Specialties
Mindfulness and Movement
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During our Mindfulness and Movement activities we focus on different aspects of ourselves. We get our hearts racing, then practice how to slow them down. We make our bodies feel out of control and practice bringing them back in control. We utilize games like freeze dance, magic rocks, and quiet giants to turn our bodies into something new and challenge ourselves to move and stop with the group or the music. We also take time to learn yoga poses and engage in pilates activities to engage our core and sync our minds and bodies.
Music
Music is incorporated into all aspects of our day. We sing to transition, to begin and end our day, to start lunch, and many, many other things. In our weekly music class with Uncle Rock we dance, sing, jam, and have a great time connecting our bodies to the beat. Uncle Rock brings back old favorites and new selections each week and connects his songs and celebrations to the curriculum at Woodland Playhouse as well as the broader world around us.
Everybody Day (Story) with Ms. Mary
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We are so glad to have Ms. Mary back for her interactive story this school year. Each week, Ms. Mary brings a mysterious bag or box to Woodland Playhouse and invites children to interact with her story. The children enjoy the hands-on experience and connect with the story in a whole new way. At the end of each story, Ms. Mary asks "What goes with my story?" and the children are invited either to receive a treat (like glow in the dark skeletons or roasted squash) or begin a new activity (like creating leaf creatures of their own).
Library
For more than five years, Christina Davis (owner/director/teacher at Woodland Playhouse) has facilitated a partnership with local Phoenicia Library. Each week, Christina brings a batch of themed books from the Phoenicia Library for a read aloud, a discussion about the theme, and then the selection of books to borrow for the week. This is a place where literacy can so clearly cross over with all the subject and interest areas - for example, children make predictions about what books they think Christina may have selected and evidence (the why) to support their theory.
Science & Food Program
In science we turn to nature to inspire our curiosity. We make predictions, pose hypotheses, and investigate daily. We explore the forest, watch tadpoles in the pond, go on nature walks, garden, and compost with the chickens. You will find the children cooking, color mixing, and turning over rocks to find insects. During the year we experiment with water, mud, ice, and snow. We take every chance we get to investigate our surroundings with all five of our senses while challenging ourselves to be respectful of all that surrounds us.
