Perkinsville Preschool

Our Teachers

I have my bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and my Vermont teaching license birth-5. I have my level 4A certificate from the Vermont Northern Lights Career Development Center and my Directors Credential Level 1. I am trained to not only use but to train educators to use the child assessment and screening tools Teaching Strategies Gold (used by publicly funded preschools across the state and nation) and The Ages and Stages Questionnaire 3. I have 1000’s of hours of professional development in specialized areas such as child nutrition, preventing child sexual abuse, supporting children with challenging behaviors and general areas such as Social and Emotional Development, Math, Science, Social Studies and Language Arts. I am committed to staying up to date on current practices in the field of early childhood through annual training.

Perkinsville Preschool and Childcare is a 5 STAR program through Vermont’s Step Ahead Recognition program and a Prequalified Public Preschool. Keeping up with best practice in the field of Early Childhood is something I am very passionate about.

Philosophy

I believe that every child deserves a safe, high quality-learning environment with a consistent teacher. Young children thrive in an environment with low child to teacher ratios, which allows them to build a healthy attachment with their adult caregiver as well as positive social interactions with other children. I use play-based methods to teach children the academic and social skills necessary to be successful in formal education and the world beyond. I believe in nurturing the whole child by providing healthy home cooked meals and snacks and supporting families in teaching life long lessons including self-help skills, manners and kindness. There are so many fun learning opportunities for children to take part in at Perkinsville Preschool and Childcare such as- outdoor play and nature exploration, hands on science math and literacy games, cooking, and daily art activities. Each child will have identified developmental goals as well as lesson plans created to help them to achieve those goals. A consistent routine and structure lay the foundation for children to feel safe and lessen the chances of challenging behavior occurring. I provide a positive example to children of kindness, empathy, manners and model appropriate social interactions. I use a variety of methods to teach positive personal and social skills including social stories, modeling through puppet shows, as well as games and activities that promote positive personal and social skills. A social, emotional curriculum, Second Step, is used at morning meeting each day, social stories, puppet shows and games are used to teach these important foundational skills. Children have the opportunity to engage in both solitary and group play and have access to an alone area in which they can choose to take a break. I use redirection and logical consequences if inappropriate or hurtful behavior occurs. Time-out or time away from the group is sometimes necessary for certain behaviors but does not exceed 1 minute per year of the child and is geared toward helping children to regain control and to learn from their actions. I see parents and guardians as the experts on their child. I will partner with your family to provide the best possible care for your child. You can expect that I will ask you about your parenting style including discipline style and that we will work together to form developmentally appropriate goals for your child. Communication and trust are key to a successful parent teacher relationship. Parents/Guardians have always encouraged to volunteer both in the program and during our events and outings. Due to covid it is necessary to restrict access to the program, we look forward to welcoming guests and volunteers again in the future. I welcome any and all questions, feedback, concerns and the like. I will use observations to develop curriculum around your child’s interests and needs. . Observations are a key component to the assessment tool I use to track your child’s growth and development; Teaching Strategies Gold. Observations are also the foundation of intentional teaching. I use two screening tools, the ages and stages questionnaire 3 and the ages and stages questionnaire social emotional. You will be asked to complete each screening tool in the fall and spring. Screening is an easy way to flag children who may benefit from a more thorough evaluation of their development in one or more areas. Many doctors’ offices use these screening tools so they may be familiar to you. Conferences are scheduled in the fall and spring, although I am always happy to make a conference time upon request. Please note that we have a dog and cats. Our pets will be kept up to date on their rabies vaccinations as well as flea and tick prevention. Our dog will be kept separate from the spaces used for preschool during hours that children are in care.

About our program

I have my bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and my Vermont teaching license birth-5. I have my level 4A certificate from the Vermont Northern Lights Career Development Center and my Directors Credential Level 1. I am trained to not only use but to train educators to use the child assessment and screening tools Teaching Strategies Gold (used by publicly funded preschools across the state and nation) and The Ages and Stages Questionnaire 3. I have 1000’s of hours of professional development in specialized areas such as child nutrition, preventing child sexual abuse, supporting children with challenging behaviors and general areas such as Social and Emotional Development, Math, Science, Social Studies and Language Arts. I am committed to staying up to date on current practices in the field of early childhood through annual training. Perkinsville Preschool and Childcare is a 5 STAR program through Vermont’s Step Ahead Recognition program and a Prequalified Public Preschool. Keeping up with best practice in the field of Early Childhood is something I am very passionate about.