Preschool
Three-year-olds are working out how a classroom works. They are expanding vocabulary fast, testing where the edges are, and practicing staying with something a little longer than they want to. This year is less about facts than about how to follow a routine, ask for help and finish a thing.
Three read-alouds and two circles a day
Morning meeting sets the day, closing circle closes it, and books sit between them. A child who cannot yet read is still learning what a story is, how a page works and that an adult will stop and answer the question.
What this room is built to support
- Social and emotional routines grounded in Conscious Discipline
- Daily literacy, math, science and vocabulary
- Whole-group, small-group and center-based work
- Visual schedules and smooth transitions
- Read-alouds twice a day, plus a closing circle
- Family materials that reinforce the week at home
A day in Preschool
The doors open at 7:00 AM and close at 5:30 PM. The plan below is the teaching day inside those hours. Arrival, breakfast and free play cover the early part of the morning, and the last block runs until pick-up.
Morning
- 7:30am – 8:00amArrival, breakfast and free play
- 8:00am – 8:15amSensory centers
- 8:15am – 8:25amDiapers, potty and handwashing
- 8:25am – 8:40amRead aloud
- 8:40am – 9:00amMusic, movement and mindful movement
- 9:00am – 9:15amGreeting circle and morning meeting
- 9:15am – 9:25amDiapers, potty and handwashing
- 9:25am – 9:45amMorning snack
- 9:45am – 10:15amMath and play centers
- 10:15am – 10:45amOutdoor learning and gross motor
- 10:45am – 10:55amDiapers, potty and handwashing
- 10:55am – 11:40amInquiry and exploration centers
Middle of the day
- 11:40am – 12:00pmLunch
- 12:00pm – 2:00pmRest time
Afternoon
- 2:00pm – 2:15pmDiapers, potty and handwashing
- 2:15pm – 2:40pmArt
- 2:40pm – 3:00pmAfternoon snack
- 3:00pm – 3:30pmOutdoor learning and gross motor
- 3:30pm – 3:40pmRead aloud
- 3:40pm – 4:00pmClosing circle
- 4:00pm – 4:10pmDiapers, potty and handwashing
- 4:10pm – 4:40pmInquiry and exploration centers
- 4:40pm – 5:00pmTable toys and dismissal
The other rooms
Infants
Unhurried, one-to-one care on your baby’s own rhythm, with the day written down and sent home.
18 mo to 3 yrsToddlers
Room to move, words for big feelings, and a routine predictable enough to lean on.
4 to 5 yrsPre-K
A full year aimed squarely at kindergarten, without turning five-year-olds into students too early.
Come and stand in the preschool room
The schedule above is what we do. A visit is how you check that it is true, and how you meet the people who would actually be with your child. Call (631) 650-0564 or ask for a time.