With preschool typically being the first place your child leaves mom and dad, we focus on building a strong relationship with educators and peers to create an emotionally safe space for children. To help with this transition we focus on simple and consistent routines within the class to create predictability for children. We work on strengthening emotional and social regulation by modeling and using specific language to help them cope with conflict and emotion. The Seedlings classroom is the foundation for the rest of your child’s learning experience at The Reggio Academy. Educators engage in conversation/dialogue about mark making, relationships, exploring materials and children’s boundaries. We learn about different tools to manipulate, self-expression, parallel play and how to enter play. We focus on self-help skills like taking care of one’s self/belongings, understandings emotions, and testing schemas. We immerse ourselves in the unfolding of everyday life with the children and all that it has to offer.

Our Sprouts build on the foundational skills introduced in the Seedlings class. A primary focus in this class is to develop a strong sense of voice and social skills. Children learn to become emotionally aware, sensitive problem solvers, and empathic teammates. Children begin developing a responsibility for themselves, their peers, and the school. They begin being interested in writing their names, words, and letters that intrigue them. They learn how to hypothesize with peers and educators about their ideas. One of our goals is for children to communicate their feelings, address a problem and have the desire to fix it. In this class, children begin diving deeper into short and long-term projects guided by the educators.

Stems class is the last class before transitioning to Kindergarten. A primary focus in this class is establishing a strong sense of self while building off the skills learned in the Sprouts class. The children create learning journeys and projects, constantly reflecting, questioning, and hypothesizing together with both large and small groups. Literacy presents itself in many of the work the children put together throughout the year and can be seen around the classrooms and in their projects. Mathematical concepts are experienced through the building with loose parts, blocks, building projects, and outdoor exploration. By the end of the year, we want our children to be great solo thinkers who are confident in themselves and their potential.

The afternoon program is from 2:00pm-6:00pm and consists of art, outdoor play (when weather permitted), and a healthy snack. Children are able to strengthen gross motor skills through play, social skills through making friends, and absorb all the delicious vitamin D from the sun outside! This is a perfect program for parents who need care in the afternoon for a few hours or even families that need a little break to make dinner and prepare for the nighttime routine! School-aged children are welcome to join but we do not provide transportation from elementary schools at this time.