Our Place
Elmwood children have access to beautiful outdoor and indoor spaces, which support their growth and development.
Indoors
Our charming, light-filled classrooms are thoughtfully planned to support children’s learning and play. Both are essential to children’s development and respected throughout the children’s years at Elmwood.
Children have great conversations with one another as they bake, sift, mix, dig, pour, and explore at the sand and water tables.
In our kitchen areas, the children care for baby dolls, take orders from menus, prepare food, and go on picnics.
Children gather with friends to paint at the easel. They often relay the story behind their paintings to a teacher, who records their words.
Our classroom libraries include age appropriate books, magazines, and class authored/illustrated books. Children may go there anytime on their own, and are also read to as part of a group each day.
Children make steady use of all our arts and crafts materials as they draw, cut, collage, paste, and mold their creations. Art experiences are fun, open ended, and process oriented.
Building with blocks is an essential part of the Elmwood experience and child development. When children build they are recreating the world around them and imagining new worlds of their own design. Blocks invite children to experiment with physics, engineering, math, and literacy as well. Building with friends gives children the opportunity to talk about an idea, negotiate, problem solve, and be proud of what they create together. Above all else, the children have fun.
Small Groups: Children have time to make their own choices as well as take part in teacher-initiated experiences such as a game, cooking project, drawing activity, or investigation related to a thematic unit.
Outdoors
Children go outside to play every day, all year long (weather permitting). We find that each outdoor space lends itself to a unique kind of play, and classes visit many throughout the week. Classes often play in multiple outdoor areas each day, with time for free play as well as favorite Elmwood games.