Nursery School
2 , 3 and 4 Year-olds

Goals for Nursery School:

• Positive self-concept
• Independence and self-confidence at the appropriate level of ability
• Ability to understand others and communicate needs through language
• Good social skills with adults and other children
• Habits of eating, sleeping, and hygiene which help maintain good health
• Intellectual growth through play and mental exploration
• Readiness for kindergarten through appropriate cognitive learning experiences in a regular nursery school program (for all children over 2 1/2 years)
• Appreciation and enjoyment of music, art, dance, and other forms of creative expression
Daily Schedule:

Note: Times on this schedule appear to overlap, because each child is allowed to go through daily routines at his or her own pace. There are gradual transitions between activities.

7:30 - 8:15
Children arrive, breakfast

8:15 - 9:00
Outdoor play

9:00 - 11:30
Activity time; children are in Playroom, Homeroom, or Schoolroom.

11:00 - 12:00
Lunch, transitioning through a quiet time

12:00 - 2:00
Naps and rest time with attention to individual sleep needs

1:00 - 2:30
Unhurried time upon waking, dressing

2:00 - 3:45
Activity time; 3's and 4's switch Homeroom or Schoolroom;
Playroom group in Big Yard and snack.

4:00 - 6:00
Late afternoon program, small family groupings with quiet activities and individual attention. Readiness for going home as parents arrive per schedule

Playroom
30 TO 36 months

This group includes the first prekindergarten school experience. They begin their day with outdoor play with their peer group. At this time the teachers are facilitators, while the children work on gross motor and social skills.

From 9:00 to 11:00 the children use the playroom, a learning environment which includes dramatic play, manipulative toys, art, music, blocks, stories, and other enriching materials. As with the older preschoolers, this group is learning language, number concepts, dexterity, socialization, conflict management, and body coordination.

Lunch and nap follow their nursery school, a quiet nurturing time.

As with the toddlers, self-help skills are still a major item for the under 3's. Toilet training, eating, weaning from the bottle, dressing themselves, etc. are all part of the daily program.

There are 6 children to 1 adult at this age.

Their daily schedule is similar to the older preschoolers, with special attention to snacking and napping a little earlier than with older children.



Homeroom and Schoolroom
 3- and 4-year-olds

BlueSkies provides two types of experiences for preschoolers in a nurturing environment. One is the Homeroom, designed to have a homelike feeling with dollhouse play and digging in the garden along with some teacher-directed activities. The other is the Schoolroom, a classic nursery school experience in a self-initiated playroom. In the late afternoon children are in mixed-age groups with younger and older children from the Nursery School groups together. Their activities can include arts and crafts, dancing, cooking, games, singing, and outdoor play. Birthday celebrations are also part of this program.

Children are with their peer groups from 9:00-12:00 each morning and from 2:00-4:00 each afternoon. The 4-year-olds are in the Schoolroom in the morning and the Homeroom in the afternoon, and the 3-year-olds have the opposite schedule, spending the morning in the Homeroom and the afternoon in the Schoolroom.

The following skills are emphasized in preschool:
• Physical Development - Large motor skills, through climbing, ball play, movement exploration, large blocks; and small motor skills, through manipulative toys
• Language Development - Socialization and vocabulary building through dramatic play, stories, and art activities
• Intellectual Development - Cognitive and problem-solving activities through puzzles, small blocks, and science projects. (Preparation for kindergarten is an integral part of this program, which also includes number concepts, and listening and memory skills.)
• Social and Emotional Development - The beginning of cooperation and respect for the feelings of others through small-group play and nonviolent conflict resolution. Opportunities to learn to appreciate differences and to enjoy the beauty all around us.
BlueSkies believes that play is the best medium for learning. The teachers are facilitators of children's play, guiding it into constructive avenues of problem-solving and divergent thinking. Special attention is paid to each child's acquired skills, special interests, and learning style in this child-centered program.

By allowing children to choose their own activities, yet challenging them to extend and expand their play, teachers promote each child's self-reliance and self-esteem.

There are 8 children to 1 adult in this part of the program.

The Ellen Sherwood Nursery School Program is licensed by California Community Care Licensing, #010209844