Summer Eco-Circus 2026

Eco-Circus on the 40-acre land trust of The Sanctuary in East Haddam is a fun way to explore yoga, circus, ecological lessons and games in nature. Swing from trees, visit beaver ponds, play hide & seek in a sunflower patch.

Exercise happens naturally in play. Play is a backdoor to discipline. There is a place for everybody under the big top.

Circus covers a myriad of talents, from storytellers to trapeze artists. Uncovering our individual gifts benefit the community. Exploring our bodies in the great outdoors is rewilding medicine for domesticated times. Less screens, more sky. Run away to join the circus and be home in time for dinner.

A Day in the

Life of Circus

Circus Arts / Juggling, Diabolo, Hooping, Flower Sticks, Big Ball play, etc…

Beaver Pond & Forest Play

Human Pyramids

Partner Acrobatics

Aerials / Trapeze & Silks

Art & Ecology

At the very thought of ‘circus’ a swarm of long-imprisoned desires breaks jail. Armed with beauty and demanding justice and everywhere threatening us with curiosity and spring and childhood, this mob of forgotten wishes begins to storm the supposedly impregnable fortifications of our present.

- e. e. cummings.

The Staff

Jen Taylor

Jen has taught the unique fusion of circus and yoga for twenty years (two ancient traditions each over 5,000 years old) as the art/science of play. She holds a masters in Philosophy and Religion, a journey which fortifies her belief in the power of nature-based cooperative play and circus fun for children of all ages. She is Co-Executive Director of The Sanctuary, a 40-acre land trust with 30 acres of forest and beaver ponds. This unique summer experience, fusing ecology with circus yoga, takes place there.

Jenny Love Leigh

A natural educator, Jenny Love Leigh holds a Bachelor’s in Early Childhood Education and earned her AMS Montessori Certification in 2009. She was a primary classroom teacher at Children’s Tree Montessori in Old Saybrook. Jenny apprenticed as a Circus Yoga teacher for two years, is Child Yoga Certified and recently completed her 200hour Yoga teacher training at Sweatfluence. Currently, Jenny runs a forest immersion program in Chester supporting pre-school and elementary age children through nature-based learning. She has a deep love for children, the natural world, exploring and creating. She brings that passion and her large tool-kit to our Eco-Circus adventure this summer.

Marguerite Santos

Herbalist and Forest School teacher.

Marguerite teaches at The Grove Forest School, supporting land-based learning, creativity and embodied curiosity for children. As a certified permaculturist, gardener and herbalist, her teaching is guided by love of the Earth and love of learning. She brings a calm, attentive presence to her work, honoring children as capable, imaginative beings. Marguerite’s experience as an educator includes working in community-based youth programs, early childhood summer initiatives and after-school education. Becoming a mother deepened her devotion to child-centered learning, inspiring years of nature-based homeschooling and hands-on exploration.

The Summer Eco-Circus engages children in hands-on activities fusing circus arts (juggling, aerials), yoga, and ecology—e.g., forest play, beaver pond visits, eco-games, and sustainability lessons on watershed health and climate mitigation. Led by certified instructors (Jen Taylor, Jenny Love Leigh, Marguerite Santos), the project promotes environmental awareness and stewardship, with youth contributing to minor habitat restoration (e.g., native planting).

Location: The Sanctuary meadow, forest and wetlands, instilling future regenerative practices in the next generation and emphasizing nature-based play through yoga and circus arts.

Pre-Registration Open

e-mail: info@oursanctuary.org