At Sundance our philosophy is that all children, no matter what age, learn best through play and interaction. Our goal is to provide a safe, stimulating and nurturing environment that allows opportunities for discovery. Our role as teachers is to provide a variety of daily experiences and describe to the infants what they are experiencing and engage them in activities that will help them develop. Infant rooms are designed to meet the needs of the youngest baby to the developing walker.
We use daily written reports to keep you informed about your child’s day. When you arrive in the morning we ask that you fill out the top portion of the daily report with details of your child's last feeding, diaper, time and mood upon awakening. This prepares us for our day with your baby. We will track your child’s feeding, diaper changes, nap times and any additional information we need to communicate to you.
Sundance follows a theme-based curriculum at the preschool level. Each week, a new topic is presented for the children to explore and learn about. We also start to introduce basic academics such as letter, number and shape recognition, as well as language and writing skills. For example, every week a new letter is in the spotlight, which we learn in alphabetical order. For each letter, we discuss the letter sound and brainstorm words that begin with that letter.
The day is split into two class times. The morning class begins with a group circle time that is related to the theme of the week. In addition, we discuss the calendar and the weather for that day. Following circle time, the children are invited to work in different learning stations that are also related to our weekly theme. During learning stations, children work on their fine motor and critical thinking skills. The learning stations are very important because during this observation time, teachers are able to understand what the children are good at as well what they need to work on.
The afternoon class time begins after nap/quiet time. At this time, children explore the classroom center activities based on different areas of development.
Parents are welcome to visit or call anytime to check on their child. Newsletters will be distributed monthly and will keep you updated on school-wide happenings. Each classroom as a bulletin board which will posted for both children and parents. The bulletin board will include notices, special events, curriculum information and sign up sheets for various activities.