Our Reggio Emilia-Inspired Program

Our educational philosophy is based on the Reggio Emilia approach.  Our emergent curriculum is child-based and focuses on intense hands-on experiences encouraging the children to learn and explore the world around them.  We actively celebrate all differences and promote kindness and respect towards all people. 

 

Our approach helps stimulate community and awareness among every age. 

​

Child-Based Programming

Our play-based learning approach is fun and engaging.

 

Lesson plans and daily activities are based on the current interests of the children.  This flexibility enables teachers to meet the immediate needs of the class, offers individualized care, and allows children to research and explore their deeper interests in depth.

 

Kindergarten readiness is frequently evaluated at all early stages of development to meet each physical, social, and academic skill needed.

 

Children are encouraged to seek answers to their questions through the scientific method.

Offering Open-Ended Art/Sensory Experiences

Each classroom offers a variety of 2-d and 3-d materials to be used open-ended by children to complete project ideas or explore.  Infant classrooms provide art experiences weekly; toddler and preschool classrooms provide many open-ended art materials daily.

Children's interests, topics, and ideas are observed and supported.  Toddler and preschool classrooms offer additional sensory exploration activities daily in the classroom, including sand and water play.

We allowing children to create art by themselves, not teacher-guided or teacher-created.  This allows individualized creative expression, as well as allow the freedom to gain sensory experiences and strengthen fine motor skills (gluing, taping, cutting, drawing, painting, etc.).

 

​
Environment as the Third Teacher
Our classrooms are designed with rich material-filled centers.  Each day the children are offered new provocations on the tables in addition to the open-ended materials provided in the various centers. 

 

While teachers teach safe and respectful interactions and use of materials through modeling and a proactive positive discipline approach, children are able to freely interact with the materials. 

 

New provocations offered to follow the interests of the children.  Teachers play and discover alongside children encouraging problem-solving and making connections to the real world through open-ended questions.

 

Healthy Breakfast, Lunch, and Afternoon Snack Provided
Our meals are USDA CACFP meal guidelines compliant, offering daily whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and exposure to a large variety of foods.  Meals are prepared on-site and classrooms compost meal scraps.  We are a peanut/nut-free facility.

 

Parental Involvement

Parents volunteer to help with special projects in the classroom and attend field trips.  Parents may let their child's teacher know if they plan to join their child for lunch.  

Nursing moms are encouraged to breastfeed their infants on site.  Our Ladybugs classroom offers moms a nursing space for those who desire privacy.

Parent-teacher conferences are offered twice a year and available more frequently upon request.​  Daily notes are sent home in our infant and toddler classrooms.
 

Field Trips. Projects, & Hands-on Learning
Children are actively exposed to our community through frequent field trips.  Infants enjoy buggy rides, toddlers and preschoolers take neighborhood walks to nearby destinations, and our prekindergarten students occasionally use the trolley to further explore the city.

 

Our rising kindergarteners participate in a field trip-heavy summer camp program after graduating from WCCC in May that further prepares them for their transition to elementary school.

 

Our great location in Charlottesville allows classes to take frequent neighborhood walking field trips including the following: Gordon Avenue Library, UVA Gardens, Rotunda, Fralin Museum, Martha Jefferson House, UVA sports fields, the Lawn, and neighborhood walks and natural scavenger hunts.