Programs | Daily Schedule

At Glenbrook, we believe in large amounts of time for free play each day—both inside and outside. We provide a child-size world in which we give children experiences with people, experiences with social customs that relate to care and maintenance of body and possessions, and experiences that extend children's understanding of the world and their place in time and space.

Each class follows a slightly different routine; however, each day is made up of the same components, allowing the children to feel a sense of routine and community. Free play, art, clean-up time, bathroom/washing hands, snack, circle time, and outdoor play are all critical components of our school day.

"Special" activities take place during the school year too. Twice a month, a musician comes to share music with the children. Every year the calendar reflects special events at the school such as a puppet show or petting zoo animals. Once a month, the 4s and 5s class visits a nursing home within walking distance of the school to share holidays and songs. Field trips to the local firehouse or the nature center make it onto the calendar each year. And then, there are always the contributions of the parent's. The unique skills of the parents—from juggling to playing the guitar to decorating cookies—are introduced at various points of the year, exposing the children (and parent's alike) to a host of different experiences.

Once the school year is underway, each child is assigned appropriate "jobs" to assist in the accomplishing specific tasks and those "jobs" become part of their daily routine. Leading the line to the bathroom or outside, passing out cups or napkins, ringing the clean-up bell, feeding the hamster, etc., are all important to building the child's sense of belonging and their responsibility to their class community.