What does a cooperative preschool mean at Creative Bridges?
A cooperative preschool involves parents participating in their child’s classroom once a month for an entire school day. For each participation day, you bring snacks for the class and help to foster the preschool experience by running one of the daily centers that the teacher has planned and provided. Being part of a cooperative preschool provides a way to see your child playing and socializing with her or his friends. Participating allows you the opportunity to take what the children are learning in class and reinforce it at home.
Is participation mandatory for all families?
Yes, participation is mandatory as it is part of our philosophy. Parent involvement is one of the ways we foster the sense of community in which our school takes pride. Participators do not need to be Mom or Dad, but they do need to be someone important in the child’s life. They can be grandparents, aunts, or uncles, too. The participator does not need to be the same person each month.
Does my child have to be potty trained to be at Creative Bridges?
No, children do not need to be potty trained until age 3. We are happy to help you potty train your child as they progress through this learning phase. By age 3, your child will need to be potty trained.
Do you offer multiple child discounts?
Yes, we offer a discount on the registration fee for the second child and each subsequent child only.
Can I pay with a credit or debit card?
No, sorry, we do not accept credit or debit cards as payment. Cash or check are acceptable forms of payment at Creative Bridges. You may also use your bank’s autopay for tuition.
What if my child has food allergies?
We are nut-free school, which helps with many of the children’s allergies. If your child does have food allergies, we ask you to provide her or his snack and lunch each day. Since we are a cooperative school, the parent helper for the day will provide a snack for the entire class. Bringing your child’s snack daily eliminates concerns of cross-contamination with foods that may cause allergic reactions.
What are your child to adult ratios?
We maintain a low adult to child ratio.
Do you accept children with special needs?
Yes, we do accept children with special needs. We feel that the typical children learn just as much from the children with special needs as the children with special needs learn from the typical children. We try to keep the ratio of special needs children to typical children proportionate so that we can best accommodate all of the children’s individual needs.
What are your discipline techniques?
Our discipline techniques focus on setting age-appropriate boundaries and parameters for the children. We have high expectations appropriate to the child’s age, which help to guide them through their school day. We use negotiation, redirection and removal from the situation if that is deemed necessary. Removal from the situation is always a last resort in discipline for Creative Bridges and Discovery Tree.
What curriculum do you use?
Our curriculum is based upon the needs of the class and the children who are in that class. No one curriculum serves every child’s learning style, so we have to be flexible in our techniques for teaching. We pull ideas from Maria Montessori, Jean Piaget’s theories of development, NAEYC guidelines and the curriculum that we as a school have developed over the years. We want every child’s learning style to be addressed and to give our students the opportunity to learn from each other as well as from different teaching philosophies.
How long have your teachers been with you?
Some of our teachers have been with us for 23 years and, of course, new teachers occasionally join the school. We love having new teachers because they add novel ideas and infuse enthusiasm to the mix!
What kind of training and experience do your teachers have?
The teachers and director have countless hours of training above and beyond the Department of Health Services requirements. Each year, our teachers participate in training that is presented during workshops, staff meetings, and through outside presenters.
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CHILD
Once a year before the start of school in August, the children come into the classroom to meet their teachers and acclimate to the classroom environment. This helps the child transition from home to school or classroom to classroom.