Preschool
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Why do parents and students choose preschool at New Morning School?
A Cooperative, Child Led Preschool Where Children Love to Learn Through Play
Welcome to New Morning School's extended-day preschool program. By partnering with the staff at New Morning School, you are giving your child the gift of an early foundation of learning and play which is grounded in the latest brain science and supported by the work of Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget.
Let your child's first school experience be a joyful place, one with a myriad of new activities and experiences every day. Let it be a place where your child learns to interact with other children and is able to explore his or her own curiosities
The preschool program meets all licensing requirements of the State of Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
Age
33 Months - 5 Years
Class Size
Up to 12 Children / Teacher
Classes
2, 3 or 5 Mornings / Full-Days
School hours
8:50am - 11:30am / Full-Day
Choice in the Preschool Classroom
Creative Play Area
Activities in the creative play area foster both large muscle and social skills. Features of the creative play area include blocks, a kitchen area, a fix-it table, animal figurines, and a playhouse.
Collage
Fine motor skills such a cutting, pasting, taping, and sorting are reinforced in our collage area.
Arts and Crafts
Children are encouraged to develop their artistic awareness and skills in a daily art project. In addition, the easel is available for artistic expression.
Snack
Students bring individual snacks and lunches each day.
Discovery Table
Daily activities at the Discovery Table challenge students to solve problems, classify objects and develop an awareness of basic scientific and mathematical principles. They can experiment with objects such as dried leaves, snow, kernels of corn, and play dough.
ABC and 123 Games
Children select ABC or 123 games. Playing these games encourages development of both verbal and mathematical skills.
Writing Center
A variety of materials are available at our writing center to help young children tap into their ability to use lines, shapes, and eventually symbols and letters to share their understanding of the world. When friends author a story they become the casting director as their friends act out their tales.
Sand, Water or Playdough
Each day children flock to the area which features our sand table, water table or playdough, featured on a rotating basis. These areas give children an opportunity to develop gross and fine motor skills, and introduce them to concepts like mass, volume, gravity, and quantity.
Gross Motor Skills & Physical Education
Children develop gross motor skills during movement activities in the gym. Outside, these skills are further developed as children enjoy the playhouse, sandbox and play equipment. The use of balls improves hand-eye coordination. Students enjoy physical education instruction weekly in the gym, fostering gross motor skills and team building.
Music
Music activities are presented regularly. Songs, finger-plays and movement reinforce language development.
Themes
Teachers plan thematic units throughout the year ranging from community helpers to learning about the farm. Stories, songs, crafts and snack are integrated around the theme so that the child has a holistic immersion experience in the topics being studied. Teachers key in on student interests and use that information to plan high-interest themes.
The Preschool class is taught by an educator trained and experienced in early childhood education and supported by trained teacher aides and parent aides, creating a 4:1 student-to-teacher ratio or better.
Within our personalized classrooms, each child is embraced and honored as an individual who can contribute to the community. As learning happens throughout the day, the teacher will work with your child at their level in academic readiness, as well as social, emotional and physical growth.
The teacher observes each child to evaluate his/her intellectual, social, emotional, and physical development. Children develop at different rates in social, emotional and cognitive areas. An individual evaluation highlights what is appropriate for each child.
Each child’s day includes individual and group activities where they have the opportunity to learn from one another. The multiage classroom provides opportunities for both stretching growth and leadership roles.
Executive functions are the cognitive, emotional and behavioral skills students need for learning. In our preschool room, we emphasize self control or the ability to stop and think before acting, and emotional control or the ability to manage feelings to achieve goals and complete tasks. Planning skills are practiced each day as children are involved in teacher-directed as well as student-selected tasks.
Our preschool students enjoy class in a 1,400 sq. ft. classroom and nap in an adjoining room. Gross motor skills are developed in a 4,000 sq. ft. gym, filled with age appropriate equipment. Outside play happens daily on the preschool climber, in the preschool house, and in the areas for running and playing that surround the equipment.
Students are carefully supervised during the day. All staff, including volunteers, undergo a criminal background check. Volunteers are parents or grandparents of students at the school who embrace the school’s philosophy and ways of respecting children. During the school day, exterior doors are locked. The students practice fire, tornado and other safety drills, so they are prepared for an emergency.
Preschool Program Highlights
The maximum student teacher ratio is 12-1 though with a full time teacher, a full time paid aide and parents aids, the student to adult ratio is much smaller.
Each day is different at New Morning school, but it’s important to have a predictable routine to the day, so that children feel secure. Our preschool classrooms are thematically-based, meaning that new activities are set up for the children every other day. The projects tie into a theme, such as farm animals, the five senses, water, becoming friends – the topics are endless! Each day there is an art activity that is both thematically-based and related to the theme and the rubrics.
Based on the latest brain science research, each child’s program is structured as they learn to use a plan-work-evaluate format. This means that after circle time each morning, the students plan their day, with help from the teacher. “Will I go to snack today? I want to play in creative play. I want to do an ABC game with my teacher. Maybe I’ll write a story today.”
This format, unique to New Morning School, is called a child-centered approach where children become engaged in their own learning, setting the foundation for a child who is curious and who loves school. At the end of their day, each student will have an check in with their teacher to evaluate their plan.
- 8:50 amCircle time: stories, movement, theme, calendar, weather, letter of the week9:30 amChildren fill out plans and choose activities throughout the room.10:50 amStudent clean up10:40 amLast call for snack11:15 amOutside time or gym11:00 amOne-on-one time with the teacher to share about the student’s day11:30 amLunch and outside time12:45 pmRead-aloud stories1:15 pmRest time1:45 pmAs children awake, they join the teacher in the classroom for afternoon activities. Activities are less structured and the teacher follows the lead of the child’s interests (supporting the latest brain science and the need for reflection).3:00 pmOutside time3:15 pmDismissal
Students must be 33 months through age five. The classroom, by design, is a multi-age classroom, so that each child gains experience with both older and younger students.
State licensing requires that students for our program be toilet trained. Staff can give reminders to the students, but they must be able to complete the process start to finish independently.
Yes, because of the many food allergies and differences in food choices between families, each student brings a lunch and snacks each day. We will provide ideas for healthy lunches based on the latest brain research to keep your child in top form each day and we do not allow candy or pop. If your child has food allergies, please inform the staff during an initial visit. Because of life-threatening allergies the school is nut- and tree nut-free.
It’s best to have your child bring a backpack to school each day. This can include a change of clothes and other needed items. Please label clothing. On the first day, please bring a one-inch binder for your child’s portfolio and a family photo.
Cots are provided for nap time. To help children feel comfortable and cozy, please bring bedding each Monday and a favorite stuffed animal. Bedding is taken home each weekend for cleaning.
The academic year runs from the day after Labor Day through the second week in June. The center is closed two weeks during the winter holidays. Click here for a more detailed calendar.
Open communication between teachers and parents is encouraged. Every day your child’s individual plan comes home with notes from the teacher. This is a wonderful discussion-starter for your child to share about their day. Please contact your child’s teacher at any time to discuss progress. Parent conferences are scheduled two times per year. A conference may be conducted in person (preferred) or virtually.
You are giving your child the gift of a firm foundation which is an extension of your family values, intertwined with emerging skills in interpersonal relationships and personal responsibility – a gift of a lifetime.
Frequenty Asked Questions
