Classes
In all our classes at Middle Earth, we maintain an atmosphere of trust, playfulness and acceptance of your child’s individuality. We are dedicated to providing developmentally appropriate activities designed to help your child learn and grow, and we aim to promote positive self-esteem by emphasizing your child’s intrinsic values, strengths and talents.
Dreamers - 3 months to 12 months; Ashley LaGace (Lead Teacher), Jessica Grieshaber (Co-Teacher)
When families join our Dreamers class, we recognize it is a time of great transition for the whole family. Our commitment is to provide a safe, healthy, nurturing, sensory rich environment for your infant. We will strive to develop a strong bond with your precious baby. We will provide an individualized program to meet your child’s needs and stimulate their learning readiness.
Tot I - 12 months to 22 months; Colleen Raymond-Duncan (Lead Teacher); Chong Hui Dillon (Co-Teacher)
The goals of Tot I are to promote independence and social awareness while ensuring that your child is safe and protected at all times. In this class, Middle Earth strives to develop the whole child: emotionally, physically and mentally. We focus on activities that foster a love for reading, music, art, science, math, cooking activities and nature exploration. We encourage creativity and increased coordination with art activities, fine motor skill toys, picture cards and books. Your child will begin to experience the world in new and exciting ways. Tot I encourages self-expression, verbal skills, self-esteem and basic concepts like colors, shapes, body parts and life skills (brushing teeth, washing hands, using a spoon, getting dressed, etc.).
Tot II - 22 months to 32 months; Jane Smith (Lead Teacher), Sarah Gepner (Co-Teacher)
The goals of Tot II are to help your child develop speech, language and social skills with playmates and teachers by creating a safe and healthy learning environment. We focus on activities that encourage hand-eye coordination, fine & gross motor skills, recognition of basic directions, and identification of objects, color comparisons and patterns. Your child will be exposed to art, songs, finger plays, building blocks, finger paint, dance, story time and the sand table. We will also work on self-control and self-care skills in an atmosphere of loving support. As a result, your child has the opportunity to develop independence, increased attention span and improved social skills.
Serendipity - Age 2.5 to 3.5; Candy Jons (Lead Teacher), Leah Abel (Co-Teacher)
Serendipity eases the transition from toddler to preschooler. We celebrate this exciting age by focusing on independence, routines, recognition of achievements and of course, playtime! Your child will learn self-care skills such as dressing and washing of face and hands. In this class, the children sing and dance every day in circle time. Counting skill games, art work, movement, cutting with scissors, puzzle making, color and shape recognition are just some of the developmentally appropriate activities used in this class. Teachers also read to the children daily to enhance listening skills and increase exposure to literature.
Discoverers - Age 3.5 to 4.5; Leslie Keller-Kenton (Lead Teacher); Kailee Russell (Co-Teacher)
Discoverers are preschool ready and in for an exciting journey! This class participates in fun activities such as art projects, cooking activities, science projects, pre-math games, music and movement. Teacher-directed and self-directed classroom activities allow your child to make choices. Children develop listening skills by participating in two story times and two circle times. Self-confidence and social skills are strengthened on a daily basis. Children will recognize the days of the week, months of the year, and the weather, and learn to recognize and spell their name.
Explorers Pre-K & Detectives Pre-K - Age 4 to 5; Traci Shemwell (Explorer’s Lead Teacher); Lynne Shell (Detective’s Lead Teacher) Esther Shafer (Shared Co-Teacher)
Explorers Pre-K & Detectives Pre-K are dynamic programs with a wide range of activities designed to promote cognitive and motor skills, language, social and emotional development. Activities are presented in a logical sequence while children at each level can build upon their experience, skills and knowledge, and are balanced between active/quiet, group/individual, teacher-directed/self-directed and indoor/outdoor play. Learning centers teach your child through direct experience with input from all five senses. Creativity and self-expression are facilitated through open-ended experiences in art, music, movement, and dramatic play. Science concepts are introduced through observation, investigation and experimentation of the natural environment. The Explorers and Detectives classes strengthen your child’s readiness skills in mathematics, reading, writing and speech.
