CELBRATING 25 YEARS
The Willow Street UCC Preschool provides a nurturing, caring environment for your children while helping them to grow socially and emotionally. We encourage your children to learn and explore through play, as we provide kid-centered activities to develop their thinking skills and to foster creativity. Songs, stories, rhythm activities, and finger plays promote literacy development. Gym time encourages the children to develop a love for fitness. Our goal is to prepare the children for a positive kindergarten experience as they learn to cooperate and work together.
CLASSES
The preschool provides classes for two through five year olds. Morning and afternoon classes are available. We have a limit of 7 students in our 2-year-old classes, 10 students in our 3 year old classes, and 12 students in our 4/5 year old classes. Our maximum classroom/teacher ratio is 6 to one.
SCHOOL YEAR
Our school year begins the week after Labor Day and continues through early to mid May. We operate on a schedule of 30 weeks of preschool. Several vacations are scheduled throughout the year to coincide with Thanksgiving, the Christmas holiday, President’s day week, and Easter. Snow days will be made up as needed.
COME AND SEE OUR PRESCHOOL IN ACTION
We invite all interested persons to come spend time with us during our preschool day. Observe our classrooms in action, tour our facility, and meet our director and teachers, so that you have some first hand knowledge of how our preschool operates. Call Sue Henry, Preschool Director, at 464-0720 to arrange a visit
HISTORY OF THE PRESCHOOL
The Willow Street UCC Preschool began in 1980 through the efforts of several energetic church members who joined together to form the first “preschool board”. The preschool had three classes and a combined enrollment of 30 students the first year. Enrollment is now over 100 with eleven different classes. Sue Henry, our current director, was one of the original teachers. The program was initially supported as an “Outreach” program of the Willow Street United Church of Christ under the former consistory. The preschool now operates as a non-profit, self-supporting organization. The original mission of the preschool was to provide a place for all children to socialize and learn together. Now, as then, our preschool is open to children of all faiths and children of all ethnic origins are invited to attend.
STAFF MEMBERS
Our preschool has very little staff turnover. We employ three teachers and four classroom aides. Sue Henry, our director, has been at the preschool for 27 years as a teacher, and will be starting her twelve year as director. Sue Brenner will be starting her tenth year at our preschool. She was a former teacher at another preschool and also taught elementary school for several years. Pam Weidman and Holly Jordan round out our staff as our other aides. They have been here ten years and eight years, respectively. All of our staff is trained in CPR. We also work closely with the Lampeter School District and their early childhood development program.
SCHOOL DISTRICT SERVICED
Our preschool is centrally located between four different school districts. We are located in the Lampeter-Strasburg School District, adjacent to the Willow Street Elementary School. A majority of our students are from the Lampeter-Strasburg district, but we also have students from Solanco School District, Penn Manor School District and the School District of Lancaster.
For more information on our preschool
Call Sue Henry at 717-464-0720
PRESCHOOL NEWS
By Sue Henry
The three day four and five year old classes are learning about ocean life. Whales, starfish and other sea creatures are everywhere. To go along with our unit, the children are preparing a show for their parents. They are busy painting scenery and hanging up art work to turn the stage into an ocean. Songs and finger plays for the show will be about the ocean, of course..
The two day classes of four and five year olds are exploring all the forms of transportation, from our feet, to airplanes, to cars. They will be comparing likes and differences among the forms of transportation, as they make crafts, sing songs, and conduct “mini” science experiments.
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The threes are involved in a zoo unit and have been busy imitating monkeys, elephants, and seals. You may see them having bananas for snack (monkeys), or eating goldfish (seals). They love songs about the animals in the zoo.
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Our two year old classes are “joining” the circus, as they make crafts, have stories, and sing songs about the circus and circus animals.
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Preschool Sunday was a fun time for the children. The church was decorated with children’s art work, the movie was a big hit, and the children (and teachers) had a great time participating in the service. Of course the fellowship time after the service had lots of goodies, thanks to the preschool staff and board. Thanks to everyone who helped to make preschool Sunday a success.
