Toddler Program

Tuesday/Thursday or Wednesday/Friday 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

This two morning-a-week program for two-year-olds runs from 9:30 to 11:30.  The class is typically made up of seven children with two teachers and one parent helper each day.  Activities include free play, snack, stories, movement, art and outside play. Children must be 24 months old by August 31st of the year enrolled.

Toddlers are learners and are filled with the joy of discovery. Their language is blossoming and they are starting to be interested in playing near others. What a great point to start to involve them in a Toddler group! The Barn’s Toddler program helps stimulate the toddler’s natural curiosity and show him/her that there are safe and interesting places to explore outside of their own homes. The toddler, who is striving to establish himself/herself as a separate individual, can take those first steps away from the parents in an environment that is sensitive to his/her developmental needs. The Toddler program makes a great first step on that path out the parents’ front door.

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Preschool Program

Monday - Friday 9:15 a.m. - 12:00 noon

This multi-age program for 3- and 4-year-olds meets from 9:15 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Monday through Friday. Days typically include outside play; group time with music, stories, movement, and discussions; free play, art; snack; small group meetings and activities; and special projects such as music classes. Each daily session is attended by no more than 21 children, with 3-4 teachers and a parent helper. Children must be at least three years old by August 31st of the year in which they enroll. Families may request a 3- or 4-day schedule.

At The Barn three-, four-, and five-year-olds provide each other with a rich environment not available in a group restricted to a single age. Children vary widely in their rates of development and in a mixed age group, girls and boys can choose their playmates according to their own feeling and personal development on any given day. How nice it is when one is feeling shy and dependent to play in the housekeeping corner with someone who is feeling motherly or fatherly that day!

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Preschool Program Lunch Option

Monday - Thursday 12:00 noon - 1:00 p.m.

Children enrolled in the preschool program Monday through Thursday may sign up for this option to bring their lunches and stay until 1:00 p.m. Children may “drop in” when space is available. (There is an additional fee for “drop-ins”). The lunch program requires a minimum of four children enrolled and is limited to twelve per day. There is no lunch option on Friday.

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Preschool Extended Day Program

Monday or Thursday 12:00 noon - 3:00 p.m.

Children enrolled in the extended day program stay until 3:00 p.m. on Monday or Thursday. You may schedule your child on a regular basis for extended day once a week or you may “drop-in” your child for the extended day program provided space is available. (There is an additional fee for “drop-ins”.) The extended day program is limited to ten children and must have a minimum of six children enrolled to cover the costs of this program, so the number of extended days offered varies according to membership interest.

The extended day program is an informal extension of the preschool program staffed by two teachers. After eating lunch together children rest while listening to stories. Projects and games are planned, but the teachers frequently defer to children’s spontaneous desires. They enjoy taking the children up on suggestions such as “Let’s have a play,” “Let’s go for a walk,” “Let’s be pirates,” or “Let’s play soccer.”

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After-K Program

Monday or Thursday 12:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

This program runs once a week from 12:30 to 3:00 and is open to Barn alumni Kindergarten-age children. After school, the children come to The Barn for lunch and an informal program. This program gives Barn children, who may attend different elementary schools, a chance to maintain old friendships and, in some cases, introduce new friends to The Barn experience (admission of new families will be considered when the program is under-enrolled or has a gender imbalance).