“I can’t imagine having my children at any other school. The integrative learning philosophy is amazing. Teachers take the children on hikes, study vernal pools, track animals and birds in their native habitats, garden and so much more. My sons have such a rich appreciation for the world around them and enthusiasm for exploring new things. And their math, literacy, reasoning and social skills are so developed. Beyond the school for my children, DWLC is a community home for my entire family–a place where we all love to spend time and where my husband and I have learned as much (if not more!) about the natural world as have our children. DWLC is a truly an exemplary model for all schools.”
“I think my 4 year old says it best. When I asked her what she likes about DWLC, she said, “I like working. I like playing. I like snack, naptime, and everything we do at school.” DWLC is a unique preschool community. Everyday my child learns and experiences independence, creativity, exploration, challenge, teamwork, encouragement in a rich environment including a variety of natural elements in different settings. There are animals to care for and study, nature hikes, sandy play areas, delicious and nutritious organic meals and snacks, stories read and acted out, and seemingly unlimited resources for project work and play. Rebecca and Sue bring years of experience with children and the Reggio Emilia approach, along with great intuition, to nurture and challenge my curious preschooler. I completely trust them with my child and have been dazzled by the wealth of knowledge and experiences my child brings back home. She teaches me to about flora and fauna! The teachers highly value my child’s interests and our family’s comments about the day. Everyday my child experiments with science and math concepts, arts, literature, and negotiates relationships with herself and others. She is learning and gaining so much more in this community than I can offer alone at home, and to us, that is invaluable. Discovery Woods is exactly the rich environment I want my child to grow in.”
“Discovery Woods is so much more than a preschool. It is a second home for our son at which he has both the space and the guidance to blossom to his fullest potential.”
“We were very fortunate to discover Discovery Woods in the spring of 2006, and our oldest child has attended the school for 3 years now. The school’s guiding principles of innovative learning and collaboration techniques following the Reggio Emilia concept has been an overwhelmingly positive experience. The school’s focus on the outdoors, arts, and creative learning has resulted in our 5-year old knowing more plants, birds and insect names than me, loving being outdoors, having a constant desire to paint and draw, hosting ad-hoc theater plays in our living room, and reading and writing by herself. The school’s community is also a strong pilar in our family’s life and we try to contribute as much as we can in between other duties of a busy two-parent-working family. Giving back is the least we can do since the school is such a wonderful place for our two children.
“The documentation they do as a part of the schools philosophy is amazing. I can sit down with my daughter every evening and we can look at what she did at school together through a written journal and photos. We can make comments and give teachers our feedback. It’s a wonderful loop of communication from child to teacher to parent and back again.”
“This school is a real community. Parents, teachers and children all working together to make our school the most amazing environment for our children to thrive.”
“People are always commenting on how much imagination my sons, Colter (7) and Charlie( 5), demonstrate in their play, in their contributions to classroom discussions, and in their ability to problem-solve conflict. Both are also extraordinarily drawn to younger children and take great care to involve them in play – we get comments all the time about their ability to be gentle and their desire to interact. They are also reliably curious about the natural world and LOVE playing outside with sticks, dirt, bugs, trees, water. We were so happy to have a place to help strengthen and validate our inclinations about unstructured play, seeding curious minds, supporting kids to take charge of their learning and inquiry. My husband and I have gone on to co-chair our school’s Outdoor Classroom and our son Colter came up with naming our school’s new woods trail “Discovery Woods” in honor of his preschool. Our sons continue to be best of friends with one of their former ‘classmates’ and enjoy a strong relationship with his parents, as well, adding to the lasting value of our experience. Rebecca gave them focused attention, respect, freedom with boundaries, and the powerful presence of joyful shared learning and wonder.”
“DWLC has become our second home, the community we all hoped to build with our daughter. What I love about DWLC is that I feel the teachers teach an extension of the things I do and teach my daughter. In fact, I can tell she is learning the things I so value about life, how to learn, to value friends, to love the environment, to manage conflict and to live a life seeking joy and providing joy for those around here in a way that is more than I can teach her at home.”
“As a DWLC parent I love all the opportunities to give to the school. I love that we are asked to give of ourselves for the school to thrive…that we can to both give our expertise and learn new ones to make our community thrive. It is clear to me that we have built such as strong community because we work so much together. And of course, there is nothing better than a meal with DWLC families, great food, great company and great place for our children to explore social relationships.”