Curriculum

BABBLING WITH THE BABIES: The first year of a child’s life marks the most significant growth and development in all life. Our baby classroom supports that development in both the clean and cozy environment and in the nurturing and responsive care that the teachers provide to each baby. Our experienced, loving teachers establish trusting relationships with each baby and provide the sense of security that babies need to begin to discover the world around them. Our classroom provides the delicate balance that babies need - stimulation with bright, sunny colors and calm with soft, soothing music.  Low open shelves perfect for learning to pull up on and cruise around are stocked with interesting toys to explore. A soft woven rug defines an inviting reading area with colorful board books. Babies use their own internal clocks to regulate their schedules with teachers providing warm bottles for hungry tummies and a deep glider to rock a sleepy baby at nap time. Our commitment to nutrition begins right from the beginning as we make all our own homemade baby food from fresh, seasonal produce. While we support breast-feeding mommies, (breast is best) we also provide a choice of three different varieties for formula-fed babies (yes, we provide both baby food and formula for all of our babies… at no additional cost). Babies in our baby room learn to sit up and crawl, to try new foods and drink from a sippy cup, to turn the pages of a book and eventually to walk, but most of all, they learn that they are loved.

WHAT’S UP WITH THE WOBBLY WALKERS?: One year olds experience life with their whole bodies. Everything they do, they do physically. They push, pull, climb, walk, run, sit, eat and play with a new and constantly developing confidence in their bodies. Our Wobbly Walker room is designed with just that in mind. A nursery gym complete with stairs and slide encourages a safe and challenging place to practice these new skills. Our knowledgeable teachers encourage active learning and participation in fun and inviting learning activities. A predictable daily routine encourages cognitive development and security in knowing what comes next. The Wobbies’ reading area is stocked sturdy board books, a community bench, puppets and a huge floor pillow for these “active” readers. Colorful puzzles with large knobs, chubby handled paint brushes and large sheets of paper are perfect for little fingers and budding motor coordination. Stacking large, lightweight blocks children practice and refine their physical skills and learn basic concepts like colors, shapes and size comparisons. Family style meal time is always an adventure with our Wobbly Walkers – but well worth the mess when they taste new foods like fresh pineapple and roasted carrots, and learn to self feed with miniature utensils.

A TOOT FROM THE TODDLERS: “I can do it!” can be heard again and again as our toddlers develop a strong sense of self-confidence and emergent self-regulation. Our toddlers are a busy bunch of little people with their own ideas and an amazingly increasing ability to express those ideas in newly acquired words. Our patient, energetic teachers help toddlers to identify their emotions and ideas and put them into words, supporting their sense of both capability and independence in rapidly developing skills. Songs, rhymes, chants and stories amaze and entertain the toddlers and teach both basic concepts like colors and days of the week, while laying the first pathways for literacy.

Toddlers spend their days learning not only to regulate their emotions but also their bodies in that crucial stage of toilet learning. Self help skills that go hand in hand with toilet learning can be found in all areas of our Toddler classroom – blocks that fit together with the same snaps that are on a pair of jeans, zippers on dress up clothes in the dramatic play center, potty books on the book shelf in the reading area. We understand the significance of this time in a toddler’s life (and in Mommy and Daddy’s life too) and lend experience, patience, and gentle support through the entire process.