Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main goals of the program, and how much structured or organized
activities are there, as opposed to structured playtime?
Since I believe that play is the occupation of young
children, and social skills and learning to work
together in a group are vital, we have time each day for free choice
playtime and interaction with
others. My main goals are to help the children to feel good about themselves
in a school setting, to
be eager and open to learning many new things, to be ready to try new
skills, and to interact
successfully in a small group of peers.
My experience shows that if the child has these kinds
of social skills, the factual, "academic" skills
will quickly fall into place, and s/he will make a positive transition
to the kindergarten routine. I try
to structure each class to meet the particular needs of the children
in that class, and to offer new
skills and projects for those who are ready and interested, and to allow
those who need mostly
unstructured playtime, the chance to move ahead at their own level. We
do have a daily routine so
that the children can count on some regularity and predictability to
their day, but we also vary it to
provide some flexibility in our schedule, which is also a beneficial
and necessary part of learning to
work well in an early childhood school setting.
What is the teacher-student ratio and how many days
a week do the children attend?
I am the only teacher in our program, and I limit the
number of children in MWF (PreK) classes to
twelve or less. In the TTH beginning preschool classes, the maximum is
ten children with one
teacher. The children attend for two and a half hours per day. I believe
it is a natural and ageappropriate
transition for three year olds to attend a twice weekly preschool experience,
with another
day added when they are four. This leads well into the five day a week
format offered by most
Oregon kindergartens.
What is the cost to register and how much is tuition?
We require a $65.00 nonrefundable registration fee to
reserve a spot for each child. This fee is not
a deposit, and is not deducted from the first month tuition cost. The
registration fee covers the cost
of printing a parent handbook, providing liability insurance and laminating
placemats, nametags and
all the other initial classroom items for each child. The yearly tuition
has been divided into monthly
amounts of $120.00 for TTH classes and $175.00 for MWF classes. I will
plan on each child
attending every day unless they are ill, and there is no credit given
if a child misses class.
How much parental involvement is expected or required?
Parent volunteers are utilised in the classroom three times a month
for "Apple
Groups," “Math
Tubs,” and “Science Table” projects in our PreK classes.
We also use parent helpers to drive for
field trips, send in supplies for snacks and assist with holiday parties,
put together class books, and
cut out craft projects for us. Families are welcome to drop in for class
parties, and parents will be
invited to join us for scheduled programs three times during the year
in our MWF classes. We do
not use daily inclass parents in our program, because my experience shows
that three and four year
old children are ready for a regular learning time away from their parents
for a short time, two or
three times a week, and, in fact, thrive on the newly acquired independence
and increased
responsibility.
Is this a day care center?
At this time, we offer preschool classes for 4-5 year olds three times
a week, with morning or
afternoon options available, and two day a week preschool classes for
3-4 year olds, either morning
or afternoon. Because of our licensing requirements, we do not offer
extended day care for your
child.
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