.png){kind=logo}
The Moon Room
Ages 2 1/2 & 3
Children 2 1/2 to 3 years old enjoy many challenging activities designed to help them develop social skills, language and a feeling of self-confidence in the loving, nurturing atmosphere of the Moon Room. Moon Room children learn to share and take turns. “Hands-on” materials encourage the development of small and large motor skills and age appropriate readiness skills. There are lots of opportunities for creative expression such as art, music, singing, dramatics and more! Our teachers partner with parents, providing support and helpful tips for Moon Room children who are not yet toilet trained.
The Moon Room is where it all begins at age 2 1/2! Starting school early helped with speech development, communication, and fine motor skills. My little one is tough and strong willed and I worried that I was putting him in school too young. Just the opposite, the Moon Room helped him tremendously with structure and patience, all in a LOVING way. Because that's what I believe they need and what Sundance gives kids above any other school.
Readiness
Our Lower School play-based curriculum is uniquely designed to provide students with a multi-sensory, inquiry based learning experience which draws from an eclectic blend of the best educational practices. Those include:
- Traditional Montessori
- Whole Language
- Handwriting Without Tears
- Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes
- Reggio Emilia Inspired techniques
Art
Children have a natural love of shape, color, pattern and texture. All children enjoy the creative manipulation of materials. When children are encouraged to experiment with a wide variety of media under the guidance of an effective teacher they can benefit from increased self esteem and joy of self expression as well as a wide variety of other cognitive, physical, emotional and social skills.
Skills Developed:
- Hand eye coordination and fine motor development
- Perceptual and discrimination skills
- Tactile and kinesthetic awareness
- Creative expressions
- Self esteem
For more information about our Art Program, please click here
Creative Movement
Our Lower School Creative Movement Program is rooted in the belief that learning through the arts not only educates students by elevates them to a deeper awareness of themselves and of the world around them. Children work together during each stage class dancing, pretending, singing, sharing, and learning the value of teamwork!
Lower School Stage classes are formatted to help students explore the basic four elements of dance. Whenever a person moves, the body uses space, force, and time. The children enjoy participating in the different lessons designed to help them discover the exciting possibilities inherent in the combination of these elements.
Each week the stages become an indoor playground for your child's imagination as they dramatize, pretend, and 'become' everything from shy sea creatures silently watching the sunlight glitter on the waves as they glide gracefully through water, to determined ducklings braving navigating their way out from inside their shells, eager to see the world for the first time! We dance through the seasons, paint our favorite colors on the surface of the moon, help frowning frogs find friends, and even drive our cars (with caution of course!) to some delightfully dear destinations.
For more information about our Creative Movement and Stage Programs, please click here.
The Mat Room
The early childhood years are a critical time for the development of physical skills. At Sundance our developmentally appropriate Mat Room program is designed to help children build a foundation of basic gross motor skills (throwing, catching, kicking, balancing, skipping, galloping, etc.). These skills are invaluable lifetime tools that children need and use to successfully participate in regular physical activity. Our main goal is to help children strengthen the sense of what they can do and to challenge them to do even more!
Music
The primary goal of early music education is to develop the ability to perform, to create, to listen to music with understanding and most of all develop a passion for music. At Sundance our students will develop the ability to sing on tune and tap out and recognize the beat or rhythm to a song. Similar to learning a language, musical ability develops during the first five years of a child’s life.