Preschool
Program
Families can choose a half-day or full-day program.
Outdoor playtime occurs twice each day.
A full program of specialist classes is provided including Spanish, Music, Library, and Physical Education. An Art Integrationist meets with teachers regularly to incorporate art into classroom themes.
Morning Drop-Off is from 7:45 - 8:30 a.m.
Afternoon Dismissal is 12:30 or 3:00 p.m
Access to a Preschool-specific playground, campus pond, and hiking trails provides plentiful outdoor opportunities.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and project-based designing and making are built into the curriculum.
Healthy snacks are served each morning.
Students build language and understanding around personal characteristics including eye color, hair color, skin color, who is in my family, and more.
Within a theme-based program, students dive deeply into topics of their own choosing. Recent topics have included the following: Who am I, Farms, Bears, and Gardening.
Benchmarks
Year-end benchmark goals reflect ambitious aspirations for our Preschool students. We acknowledge that some students have the capacity to grow well beyond these basic expectations. In keeping with high expectations and differentiation, we meet the range of all abilities and needs.
A Day in Preschool
Choice Time
During this time, students engage in theme-related centers, build with different materials, do puzzles, and look at books, strengthening fine motor skills, counting, and vocabulary.
Morning Meeting
Students learn to circle up and build stamina to sit attentively and engaged as teachers lead them through a question of the day, sharing, and read aloud stories.
Specials Class
Library, Physical Education, Spanish, or Music
Snack
Students choose from fresh fruit and a nut-free snack. They learn to wait patiently, say please and thank you, and clean up after themselves.
Story
Teachers read to students several times throughout the day. Books are chosen in partnership with our librarian to build students' background knowledge around themes and incorporate “windows” into different experiences and “mirrors” for students to see themselves reflected in the classroom.
Outdoor Play
This is an essential time where students can strengthen their gross motor skills, initiate games, and negotiate peer interaction with teacher support.
Lunch
Families pack lunch, and students eat in the classroom with teachers where they model routines and good manners. They practice fine motor skills as they learn to open and close sustainable containers.
Rest
Preschoolers rest from 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. While children are not required to sleep, most are exhausted from a strenuous day navigating Renbrook’s campus.
Outdoor Play
Each grade has an outdoor classroom with a mud kitchen and outdoor tools. Here, students use their imaginations to turn natural objects into things like campfires or a meal or spontaneously use items to count and sort.
Dismissal
Students wait with their teachers outside while caregivers drive through the car loop, and teachers place students into their cars. Many children continue their day at After Care.