Sample Schedule

Below is a sample schedule. Activities will vary based on the interests and needs of the children in the program.

Each day, we will try to spend at least two hours outside in free play. Our outdoor play space includes two large garden beds that children will have the opportunity to plant in and maintain. We plan on installing a new sand box this coming Spring 2023, as well as a small slide. Children will be invited to exercise their big body movements outside with open ended play materials like shovels, large brooms, and large chalk and paint opportunities. We are building a mud kitchen with running water, and children will be encouraged to play with a variety of materials in this kitchen like mud, sand, water, ice, snow, leaves, and rocks. We believe that playing with a variety of natural and raw materials in age appropriate and safe ways is a great way to stimulate children's senses (sight, smell, hearing, and touch). 

When it is not safe to go outside due to severe weather, children will still have the opportunity to play with indoor materials that stimulate their gross motor skills. We have a small wooden slide and wooden play arch, a tumbling mat, and multiple play tents that children can play with to get all their energy and big muscles moving. 

Infant activities vary based on the needs of each child. Each day we will incorporate sensory experiences for infants and toddlers that may include things like exploring different textures through different fabrics, hearing and making different sounds through age appropriate instruments like shakers and drums, and more. Each day we will work on exercising infants gross motor skills through tummy time practice on play mats that incorporate a variety of high contrasting toys and images. Infants also will have the opportunity to play in swings, activity bouncers and walkers to engage their gross motor skills. Large mirrors are also provided to encourage infants to see how they move as they practice crawling, standing, cruising and eventually walking. 

Toddler and preschool aged children will have a variety of unique experiences prepared each day to engage with. Based on the interests of the children, we will design learning opportunities for them. For example, if multiple children in the classroom are talking about cars, we will use this idea to design activities that engage all of their developmental skills. We will encourage their cognitive skills by having a variety of toy cars a part of a sorting activity and prompt children to sort them into bins based on color, size, or quantity of tires. We will encourage their gross motor skills by having large cardboard pieces cut out in the shapes of car doors, tires, roofs and more for children to paint and then "build" their own giant cars they can wear. We will encourage their fine motor growth by having children sculpt cars out of clay. We will encourage their language and literacy skills by having books about cars and transportation, and by having children have the opportunity to create their own story books with drawing materials or plays using dolls and toy cars. 

We have intentionally designed the classroom space to be able to facilitate safe learning opportunities for a variety of ages at the same time. We are very intentional about planning for each day and prepping multiple learning opportunities for all the children. Because of the small teacher to child ratio, and smaller space, we are able to really focus on the needs of each child and make sure that we are nearby to ensure safe experiences for everyone. We truly love our work, and are so excited to bring our many years of experience with a variety of children in a variety of care settings to this learning space.