Nature's Knowledge House values independence, self-reliance and respect for others. Our students are taught to be as self-reliant and independent as they can be for their own developmental level. They learn to set up and clean up their work before getting out new materials and serve themselves snack and clean up independently. The children learn social skills and practice manners and problem solving daily.
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What is the daily schedule?
Preschool: 9:00 - 9:15am ARRIVAL
9:30 - 11:00 UNINTERRUPTED WORK TIME
11:15 - 11:45 OUTSIDE PLAY/WORK TIME (weather permitting) 11:45 - NOON: PICK-UP Does my child need to be potty trained to attend? Yes. Children need to be independent in the bathroom. Does anyone live in the school ? No one lives in the school. It's a dedicated school house. Do you teach academics in preschool? We believe in child-led learning, and encouraging children to learn through their own investigation and exploration to become independent lifelong learners. The focus of Knowledge House education is on helping children learn how to be self-directed in order to be able learn independently through their own desire to learn. We all learn best when we are truly interested in something. Our program is unique in that we allow ample room for play and exploration in learning from our materials. We help children understand that they can learn about what interests them independently and in their own way. Children have exposure to academics through many of our materials but we do not push children to learn before they are ready. Readiness requires the developmental ability, interest and desire of the child to learn. |
Will you teach my child to learn to read?
In preschool, some but not all children will learn letter sounds and begin reading small words. Children who are exposed to reading at home tend to be the earliest readers. At Knowledge House children have exposure to letter names and sounds in conjunction with tracing and printing activities. Young children are learning about language from their environment all the time. We provide an environment rich in pre-reading skills and opportunities for children to be exposed to spoken and written word and don't force children in learning to read. Daily exposure to written words and spoken language is the key to igniting the child's interest in and ability to read. 
How do preschool Montessori materials work? Children are naturally drawn to work with materials that they find interesting and are ready to learn from. When a child shows interest in a material or a teacher sees that a child may be ready to learn from a particular activity, a lesson in how to use the material is given. When the child is able to complete the activity, the teacher will introduce a related activity that builds on the knowledge they have already learned.
What are Open Ended materials: They are materials that children can use in a variety of ways that encourage curiosity and problem solving. |
Why is there a 3 year age range in your preschool class?
Children of varying ages work very well together and learn quite a lot from each other. Younger children learn from observing the older children and want to try the activities they see them doing. Older children find themselves as role models for the younger children and solidify what they know and gain confidence as they teach others. Each class has a range of abilities among the children who may all be in different developmental stages. The children blend and are accepting of each other and are not singled out for being less or more advanced than others. Do you require a yearly contract?
No yearly contract is required. We accept new students throughout the year. Enrollment is on a month to month basis. We require a 30 day notice should you choose to un-enroll your child. If you un-enroll and wish to re-enroll, another registration fee is required. How do you handle discipline? We use positive reinforcement, positive redirection and natural consequences to manage behavior issues. When children have problems with others, we help them to learn how to work it out with each other. We discuss appropriate behaviors individually and as a class. When a child has difficulty with behaviors or following directions, we talk with them about expectations and the reasons why we follow rules. Redirection to another activity also works well. If a child requires constant one on one supervision to keep himself/herself or others safe, they may not be ready for our environment. In this case we will discuss with parents the possibility of withdrawal from the school and trying again later when the child may be more ready. What is the LILLIO Parent Communication app?
LILLIO is a program we utilize for check-in and check-out, to process online payments and to provide photos to parents to share a bit of their child's day. |
