Pre-school/Pre-K
The Young Child: What Does He/She Need?
A chance to develop socially by playing and working with other children?
A chance to learn and develop intellectually according to his/her own pace?
A happy environment in which to explore the world around him/her?
We feel that the experience and insights gained over the years by our teachers are a valuable basis for planning a meaningful, stimulating program for your child. We also recognize that experience and insight should be coupled with fresh ideas. It is important that the school keep current with recent research in child psychology and educational theory. This dual approach has resulted in a Playhouse curriculum of which we are extremely proud. It is one which provides the balance of learning and playing necessary for your child’s healthy development – physical, social and intellectual.
Details of how we incorporate this approach on a daily basis are available to you on specific curriculum sheets for pre-school and pre-kindergarten classes. Please feel free to request one or both by contacting the school via telephone or e-mail. We also hope you’ll take the opportunity to visit us to discover why Playhouse is known as “the school where HAPPY children learn and play.”
Kindergarten/First Grade
Our private school accredited kindergarten and first grade programs provide highly individualized instruction in all curriculum areas, including reading, math and language arts. Classes are taught by credentialed/degreed teachers in small classes. These programs are full-day from 9 AM to 3:15 PM and include hot lunch and two snacks. Unlike public school, before and after-school care are included in your tuition. The post-school afternoon program includes a continuation and expansion of many of the activities begun earlier in the day in the areas of art; science; language arts; music and twice a week, Spanish. Throughout the day, there are many opportunities for continued social development and building of self-confidence. Being a part of a comfortable, small-class environment, your early elementary child can meet the challenges of his/her first critical years of school and build a firm foundation of positive attitude and mindset for classroom experiences in the years ahead.
The KINDERGARTEN reading program builds critical reading skills and increased vocabulary through graduated readers and accompanying phonics and reading workbooks. The math program utilizes both workbooks and hands-on materials/manipulatives to help assure understanding of math concepts rather than using rote memory. Our use of practical math applications helps students relate math to their own experiences, realizing its relevance and importance in their world. Through its broad curriculum, Playhouse kindergartners experience social studies; science; art; music; physical education and creative drama experiences for a well-rounded and enriched education. Teachers are well-versed in quickly assessing a student’s need for “extra practice” or an “extra challenge.” Materials to meet these needs are readily available in the classroom: no need to go elsewhere to a “special room.”
By continuing in the same reading program begun in kindergarten, FIRST GRADERS further build reading and comprehension skills without backtracking to learn a different approach to phonics or a different learning sequence in an unfamiliar set of books. Introduction of a formal spelling program and increased vocabulary emphasis in Grade One increase your child’s abilities in a broad range of language arts experiences. He or she will advance in the math program, with practical applications, as well as having the advantage of continued individualized instruction. The broad and enriched first grade curriculum includes science; social studies; art; music; physical education; creative drama experiences and Spanish twice weekly.
We encourage you to contact the school for expanded, detailed curriculum sheets which describe kindergarten and/or first grade. We’ll be happy to send them to you or arrange a tour of our classrooms.
Optional Enrichment
Playhouse offers once-a-week dance classes here at school. The classes are open to all of our children and include tap, pre-ballet and creative movement activities and instruction. For more information about these classes or to sign-up for them, please ask one of our administrators for a Webby Dance Company flyer.
Age-appropriate gymnastics classes are offered to Playhouse children throughout the year. These will resume on July 5th. Flyers describing the once-a-week sessions with Funtime Gymnastics will be available at school in May.
Summer Camp
Summer is an exciting time for our early elementary children. Our summer camp program, with a special theme each week, is created specifically for children ages five through eight. The camp program includes arts and crafts; creative dramatics; music; cooking projects; nature studies; sports and language arts. Individualized reading and math tutoring will also be provided for all children so that reading/math skills can be retained in readiness for the fall semester. In past summers, children have enjoyed weeks such as “Frontier Days”; “Art Lovers”; “Wonders of the Universe”; “Critter Country” and “Let’s Visit Mexico: Yesterday and Today”. We hope you will give your early elementary-age child the opportunity to continue to grow, learn and expand his/her horizons during the summer months. Enrollment is limited and is on a first-come-first-serve basis. There is a separate one-time fee for summer camp in addition to weekly tuition. Children (ages 5-8) not enrolled at Playhouse during the school year are welcome, space permitting.