Vision

The vision of Stone House Preschool at SHPC is to provide a safe, nurturing, Christ-like environment in Upper James City County where preschool children will encounter and experience the love of God.

Mission

The mission of Stone House Preschool is to interact with children and their families in a manner that goes beyond providing childcare, but that also seeks to promote and nurture a young child’s growth and development.

Goals

• To model God’s love for all creation, including teaching children to love themselves and others;
• To teach children fundamental skills including respect for others, kindness, patience, sharing and other Christ-like attitudes;
• To provide high-quality early childhood education which promotes school readiness and prepares children for elementary school success;
• To provide social interaction among children and adults in an environment based in play and other age-appropriate activities;
• And, to give families with young children an opportunity to interact with one another in a welcoming and loving environment.

All forms download as Word Documents.

Returning Family Registration Registration Ongoing

New Family Registration  Registration Ongoing

2021-2022 Parent Handbook Updated 8/2021

Fall Reopening Plan–  Please check the Mask Guidance tab for the updated mask policy.

Open House Update Updated 8/2021

Stone House Preschool will open on Tuesday, September 7, 2021 and run until Friday, June 3, 2022. We will, in general, follow the Williamsburg -James City County school calendar unless otherwise indicated via our center-based newsletters. Following are all major school breaks and holidays for the 2021-2022 school-year:

Open House: Thursday, September 2nd.

HOLIDAYS:

November 2: No School – Parent-Teacher Conferences

November 24-26: No School – Thanksgiving

December 20–31 : No School – Winter Break (school resumes 1/3)

January 17: No School – Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday

January 27: No School – Teacher Work Day

January 28: No School- Virtual PD Day

February 21: No School – President’s Day Holiday

April 4-8 : Spring Break (school resumes 4/11)

May 30: No School – Memorial Day Holiday

Stone House Preschool is a developmentally appropriate program implementing a theme-based curriculum. As should be a part of any excellent program, our curriculum is based on developmental centers that allow a child to do their most important work – play! Developmental centers include the following: math, science, art, blocks, literacy, dramatic play, fine motor, and faith. Young children learn best by exploring the world around them. They acquire knowledge through active play including opportunities to make choices, investigate, perform, manipulate, practice, repeat, transform, and experiment. Further, because reading and literacy is such a fundamental skill, it is critically important that children learn in a print-rich environment. Each day includes structured circle times, centers, gross motor play, snack, faith, read-a-louds, and lots and lots of love. Teachers plan daily lessons according to curricular themes and, based on their daily observations of children, build on each child’s own interests to incorporate activities into their lessons. A prayer is recited before all mealtimes. As the availability of technology grows at SHPS, teachers will use computers, specifically, the internet, to share appropriate videos, read-a-louds, or other activities with children. When this strategy is used, teachers interact directly with the children, facilitating interactions and conversations.

The preschool is located in the basement of the church. There are four classrooms with bathrooms on each side of the hall between each set of classrooms. The preschool also has an attached playground.
We recognize that our quality of care is directly related to the positive interactions each child has with his/her teacher. In order to promote those interactions and relationships, we maintain the following ratios:

Honeybees 

(Children must be 2 years old before August 1, 2021)

2-DAYS (Monday and Wednesday 9-12) $215/month

Bumblebees 

(Children must be two years old on or before August 1, 2021)

2-DAYS (Tuesday, Thursday: 9 – 12) $215/month

4-Days (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) $405/month

Dragonflies

All Dragonflies must be fully potty trained before the start of school.

Purple Dragonflies 

(Children must be three years old on or before September 30, 2021)

2-DAYS (Tuesday, Thursday: 9 – 12) $200/month

Blue Dragonflies 

(Children must be three years old on or before September 30, 2021)

3-DAYS (Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 9 – 12): $240/month

5-Days (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday): $415/month

(Lunch Bugs, optional Wednesday and/or Thursday class from 12-2, starts in October. $12 per class)

Butterflies 

(Children must be four years old on or before September 30, 2021)

4-DAYS (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 9-2) $415/month

Grasshoppers 

(Children must be four years old on or before September 30, 2021)

3-DAYS (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 9-2) $340/month

It’s that time of year again! Summer Bugs is just on the horizon! This fun and engaging summer enrichment program is designed to provide a wonderful opportunity of continuity for your little one between June and September. Following are the dates and theme for each of the 4 weeks:

Week 1:June 15-17   Traveling

Week 2:June 22-24   Happy Campers

Week 3: July 27-July 29   Move and Groove

Week 4: August 3-5  Mad Scientists

Summer Bugs meet Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9:00 to 1:00. There will be only 7 to 10 children in each class so sign up early.  Children attending Summer Bugs must be ages 2 1/2-5. We are offering discounts for multiple sessions. You may register for one, two, three, or all four weeks!

One week – $150

Two Weeks – $290

Three Weeks – $435

Four Weeks – $580

Registration Forms can be downloaded under the Forms tab.

Mask/ Face Shield Guidance for 2021-2022 School Year

Stone House Preschool is committed to remaining open and providing classes for students in the safest way possible. To do that, we will be following JCC schools guidance as well as CDC recommendations. All students (ages 2 and up) and staff must wear a mask or face shield while indoors, regardless of their vaccination status. We have allowed the option of a face shield for parents who are concerned about their child’s breathing with a mask. Masks/ face shields may be removed while outdoors and on the playground and during active eating or drinking. It is likely that we will move between periods of mask use and being mask-free based on health data and CDC guidelines.

To help the little ones adjust, we will be discussing masks/ Face shields. We will have books to help them understand why we are wearing them and even have some pretend play to discuss our community helpers who wear masks everyday for their important jobs.

Why are masks/ face shields required?

Wearing a face mask reduces exposure to germs and potential illness. In addition, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) now says children within 3-6 feet of someone at school who tests positive for COVID are not a close contact if both people are wearing a mask. That means fewer students and teachers will need to quarantine, allowing them to stay in school with their teacher and classmates. Social Distancing  in our classrooms will be difficult so this is the best way we can minimize exposure. 

What if my family is vaccinated?

The CDC encourages anyone eligible to get the COVID vaccine.

Students and staff must wear masks/ face shields inside the preschool regardless of their vaccination status. According to the CDC, getting a vaccine (people 12 years and older) and wearing a mask are the best steps we can take to protect ourselves and others from becoming very sick. The Delta variant of COVID is highly contagious; however, existing COVID vaccines reduce the severity of illness for most people. 

• All students and staff must wear a mask/ face shield regardless of vaccination status indoors at school. 
• Director and Staff will clean classrooms and common areas daily.
• Students showing signs of COVID will isolate in the director’s office until parents pick them up. 
• Anyone who is sick should stay home.

School operations – including the mandatory use of masks/ face shields – may shift during the year as the community health situation changes. We want to keep students in school and we appreciate your partnership in taking the steps to make that happen.

Please feel free to check this page often for updates.

If you have any questions, you can feel free to email the director, Bianca Pottinger, at office.shpreschool@gmail.com.