Nursery School Tag

09 Mar

Published on March 9, 2017 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Rosie was in her crib as her mother, Evelyn Wood finished emptying the dishwasher. The view from the kitchen was of a nondescript day, with a few birds singing a bit. Yet, Evelyn knew spring was coming and she adored thinking about spring. The familiar clinking of glasses and cups and pinging of silverware being put away made Rosie “ooh and ahh” and giggle. Evelyn and the other children could hear her in her room up...

26 Jan

Published on January 26, 2017 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Jane Hallowell was waking up slowly. She heard light speedy feet coming down the hall. In seconds, Rafe and Will were plastered against their mother. Jack, Jane's husband was on a trip to London, the first one in several months. Gently patting her little boys’ backs relaxed them and bought them all more quiet time and a coziness that Jane adored. Saturday was a present; Jane felt this through and through. She knew no matter how...

19 Jan

Published on January 19, 2017 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Written by - Marianne Riess  … so much that he became a wonderful teacher, an unusual teacher, because he didn’t love books, and he didn’t love homework. He certainly didn’t love computers or video games. What he loved was to show children how to enjoy the outdoors, as he had, growing up. So he founded a nursery school and created outdoor experiences for very young children. In a program called Smokey’s Bounders, children made campfires and enjoyed...

12 Jan

Published on January 12, 2017 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Just before Christmas, Party with Moms republished one of Anne’s classic columns, “What Do Children Really Want?” Her point is that children relish the time and attention of a loving relative. I was reminded of the truth of her concept last week when our two grandsons came to our house for a late Christmas, and ended up spending 24 hours with us. The first evening was taken up with exchanging presents and having dinner with friends...

22 Dec

Published on December 22, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  This was Anne's first Parenting Column ever, originally published in December, 2012 As young Mothers and Grandmothers gladly and wholeheartedly comb the earth to find a very special something for a little relative, they might be surprised to know they have this present already. What the child most wants is their attention and time. A child’s heart’s desire is unquestionably just a few hours with a parent or grandparent, somewhere simple, maybe at home, a cozy...

20 Dec

Published on December 20, 2016 in Education & Programs, Giving Back by

  For the last decade a tradition has been observed at PIFS. Families and staff support the families of Waterside School in Stamford during the holiday season by contributing to the purchase of Target gift cards. Waterside Head of School Jody Visage then distributes the cards to families who need additional support for the holidays. The cards can be used for food, clothes, or toys and gifts at Target. This year PIFS was able to contribute over...

01 Dec

Published on December 1, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Rosie and Quinn were very good friends. Both children were in Mrs. Randall’s Nursery class at the Little Farm School. They had been in class together last year as well and were overjoyed to be sharing another year of school together. Given free time, the two children almost always ran to the dress up area of their classroom. “I’ll be the dog,” said Quinn predictably. He almost always wanted to play a dog. “Let’s pretend you hurt...

23 Nov

Published on November 23, 2016 in Education & Programs by

  Parents walking their children through the door of the Putnam Indian Field School on the Tuesday morning before Thanksgiving always pause and ask, “What smells so good? Smells like Thanksgiving!” And so it does, thanks to Nolda Joseph, longtime kitchen manager and cook. Along with her co-worker, Alba Jaramillo, Nolda prepares lunch for the children and staff of PIFS every day. In recent years, her job has been complicated by the school’s switch to organic...

17 Nov

Published on November 17, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Before leaving on a recent trip to Spain, we were warned: Spaniards don’t eat lunch until 2, and no one eats dinner before 9:00 PM! Since my husband and I are early risers, and not big breakfast eaters, I knew some adjusting was going to be in store. But I couldn’t help thinking how convenient such a schedule was for parents. Basically they could feed their children dinner, and get them into bed before going...

03 Nov

Published on November 3, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Tender Thoughts John collected a few small pinecones with his babysitter Mary. He put them in his small wooden treasure box in his room along with the smooth blue button his friend Rosie gave him. The box also contained a pair of chopsticks, still in the wrapper, from the first time he used a pair with his mother and father, and a small green car given to him by his grandparents before they left for Florida,...

29 Sep

Published on September 29, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  On the first day of school, Mrs. Gallagher stood at the door of nursery school, greeting families, some new and others very familiar. She remembered us from our interview. “Sheila and Charlie, we’re so happy to have you.” I smiled and Charlie said, “Remember the bunnies in that room you showed us?” “I do, Charlie. You will see them again, later on.” Mrs. Gallagher pointed out Charlie’s classroom, and he eagerly walked down the wide hallway. Parents...

15 Sep

Published on September 15, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  I read that Albert Camus, French author, philosopher and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957, afterwards wrote a thank you letter to a teacher from his elementary school years in Algeria. Camus told Louis Germain that when he won the prize, he thought first of his mother, and then of him. As a child, Camus’ prospects for a successful life had been dim. His father died in World War I; his mother...

08 Sep

Published on September 8, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Beauty A little girl was slowly following a butterfly in her garden. When it rested on a blossom, the little girl said, “You are beautiful. Thank you.” So wise and so exactly perfect. Beauty is something we are all so grateful for. Beauty changes our lives in every good way. Sometimes we even take it for granted. For someone so little to notice the butterfly and love it will reinforce her appreciation of natural beauty. With some...

14 Jul

Published on July 14, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Billy couldn’t wait for his best friend’s birthday party. He had a little collection of presents and he knew Teddy would love them: a piece of green string, a small white shell, a pinecone, a shiny dime and a small picture of the two boys at a fair, taken by Billy’s mother, Holly. Holly gave him bright tissue and a yellow paper bag that was the perfect size for the presents. Holly had a book about...

30 Jun

Published on June 30, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Many 3 and 4-year olds enter nursery school with no concept of cleaning up. At home, they have dolls, art materials, costumes, trains, trucks, balls, puzzles, games, books. They play everyday. Why are they so unfamiliar with clean up? One answer? Someone else is doing it for them. For other children, cleaning up means throwing things into a toy box with every item jumbled up with everything else. So when they start nursery school, and the...

16 Jun

Published on June 16, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Most parents are well aware of the value of reading aloud to young children. When they are read lots of good stories, children fall in love with books and become lifelong readers. Yet parents can go further and turn passive listening into involved participation, just by using a few reading tricks.  Use the illustrations – as you read, you can ask your child questions about them. For instance, “Look at his face. How is he feeling?”...

02 Jun

Published on June 2, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  “Rebecca, they aren’t organic!! Don’t go near those carrots!” Paige barked to her daughter at the grocery store. “I can’t look at carrots anymore?” “Looking becomes touching and that’s a big no no!” Rebecca looked carefully from the organic to non-organic carrots, trying to figure out the difference between them. Then she slowly turned away. “Would you like kiwis or Mt. Ranier cherries, Rebecca?” Rebecca didn’t answer. She was examining at least a dozen different types of olives. They were...

19 May

Published on May 19, 2016 in Guest Contributors by

The family vacation, an American tradition. Whether it involves renting a house on Cape Cod, taking a trip to Disney World, or all piling into the family car or RV, it usually implies more togetherness than families experience any other time of the year. Spending time together – that’s our goal, right? That’s what family means, right? We want to believe this, but our anxiety has made popular a plethora of hilarious movies that poke...

12 May

Published on May 12, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

  Ages ago, when I was an English teacher at what was then Central Jr. High, the rule of thumb for our department was that you never chose a book for the class which featured a girl protagonist. The theory: boys would not read about a girl, but girls would always read about a boy. So the classes got to know Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, Travis of Old Yeller, Jim of Treasure Island, Gene and...

11 May

Published on May 11, 2016 in Education & Programs by

  The sky was bright, the sun was finally shining and the children of Putnam Indian Field School spilled out of the classrooms eager to plant the seedlings they’d started inside many weeks before. Different classes had different assignments, but by the time the last group was finished, the school gardens were filled with lettuces, tomatoes, peppers, snap peas, bush beans and squash, all destined to eventually become part of the school lunch and snacks menu....

05 May

Published on May 5, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  The late day sun felt great in the play yard of Little Farm Nursery School. The day had that perfect Thursday afternoon feeling. Children and parents were getting into cars. “Could you and Timmy come over for an early supper tonight? Mike won’t be home until late,” Meredith Ford asked Jane Mathews. “We’d love that!” Jane answered. “Dave is late tonight too. What time is good?” “Luke and I are off to the grocery store to pick up...

02 May

Published on May 2, 2016 in Education & Programs, Giving Back by

  The weather was spectacular on Saturday, April 30th and so was the Putnam Indian Field School Annual Art Show. Eager children tugged at parents’ hands, pulling them into the school to view their creations, which were the culmination of almost a year of work in their classrooms and art studios. The gym was transformed into a museum of colorful exhibits. In the autumn, PIFS students harvested their own organic vegetable gardens. The Pre K children visited...

25 Apr

Published on April 25, 2016 in Education & Programs by

  Putnam Indian Field School has been recognized by the State of Connecticut for its long-term commitment to providing environmental and sustainability education, improving the health and wellness of their students and staff, and reducing environmental impact and cost. PIFS is excited to continue this journey with other CT Green LEAF Schools as they share resources, expertise, experiences and track their growth as a leader in environmental practice and education. PIFS children and teachers celebrated Earth Day...

21 Apr

Published on April 21, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Ozzie was waking up. His four-year old eyes looked at his Grandfather’s blue bottle sitting on a white shelf by his window. He loved looking at this bottle every morning. As the morning light passed through it, he realized there was another bit of blue on the white wall opposite the bottle. “Ozzie,” his little brother Davey called, “Come here.” Ozzie left his blue images and ran to Davey’s room just down the hall. Davey sat in his...

07 Apr

Published on April 7, 2016 in Guest Contributors by

  Katherine Kinzler’s article, The Superior Social Skills of Bilinguals (NYT 3/11/16), cites recent research by herself and others that indicates that young children growing up in a household in which they are exposed to more than one language develop a greater capacity for a skill that is crucial to interpersonal understanding. Because they must keep in mind who speaks what language to whom, they have constant practice in putting themselves in the place of others. It...

17 Mar

Published on March 17, 2016 in Anne's Parenting Column by

  Sam and Nick were four-year-old best friends. Life with each other was all they knew and that was just fine. Sam’s mother and father were Julie and Philip, slightly older parents who felt so lucky to have Sam. Julie was a landscape artist and Philip was a veterinarian. They loved time together and marveled at their little boy’s openheartedness. Nick’s father, Ron was a rather serious insurance salesman. His wife Lois had recently found a part...

10 Mar

Published on March 10, 2016 in Guest Contributors by

  In Marianne’s last two columns on Bev Bos, she shared and reinforced Bev’s belief of the importance of parents creating memories and traditions for children and of passing on memories and traditions from their own childhoods. I would like to expand this theme a bit further. There are really two related but separate themes here. One is the theme of children creating new memories of experiences such as family vacations, decorating for the holidays, and other...

25 Feb

Published on February 25, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

Thanks to all who responded so positively to my column on Bev Bos last week. As a follow-up, here are some of the beliefs that she stressed in her writings and presentations. They can guide us all as we teach or parent young children. (My thoughts in italics) On the Importance of Socialization "Kids have to be social by six. If they’re not social by six, if they don’t know how to give and take, if they...

18 Feb

Published on February 18, 2016 in Marianne's Early Childhood Column by

On February 4th, Bev Bos died in her sleep at her home in California. She was a giant in the field of Early Childhood Education, a mentor and inspiration to 40 years of nursery school teachers, and a gift to children everywhere. Bev gained national notice when she was featured in a segment of ABC’s 20/20 in 1991. It was an eye-opening twenty minutes in an era when the “push down curriculum” was subjecting young children...