"You Can't Build a House Without a Foundation"
-- Cindy Rzasa Bess
Established in 1969, St. Paul’s Nursery School is a non-sectarian school serving children from three to five years old. The school was accredited in 1990 by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs, a division of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), and fully licensed, meeting all the health and fire regulations of the State of Connecticut and the Town of Fairfield.
Family Fun Day is May 17th!
Join us 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the St. Paul's Playground for games, activities and crafts.
(Rain location is the Parish Hall)
Admission: $1.00 per person (Children under 2 are free)
Our Philosophy
Young children learn through play. Play helps children begin to socialize and share, to learn through their senses and hands-on experiences, to build upon ideas and concepts and to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills. At our school, we create a safe and nurturing environment that provides children with ample opportunities to explore the world around them through play, independently or with teacher guidance.
Our goal is to help our children develop into self-confident, curious and productive members of society who are kind, empathetic and considerate of others. We present a developmentally appropriate curriculum that fosters the growth of the whole child: cognitive, physical, social, emotional, aesthetic and moral. We teach respect for one another’s interests and needs by offering our children choices and the opportunity to learn through a variety of stimulating activities. We recognize individual differences and strive to create an atmosphere in which every child succeeds. We believe in working together with parents to support children’s development both inside and outside of the classroom, and encourage parents to share time with their children in our school whenever possible.
We are fortunate to have a first-rate teaching staff trained in early childhood development. Their professionalism is matched by a genuine warmth and camaraderie that creates a positive, supportive and loving environment for our children and lays a foundation for life-long learning.
Our Program
The curriculum at St. Paul’s Nursery School is designed to provide our children with hands-on experiences and activities that allow their curiosity and cognitive skills to develop spontaneously. The rooms at our school are especially designed for children, geared to their size, needs, developing interests and intellectual capacities.
Our program includes time for the children to try a range of activities for themselves, including large and small blocks for building and pretending; trucks and trains; sand and water play; and toys that develop fine motor skills, including puzzles and other manipulatives. A Housekeeping Corner provides an area for dress up and dolls to promote cooperative, social and imaginative play.
Our teachers encourage self-expression and creativity. The children participate in a wide range of art projects that include all forms of painting, gluing, play dough and a variety of other media. The focus is on the process rather than the end product, an approach which fosters creativity and builds self-confidence. Music is also an important part of the curriculum, including singing, rhythm instruments and listening to a variety of genres. The music program is further enriched through monthly classes led by a professional early childhood music instructor.
The school’s outdoor playground offers children an array of activities including swings, tricycles, balls, sand toys, play structures and other large muscle equipment. The children also enjoy a weekly gym class led by a fitness instructor who emphasizes creative movement and other activities designed specifically to develop gross motor skills.
Our curriculum also includes time for the children to come together as a group with their teachers for circle time and discussion, stories, science projects and pre-number and pre-reading activities. We provide a setting in which language skills can thrive. We listen to the children and encourage them to speak, and respect their opinions. While our curriculum introduces themes or general topics, the children’s interests often lead the discussion. We communicate with them at eye level, speaking to them the way we believe they should speak to others. We help them learn appropriate language to express their feelings, and to be respectful of the feelings of others.
We teach our children self-help skills, and how to be working and cooperative members of their class. We also believe that they should begin to understand their role as part of the greater community. We encourage parents to participate in our classroom activities, and to share their skills, interests, cultures and holiday traditions. During the holiday season, we collect gifts for children in need and distribute them through a partnership with Fairfield University. The children also bake cookies for the local firefighters, which are delivered to the Fairfield Fire Station by our four and five year old classes. Throughout the year, our children participate in a variety of in-house and off-campus field trips.
We communicate frequently with families about classroom and school activities. We hold conferences with parents in the fall and spring to discuss their children’s growth and total development, but are always accessible to address any needs or concerns. The school also sponsors speakers that address issues of concern to parents, such as “Helping Children Cope With Loss” and “Talking to Your Young Child During Violent Times,” and holds Directors’ Workshops throughout the year on such topics as “Milestones for Threes,” “Academics in the Four Year Old Class” and “Kindergarten Readiness.” Working in partnership with parents and involving them in the educational process is an integral part of helping our children reach their full potential.
Our Directors and Staff
The Directors of St. Paul’s Nursery School are Tove Vanderblue and Margee Ready. Tove Vanderblue, Director and teacher, has been at St. Paul’s since 1969. She earned her degree at Bergen College in Norway and taught kindergarten and first grade in Bergen for two years. She is active on the Board of the Mid-Fairfield Association for the Education of Young Children. Margee Ready, Director and teacher, joined St. Paul’s in 1974. She received her B.S. degree in early childhood education from Wheelock College and has completed graduate courses at Fairfield University. She is active on the Board of the Mid-Fairfield Association for the Education of Young Children, is a State Liaison for the National Association of Childcare Professionals (NACCP) and served as President of the Greater Bridgeport Mothers of Twins.
We are extremely proud of our teaching staff at St. Paul’s. They are a wonderful family of professionals who share a love for education, children and a great sense of humor. All of our staff are CPR and First Aid certified, and our teachers regularly attend workshops, seminars and conferences on issues related to early childhood development and education. These are sponsored by the NACCP, National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Connecticut and Mid-Fairfield Associations for the Education of Young Children, and local colleges, universities and libraries.
School policies are overseen by a Board of Trustees. The board is made up of a chairperson, parent representatives (both non-parishioners and parishioners of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church), a teacher representative, a liaison to the church’s governing board, a member of the clergy of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and the Nursery School Directors.
It is the dedicated teachers and directors, wonderful involved parents and a terrific, supportive board that make St. Paul’s Nursery School so successful.
Information on Applications and Program Schedule
St. Paul’s offers classes for three year olds and four year olds, as well as a pre-kindergarten program for five year olds. Extended days are available to children in the four and five year-old classes. Registration for September 2009 classes begins in October 2008 for three year old classes and in January 2008 for the four and five year old programs. Parents interested in applying should contact the school at (203) 255-1902.
Programs
Program |
Days |
Hours |
2 day 3 year old class |
Tuesday and Thursday |
9:00 – 11:30 a.m.
|
3 day 3 year old class |
Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday |
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. or 12:15 – 2:45 p.m.
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. or 12:15 – 2:45 p.m. |
3 day 4 year old class |
Monday, Wednesday and Friday |
9:15 – 12:00 p.m. |
4 day 4 year old class |
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday |
9:15 – 12:00 p.m. or 12:30 – 3:15 p.m.
9:15 – 12:00 p.m. |
Pre-K (5 year old) class |
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday |
12:30 – 3:15 p.m. |
Extended Day
An Extended Day Program is available to children in the 4 and 5 year old classes. Children in morning classes may stay for lunch and activities until 2:00 p.m. on their designated Extended Day, while children in the afternoon classes start their Extended Day program at 10:30 a.m. and have lunch before joining their regular class. You may sign up for a permanent spot for the year or you may choose to sign up daily on a space-available basis.
Contact Us
We would be delighted to answer any further questions you might have about St. Paul’s Nursery School. Please contact us at (203) 255-1902 or at stpaulsns@sbcglobal.net
Margee Ready and Tove Vanderblue
Directors
St. Paul’s Nursery School of Fairfield, Inc.
661 Old Post Road
Fairfield, CT 06824
