Here at Four Seasons...
We teach through what children do best: Play! By combining planned activities and open-ended experiences, children are allowed to move at their own pace and learn through discovery. What better way is there to understand what slimy and sticky feels like than to play with homemade goo? Children spend time playing at the sand and water tables, conducting science experiments, running toy cars through shaving cream, and painting with just about anything other than a paintbrush. Children love to get messy and so do we! We also dance, sing, stack, fill, pour, talk, read, rest, and laugh. Your child will enjoy participation in small and large group activities, as well as exploring and following their own interests in a fun and safe way.
By keeping our ratios low, we are able to provide each child with one-on-one attention daily. We get to know and love each one of the children in our care and pride ourselves on the strong relationships we create with our families.
We spend time outside on a daily basis, weather permitting. Our playgrounds are separated by age and are stocked with lots of toys, a playhouse, climber, slide and sand. Encouraging a relationship to nature is part of what makes Four Seasons unique and that philosophy is ardently practiced in all rooms. In the warmer months most of our planned curriculum is adapted for the outside and many days you will find us out exploring the grassy areas around the school. Turning over a log while on a nature walk can yield wonders that have elicited yelps of surprise from many toddlers. And, although grownups may no longer find the changes of the seasons a wonder, falling leaves and snow never fail to amaze our young ones.
In fact, we believe that a direct relationship to nature is not only advantageous, but essential to a child’s well-being. The sensory experiences nature has to offer cannot be found inside a classroom. How do you know if tree bark is rough or soft? Or how cold rain water is? Or even what noise a squirrel makes when it runs along a tree branch? You have to experience it firsthand. In addition, shapes and colors can be seen in their truest form once you venture beyond the school’s doors.
Much of what children learn stems from their natural curiosity in the world around them. We believe that, as caregivers, we have a duty to foster a lasting love and respect for the natural environment in every child. At Four Seasons we strive to do this everyday.
We want Four Seasons to serve as a home away from home: a playful, nurturing and safe environment. Your child will experience love, acceptance, respect, laughter, song, discovery and more here. Most importantly, we never forget that childhood should be fun.
Please remember that children are very “hands on” and can get very dirty. We appreciate that you would like your child to arrive at and leave Four Seasons in the same, clean outfit. This isn't always possible. You must understand that we are a CREATIVE learning center. Children use every one of their five senses when exploring their surroundings. Please dress your child in clothing that you won’t mind having to pre-wash with stain removers!
"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning.
But for children, play IS serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood."
~ Fred Rogers