Physical Set Up

While the teacher herself is the most important single factor in a nursery school, her most important tools are the equipment and materials available. Potomac Nursery School has two large classrooms, two bathrooms, and a fenced outdoor play area.  Each classroom layout includes:

Library: A good selection of picture and story books will whet the appetite of the pre-reader and are useful in language development. A changing selection of books will foster a love of books and help the child to learn about the world around him.

Blocks: Blocks allow a child to reconstruct parts of his physical surroundings, to develop concepts of number, space, shape, balance, and support.

Art: Here the child enjoys experiences with all different kinds of materials
allowing him to express his own ideas and feelings.

Painting: Painting helps the child develop coordination and muscle skills, helps
him to develop confidence in his own work, provides a media whereby he may express his feelings and helps him to learn about color, lines, shapes, and motions.

Housekeeping: This center helps the child in the transition rom eent to the school surroundings. It also affords the child the opportunity to act out ithe concepts of family roles and relationships.

Music: Music helps teach and develop sounds, volume, and temporal discrimination as well as muscular coordination. Group music offers an enjoyable experience for the child and fosters cooperative participation.

Table Games: Table games help develop small muscle coordination, space relationships, hand and eye coordination, sequence, organizational skills, and pattern serialization.

Play Dough: Designing items using play dough provides an opportunity for the child to manipulate and experiment with a pliable, moldable substance.

Science: The purpose of this center is to help children learn more about the world
they live in. Science helps them  think for themselves, listen, and to wonder.

Vehicle Center: Transportation toys stimulate group play in which attitudes of
leadership and cooperation can be fostered. These materials also help the children to develop concepts of spatial relationships, size, and the function of certain objects in the real world.

Math: Our math program helps to develop skills in grouping, classification,
organization, and counting.

Outdoor Play Area: This area is equipped with a variety of large muscle equipment, sandbox, slide, see-saws, bouncing and rocking animals, playhouses, spinner, and a fenced separate area for tricycles and scooters.