Program
Our Program and Facilities
Discipline |
Our highly trained and experienced teachers have designed an imaginative and developmentally appropriate program that includes:
- Art
- Music
- Dance
- Language Arts (story-telling, alphabet, writing)
- Pre-Math (numbers, counting)
- Social Skills
- Cooking
- Dramatic Play
- Science
- Field Trips
Facilities The Preschool enjoys exceptional facilities:
- A spacious, bright, fully-appointed classroom, with large windows, bright natural light, and a beautiful natural view. The classroom is divided into carefully designed activity areas: blocks, dramatic play, story telling and puzzles, art, science, and audio-listening. Formal classroom instruction takes place in activity areas, and children are encouraged to circulate freely among the areas during supervised free time.
- A large sandbox and play yard, fully equipped with climbing structure, slide, playhouses, and outdoor toys. Over the course of the next year or two, the school will be significantly improving its outdoor play structures.
- A vegetable and flower garden, planted and tended by the children
- Kitchen facilities
- Access to fellowship hall for indoor activities such as dance and Spanish class
We provide nutritious morning and afternoon snacks. Parents provide lunch.
Philosophy and ProceduresWe recognize the years between two and six to be among the most crucial in the formation of a child’s intellect, socialization and physical development.
We feel a program designed for children should foster the child’s natural inclination to explore materials, ask questions, talk with other children and adults and to be independent. This should occur in a safe an nurturing environment.
We recognize individual differences and strive to help the child feel success and self-worth. We provide activities, which are designed to improve physical co-ordination, language skills, the “social graces” and foster creativity. We use only constructive toys and encourage constructive play. We screen all books and strive to present the best in children’s literature.
Discipline
Discipline at Skyline Preschool is handled in a positive way and it is hoped the children will begin to learn problem solving techniques as well as self-control from our discipline procedures.
For an infraction of a classroom safety rule, i.e., running in class, throwing toys, etc,. a youngster is given three warnings before going to time-out time.
When a disagreement arises between children, we try to include the youngest involved in solving the problem, If physical harm occurs an immediate cooling off time occurs before discussion.
If there discipline procedures do not work, we ask for a parent conference.
The policy at Skyline Preschool for youngsters out of control and posing physical danger (i.e., biting, throwing toys) is removal from school for the day. We will call the parents to pick their youngster up.
Again, we emphasize a positive approach to behavior problems and hope that open communication and cooperation between staff and families will lead to solving discipline problems.
Field TripsWe plan to take several field trips this year and we expect each family to provide transportation and supervision for two of our outings. For each field trip we will be sending home a permission slip to be signed by parents and returned to school before we go on that field trip.
All children will be seat belted. Children under 6 and under 60lbs. Must be in an approved (CHP) car seat. Please bring a labeled car seat the day of the field trip. Drivers must show proof of insurance. Field trips may be canceled or postponed due to weather conditions or lack of transportation.
Drivers forms must be filled out for our files.
Some field trips in the past have been to:
Fire Station
Crab Cove
Pumpkin Patch
Lawrence Hall of Science
The Oakland Zoo
Tilden and Roberts Park
Sulphur Creek Nature Center
Parent Participation
Parent participation is expected on Parent Work Days, The Spring Fling (our annual fundraiser) as well as during field trips.
Illness and Health Forms
State health regulations require that: (1)the immunization record, (2) the physician¯s health form and, (3) the emergency consent sheet for your child must be in our files before he/she can be allowed to enter school.
A child can only benefit from our program when physically well enough to participate indoors and outdoors. Please consider the well-being for all children and staff, including younger siblings at home, when sending your child to school. Your child must be without these symptoms for 24 hours before they return to school:
- Vomiting and diarrhea
- Any rash or spots
- A sore throat
- A deep persistent cough
- Head lice (child may return after treatment has begun).
- Pink eye or conjunctivitis (a child must have been seen by a doctor and taken prescribed eye drops 24 hours before returning).
- Any mucous coming from the nose that is not clear. Green and sometimes yellow mucous is a sign of infection, and your child¯s cold can easily be spread to others in the class.
Please notify us if your youngster in not coming to school. And let us know immediately if your child is diagnosed with pinkeye, chicken pox, strep throat, lice, or any contagious disease so we can notify other parents.
If your youngster becomes ill at school, a parent is required to take the youngster home within one hour. If a parent cannot be reached, the persons listed on you emergency card will be asked to come and get the child. Every family must have a designated person, whom in an emergency, can pick up your child.
Please let the staff know if your youngster has any physical difficulties (eyesight, allergies, hearing, asthma).
Please remember to write a telephone number down where we can reach you if you are not at the usual daily home or work number. Make sure the staff has that number in case of an emergency daily.
Medication
Unless prescribed by a doctor, the school will not administer aspirin or over-the-counter drugs to the children and we ask that you not send these with the child.
We will administer prescription drugs in their original container (with specific dosage instructions) after the child is beyond the stage of contagion and sufficiently comfortable to participate in the program.
Sunscreen
If your child wears sunscreen, please apply the sunscreen to your child before they come to school. We can reapply as needed during the school day.
Emergency Procedures
The Director or Co-Director shall attempt to locate the parents as soon as possible after an accident or onset of illness requiring medical attention. If we cannot reach you, our policy is as follows:
Call the family physician/pediatrician If unavailable, an ambulance will be called to take the child to the hospital indicated by you.
Skyline Preschool has regular fire and earthquake drills throughout the year. In case of an emergency evacuation for a fire, the children will be evacuated to the Redwood Heights Community Center on Aliso Avenue in the parking lot where you can pick them up.
In the event of an earthquake, the staff and children will remain on the premises until the children are picked up.
Please send a change of clothes in a plastic bag with you child¯s name on it, as well as a sleeping bag or blanket for earthquake emergency preparedness.
Lunch
Eating lunch together is an activity occurring between 12:00 and 12:30 daily. Lunch is a relaxed time when children talk with each other and staff about their day and what¯s important to them.
We encourage the children to eat a healthy amount of their balanced lunch. Do not send candy or gum to school in their lunch. Food needs to be prepared and in a plastic container suitable for microwave heating.
The following list of foods are dangerous and have been known to cause choking among children under 4:
Grapes and olives, (if not cut in half), celery, carrots and other hard vegetables if not cut in thin sliced pieces, raw green peas in the pod, popcorn, peanuts, hot dos or meat sticks (okay if split lengthwise), unpeeled apples.
Please clearly mark you child¯s lunch box and plastic containers your youngster uses inside the lunch box.
Snacks
Twice a day a nutritious snack is served to the children. If you child has food allergies, please provide them with a snack. This is especially important on birthdays.
Breakfast
Please do not send breakfast with you youngster as we are not equipped to serve breakfast. We understand those youngsters who arrive between 7-8 AM may need to finish breakfast at times, but we ask that it isn¯t a regular occurrence.
Nap Time
We have a nap/rest time at Skyline for those children enrolled for full days. We nap between 2:00 and 3:30 PM.
If you child is gong to be picked up for a special event before nap time, please be here by 2:00 PM.
The children rest on mates supplied by the school. If you child is here for rest time, you will need to bring bedding. This can be a child-sized sleeping bag or a crib sheet (they fit the mats) and a child-sized blanket. If your child prefers to sleep with a pillow, please provide a small, child-sized pillow as we do not have much storage space.
A bag with your child¯s name on it will be provided for his or her bedding. The bedding will be sent home every Friday for laundering. Please return the sleep gear in the bag provided. Children are welcome to bring one soft plush animal to sleep with.
Clothing
Each child should wear comfortable play clothes which can be self-manipulated and are washable, and plainly marked/labeled (sweaters and jackets) with the child¯s name. Accidents do happen, therefore, place a change of clothes in the bag we have provided and check this bag occasionally to see what needs to be replaced. Please make sure you youngest name is written on these clothing items. Sensible shoes are needed for your child¯s safety. No Flip Flops.
Toys from Home
A special toy from home is sometimes helpful the first few days when your child is becoming adjusted to school. However, after the first week of school we ask parents to leave the toys at home unless it is a “sharing day”. At school all toys are to be shared and sometimes is becomes very difficult for a youngster to share their toy with so many others. No weapon type toys are to be brought to school or action figures which relate to violent TV shows. Please do not send valuable items to school with your youngster either.
There are designated sharing days when your youngster may be asked to bring something to school to share with teachers and friends. If your child chooses to bring a fragile object to school, please explain to them that it’s possible it could get broken or torn at school.
Birthdays
Birthdays are a special day in your child’s life but they can be stressful as well. We try to eliminate the stress by celebrating your youngster’s birthday in a simple but special way. During snack we have a special treat brought from home and sing Happy Birthday. We welcome any parent whose child’s birthday we are celebrating to come help us celebrate during snack time. Please save party favors, balloons, etc., for your home celebration. If you are inviting children from preschool to a birthday celebration for your youngster, be sure to mail the invitations if all the children at preschool are not included.
Special Occasions
On Halloween we ask the parents to refrain from sending their child in super-hero costumes or with pretend weapons.
Visitors
Parents are welcome to visit any time. However, nap time from 2:00 until 3:30 is perhaps not the best time to come see us. You might also check to see about field trips on the day you choose to visit. We encourage prospective students and their parents to call ahead before thy visit our school. This assures the visitor that they have a chance too see the program in action, and provides for the safety of our children from strangers.