Ayla Larson

“Watching my kids thrive in child-led outdoor spaces after struggling in rigid classrooms made me realize how much learning goes unmeasured. I joined this program to build the tools that can help make that learning visible.”

DESIGNING INCLUSIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

Ayla Larson holds a BA in Communication Arts with a focus in Radio, TV, and Film from UW-Madison, along with certificates in Digital Media Studies and Gender and Women’s Studies. This interdisciplinary foundation exposed her to narrative gaps and structural inequities, teaching her to recognize where systems fail the people they are meant to serve. When traditional classrooms fell short of her neurodivergent children’s needs, she co-founded The Little Farm Co-Op in Miami, FL. Incorporating gardening, animal care, and open-ended play, Ayla designed inclusive, child-led environments built around sensory needs and autonomous exploration for children up to age eight.

TURNING LIVED OBSERVATION INTO LEARNING DATA

At The Little Farm Co-Op, Ayla witnessed children flourish when their unique needs were seen and supported. She documented engagement patterns and noted behavioral shifts over time, using her observations to iteratively refine the programming to nurture each child’s developmental journey. Following the success of the co-op, which continues to expand today, Ayla seeks to develop the skills to collect and interpret the data that can legitimize alternative learning environments, making the growth that happens in spaces like The Little Farm visible, measurable, and impossible to ignore.