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Our Philosophy

Our program operates on a philosophy of acceptance of each child and their individual needs. Your child’s needs, thoughts, feelings, and emotions are taken seriously in an atmosphere that exhibits patience and understanding, by providing a safe, positive learning environment where students are able to gain self-esteem, confidence and a love for learning.

Leap Frog Nursery School is designed to engage children in early education activities through play based learning.

Our Goal

The program was created to enrich the lives of
young children in Poultney and the surrounding
towns. Leap Frog Nursery School seeks to help
students and parents forge a bond that strengthens
a child’s abilities and offers further opportunities
for the community as a whole. There is continuous
communication between the teachers,
owner and parents through the form of personal
conversations, a parent resource center, parent
teacher conferences, emails and the school
Facebook page.

It is the goal of the program to facilitate eagerness
for knowledge and enhance the inquisitive minds
of children.

An abundance of pre-k skills are offered to
help students become ready to enter the school
system as kindergarteners following the
completion of the 4 year old pre-k program.

Opportunity & Involvement

Community

*Poultney Pumpkin Festival
*Woman’s Club Tree of Giving
*Poultney Art Shows *Earth Day Fair
*Adopt a Soldier Project *T-Ball Team
*VT Humanities Council Read With Me
*Yummies In Our Tummies Food Drive
*Nature Trail Story Walk
*Scholastic Book Club and more…

Field Trips

*Apple Orchard *Pond
*Pumpkin Patch *Corn Maze *Pember Museum *Sugar House
*Firehouse *Post Office *Farm
*Poultney Public Library
*Slate Valley Museum

Parties & Events

*Halloween *Christmas *Graduation *Valentine’s *Concerts

Parent Involvement

*Open Communication
*Conferences *Chaperones
*Readers/Presenters

Guest Presenters

*Police Officer *Firemen
*Librarian *Musicians
*Dental Hygienists *Nurses
*Poultney Rotary Club: Josh The Otter
*Legion Auxiliary Memorial Day Presenter

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Curriculum

A creative-thematic curriculum incorporating children’s developmental needs of social interaction, emotional growth, language, pre-reading, math, science and pre-writing skills as well as fine and gross motor development. Leap Frog Nursery school uses the Teaching Strategies Gold Assessments, Second Step and Creative Curriculum to develop a curriculum based on student inquiry, individualized interests and needs.

It is important for children to be physically and mentally active, therefore the program is focused on helping children learn through using their bodies. Your child will jump, climb, hop, run, move like animals and roar like a dinosaur as they move through each learning experience. Through this physical play children explore, experiment and develop an awareness of their body. There will be daily outdoor activities and games to facilitate gross motor development in the schools playground, outdoor classroom or on the nature trail.
There will be opportunities for your child to be imaginative, creative and expressive. All children need to use their imaginations. Leap Frog Nursery School offers ever changing and engaging thematic learning centers within the classroom. We us a diverse variety of medium for exciting art projects and place emphasis on student driven, interpretive art that is essential to your child's creative development.
At Leap Frog Nursery School your child will learn self confidence through interacting with their peers. They will gain skills for coping with daily structure, persistence and social problem solving. Positive interactions will help provide emphasis on following rules, self-regulation, concepts or right and wrong, sharing, helping others, taking turns and empathy. The goal is to help children form lasting social and emotional skills to promote healthy relationships with adults and peers.

There are two aspects of language the school addresses. The first is expressive language (the way your child speaks and uses language that he or she knows). The second aspect is receptive language (your child’s ability to understand and process the language spoken to him or her). Through listening, modeling, and engaging, students gain language, verbal communications, pre-reading, letter recognition and sounds. Early learning encourages and assists with the development of strong communication skills. Through both group and individual opportunities for students to explore books, stories, poems, rhymes, songs, as well as engage in discussions and role play.
Your child will explore mathematics in their daily play. They will participate in sorting, matching, sequencing, and counting a variety of manipulatives as well as measuring and weighing objects in the world around them. Math skills will be reinforced through play included in songs, rhymes, stories and games.
Leap Frog Nursery School will utilize a variety of local opportunities to open an exciting world of science to your child. Through observations, predictions, trail and error, and participating in experimental learning students will engage in scientific inquiry. Our outdoor classroom is specifically designed to allow students an opportunity to participate in many activities that allow them hands on experiences with plants, animals and other aspects of nature.

Daily schedule

Choice time

7:50-8:30 & 11:50-12:30

A transitional time that allows students to socialize, share and explore. At this time students arrive, wash their hands, attendance is taken, student jobs are chosen and individuals choose activities to do with their peers to engage in social play.

Meeting time

8:30-8:40 & 12:30-12:40

Whole class collaborative clean up and organization, calendar, student greetings, weather, music and movement activities.

Learning centers

8:40-9:45 & 12:40-1:45

Small group: STEM investigation and building, student driven art, dramatic play, teacher assessments, language and literacy development, fine motor manipulation, math an reasoning skills and sensory play.

Circle time

9:45-10:10 & 1:45-2:10

Classroom organization, FUNdations letter sounds and formation, number recognition, science experimentation and theme based lessons.

Snack & Literacy awareness

10:10-10:40 & 2:10-2:40

Hand washing and self-help skills, snack and food exploration and social conversation. Story time and book walks based on curriculum themes and student interest.

End of the day meeting
& Outdoor time

10:40-11:10 & 2:40-3:10

Fresh air and exercise to promote healthy living. Students choice of outdoor environment inquiry and gross motor play with use of our playground, outdoor classroom, the Poultney Nature Trail, and/or cooperative games on our grassy lawn. Only extreme weather will keep us indoors. Whole group discussion of daily activities and hands on scientific fun.