A Day at Preschool

At Dodge Nature Preschool, we value spontaneity in activity and take advantage of the “teachable moment.” We also know that many people, especially young children first experiencing regular activity away from home, benefit from knowing what will happen next. We maintain a flexible schedule, with predictable events throughout the day such as snack and group experiences, to give children the security of routine.

We have well-furnished outdoor and indoor classrooms. While we spend the majority of time in our outdoor classrooms, our schedule can be adapted for indoors or outdoors to best meet the needs of the children in each class.

Daily Routine


Arrival

Children arrive at their classroom entrance fully dressed in outdoor gear appropriate for the season and are greeted by the teachers.

Indoor / Outdoor Classroom Activities

  • Swinging on the swings
  • Water and sand play in the sandbox
  • Journaling, writing, and drawing
  • Playing games of chase and hide-and-seek
  • Planting and harvesting the preschool garden
  • Playing house, superheroes, and other dramatic play
  • Building a snow fort
  • Relaxing and reading stories

Dodge Nature Center Hiking Activities

  • Visiting the working farm
  • Playing in the woods
  • Hiking the trails and boardwalk
  • Harvesting or planting the gardens
  • Looking for tadpoles in the ponds
  • Kicksledding or boot skating on the Farm Pond
  • Searching for butterflies in the prairie
  • Learning about bees and honey at the apiary
  • Meeting reptiles and amphibians in the lab

Snack Time

Children prepare for snack by washing hands and helping set tables. Teachers and children usually eat “family style,” serve food, converse, and enjoy each other’s company.

Child-Directed Play

  • Art activities: painting, drawing, or collage
  • Science activities: observing animals or experimenting with color mixing
  • Sensory activities: engaging in water play or sculpting with clay
  • Writing activities: creating a book or writing in story journals
  • Reading activities: listening to a story or playing with puppets
  • Dramatic play activities: playing family or pretending to be a firefighter
  • Large-motor activities: swinging, playing hide & seek or chase
  • Math and manipulative activities: completing puzzles or sorting objects
  • Blocks and building activities: creating with blocks, Legos or Magna-Tiles
  • Music and movement activities: playing instruments or dancing to music
  • Real work activities: watering plants, setting the table or sweeping the floor
  • Life-skill activities: preparing food for snack or helping with pet care
  • Adult-directed activities: cooking applesauce or planting seeds

Clean-up

Children learn to take responsibility for themselves and the classroom by putting away materials and helping prepare for group time. Children look through picture books before group time begins.

Group Time

Children take part in whole-group, community-building activities:

  • Listen to stories
  • Sing songs together
  • Act in each others journal stories
  • Celebrate special occasions with favorite books

Extended Afternoon Care 

(Optional, School Year Only)

Children enrolled in the optional Extended Afternoon Care program (School Year only), wash hands and prepare for lunch. After lunch, children spend at least 30 minutes resting before they return to play activities. With the addition of Morning and After Bunch, children in Extended Afternoon Care receive care from 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

Pickup Time

Children reunite with their grown-ups at their classroom entrance, ready to say goodbye until next time.

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