Mosquito.
Languages: English, Arabic
Emma Sanford-Substitute Teacher
Born and raised in San Francisco, Emma has years of experience in both indoor and outdoor childcare settings. While she was pursuing her bachelors in Early Childhood Education from San Francisco State University, Emma worked at both the JCC Rosenberg Preschool, which has a Reggio-based curriculum, and a forest school in the Presidio called Parks Plus Creation. Once she completed her bachelors degree, Emma worked for two years as a lead teacher at Childrens Campus Preschool at SF State. Emma is now pursuing her master’s degree in Occupational Therapy from San Jose State, and is thrilled to be returning to outdoor education and working as a substitute at Caterpillar to Butterfly. In her free time, Emma enjoys drawing, hiking, and discovering new music.
Languages: English, Spanish