Children in the Ellen Sherwood Nursery School range in age from 2½ -5½ years old. The Nursery School contains three distinctly different classrooms, the Playroom, Homeroom, and Schoolroom, for the different age groups. The three years of preschool are filled with experiences and individualized coaching that helps children learn first who they are as individuals, then how to be a friend and have a friend, and finally how to enjoy being a member of a group—all key requirements for success in elementary school.

Threads of the nurturing care of the Infant Toddler program carry through to the Nursery School—healthy food, time for resting and naps, compassionate coaching. The structure is consistent, but the activities grow more complex with the children’s growing skills. The Playroom offers the first full preschool classroom to the children between 2½ -3½ years, who are now ready for a program with expectations for the children to develop skills around social interaction. The 3, 4, and 5-year-olds spend half of each day in the Homeroom and the other half in the Schoolroom, complementary classrooms designed to give these older children more variety in their daily play.

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The Ellen Sherwood Nursery School Program is licensed by California Community Care Licensing, #010209844.

Most children enroll at BlueSkies as infants and stay until kindergarten. Babies and their parents need more than anything to be able to trust this environment to meet the baby’s needs; the children-to-teacher ratio is low so that babies will receive a response quickly when it is needed – whether they need food, sleep, or someone to smile back at them when they grin! As they build trusting relationships with consistent, loving caregivers, the infants learn that BlueSkies is a place where they are safe to explore and grow. The teachers’ predictable procedures let the baby feel supported in the natural process of gradual self-regulation.

As babies outgrow the cozy spaces of the Baby House (for ages 2 months to 14 months), the Wobbly Walkers classroom beckons to meet the needs of children 12 months to 24 months. This classroom is just right for children who are active movers and explorers, still needing strong relationships with their teachers but interested, above all, in their newfound mobility and other physical skills. The environment provides safe places to move and interesting things to find and explore, then move on. Around the age of two children move to the last Infant Toddler classroom, the Todds, where the program focuses on the big question of the separation between “you and me” that is the hallmark of two-year-olds. After the age of 2½ children are ready to move to the Ellen Sherwood Nursery School Program.

Click here to find out more about the school.

The Hedco Infant Toddler Program of BlueSkies for Children is licensed by California Community Care Licensing, #010213219.