First Congregational Church Nursery School

Several qualities and practices make First Congo unique:

• We are play-based: It is our purpose to provide a carefully planned program that reflects our present knowledge of human growth and development. Based on that knowledge the underlying premise of our program is that young children learn best through play. Our rich environment invites children to engage themselves both physically and mentally fostering intellectual qualities such as curiosity inventiveness perception and concentration as well as helping them to develop physical wellbeing and coordination. Creativity and individuality are given free expression through painting music dramatic play crafts block building and woodworking and by making use of raw materials that encourage originality. We believe that process is more important than product. Play helps children best to understand themselves and others and aids them in the development of social skills such as making friends dealing with conflict and experiencing the many aspects of community life.

• Parents participate directly: One of the most significant elements of our program is the interaction between adults and children. For this reason we are committed to being a parent participation program — requiring direct participation by parents in their child’s classroom. This cooperative environment gives parents a unique opportunity to learn effective positive child-centered teaching methods and provides a sense of community for parents as well as for the children. Parents get to know respect and trust the teachers their child’s classmates and their families.

• Children make their own choices: Although children are grouped with same-age classmates we recognize that each child brings a unique set of aptitudes and challenges to the community. We strive to create an environment in which children can develop at their own pace physically emotionally intellectually and socially in an atmosphere of acceptance and understanding. Through self-directed play children learn that they are free to make choices to explore and experiment to discover and create as long as they stay within the limits of consideration for people and things. For the greater part of each morning children choose the activities in which they will participate according to their developmental and personal needs whether outside or in active or quiet messy or clean.

• Children attend snack groups: Three groups of 10 children (T-TH and MWF classes) and their snack teacher gather daily for a snack and story time. This part of the morning allows for the practice of conversational skills in a more structured setting and provides an opportunity for the child to develop the capability of sustained focus and experience the accomplishment of self-management within classroom routines.

• We emphasize emotional intelligence: We strive to give children an awareness and acceptance of their own feelings. Children are helped to articulate feelings and needs to identify what they want and to ask for it. The goal is always to help children learn to work out their own problems first with the support and guidance of a teacher and later independently. We understand and foster their right to express their feelings through acceptable means and we encourage risk-taking problem solving and conflict resolution with gentle guidance. It is our hope that all children leave our program with a sense of independence and carry with them a joy of learning that will last a lifetime.