A Day at Strawberry Vale Preschool
Your preschooler will be welcomed into the school by small school bells rung by classmates. Coats, backpacks, and outside shoes come off, inside shoes go on, and hands are washed.
Once inside the bright and open single room classroom, there are always a variety of activities to explore each day; some new and some familiar.
The preschoolers can access an easel with paints, freestyle craft table, play dough, dress-up area, play kitchen, cars, puzzles, science/sensory tables, and the reading loft. Each day, a book can be borrowed from the reading loft to take home in their book bag.
Every class, the preschoolers have unstructured play, circle and story time, snack time, and the day always ends with outside play, rain or shine.
Special School Traditions
Special crafts and food are made during the year. In the fall, the preschoolers make applesauce or apple crisp. Cookies are baked and decorated around several holidays. At Christmas, the preschoolers make and bring home a special centerpiece for your table and jar of cranberry sauce to compliment holiday meals.
There are also special theme days where your preschooler will get to wear something fun for preschool. They include Crazy Hat/Hair Day, Pancake Pajama Day, and Pirate Day.
Teacher Gail loves to engage the kids in mad science with colourful bubbling concoctions. Each year, the preschoolers observe the lifecycle of frogs as they transform from eggs to tadpoles and chickens as they hatch from eggs.
Outings from the preschool are common. We are very lucky to have a small patch of forest with plenty of trails and climbing opportunities right outside our fenced area where we go for our forest days. We also have an amazing learning pond right outside our schoolhouse fence where the class ventures for tadpole hunting and other learning opportunities. We also coordinate one field trip a month somewhere in the community (fire halls, nature sanctuaries, grocery stores, etc.).
Family and cultural traditions and talents are also commonly celebrated. Each year, our families are asked if they can share anything with our classes. We often have families that make special food that is traditional in their household or that share musical or other talents.
"In a place where imaginations soar, friendships blossom, and every day is filled with wonder, children build the confidence, curiosity, and joy that will stay with them for a lifetime. We are proud to provide a nurturing environment where learning begins with play and every child is encouraged to grow, explore, and shine."
