Preschool

Encouraging Curiosity and Inspiring a Love of Learning

Scheduling that works for your child and you

  • 2, 3, 4, or 5 days a week
  • Extend to a full day of childcare with our Extended Hours

Woodside School emphasizes learning as an interactive process.

Programs provide for a wide range of developmental interests and abilities that meet individual needs. Learning activities and materials are concrete, real, and relevant to the lives of young children.

Teachers provide opportunities for children to choose among a variety of activities, materials, and equipment, and time to explore through active involvement. Teachers facilitate children's engagement with materials and activities, and extend the child's learning by asking questions or by making suggestions that stimulate children's thinking. Children are given time to reflect on their actions to develop more complete understanding.

Emphasis is on concrete experiential learning to achieve the following goals:

  • Foster positive identity and sense of emotional well-being
  • Develop social skills
  • Encourage children to think, reason, question, and experiment
  • Encourage language and literary development
  • Enhance physical development and skills
  • Encourage and demonstrate sound health, safety, and nutritional practices
  • Encourage creative expression, representation, and appreciation for the arts
  • Respect diversity

Woodside Curriculum Goals First Year- Group 1

Independence

Enters class, greets teachers and peers

Cares for personal needs: stores belongings in cubby, washes hands, responds to own needs such as cleaning up spills or space, uses tissues, uses bathroom

Self-Discipline

Follows safety rules and honors class agreement for community expectations

Demonstrates care when using materials

Chooses a variety of tasks

Focuses on a task and completes

Works independently

Self-Confidence

Says good-bye to parent/caretaker independently

Shows interest to try new things

Adjusts to change; can manage transitions

Social Skills

Is friendly to others

Uses words to express feelings, resolve conflicts

Will ask for help

Demonstrates a spirit of cooperativeness

Adapted from original source:
J. Zalles, Northeast Montessori Institute, 1989, revised 1994

Woodside Curriculum Goals Second Year- Group 2

Academic Skills

Interest in books

Listening skills

Interest in words and vocabulary

Recognition of letters, especially in own name

Write own name

Drawing

Recognition of numerals and their value

Count one-to-one correspondence to 10

Work Habits

Moves from one task to another with independence

Concentrates on task and works to completion

Works in partnership with another

Independent and confident in choices

Understands and honors class expectations and agreements

Demonstrates care in using materials

Social/Emotional Skills

Strives to be a friend

Identifies and expresses feelings

Works to resolve conflicts

Communicates freely: shares ideas

Is cooperative

Cares for others; is helpful

Listens to others

Initiates play; joins others in play

Appreciates and learns from differences

Is kind to others

Adapted from original source:
J. Zalles, Northeast Montessori Institute, 1989, revised 1994

Transitional Kindergarten Third Year - Group 3

This group is a great transition, especially for those students who may have just missed the "cut-off" date.

Differing from prior years, this session now meets in the mornings, like our other groups, with the option to extend to a full day (3:30pm)

Want to know more?

Check out the Kindergarten Curriculum for more information on what Group 3 is like.

“This is the friendliest preschool!”

Tyler U., age 4