Creative Early Learning Center

Parent participation is crucial to a child's school experience. At Creative Early Learning Center, we provide many parent partnership possibilities and strive to create mutual respect and trust between parents and teachers. Parents are the most important educators of their children, so parent involvement is embedded in our program philosophy. We honor each family's diverse culture, and work with families to provide a home-like atmosphere for the children in our school. We respect parent perspectives and try to involve them in every aspect of our program. We view parents as partners, collaborators, and advocates, and we truly believe that "it takes a village to raise a child."

Open Door Policy:

We have an open door policy at all times with parents. This policy means that parents are welcome to visit or call their child at any time without feeling like they’re intruding in the classroom. We encourage parents to spend time in the classroom during drop off and pick up time to create a more seamless transition. We’re happy to see that you are taking an avid interest in your child’s daily activities and instruction.

Communication:

Our communication practices at CELC are diverse and varied to ensure that you are getting the information you need in a timely fashion. In addition to regular classroom conversation, we inform parents about their child's development through scheduled phone calls, progress reports, parent-teacher conferences, postcards, newsletters, social media, and our new digital application Brightwheel. (see below).

Brightwheel:

Brightwheel is a digital application accessible on smart phones, tablets, and computers. It is becoming a cornerstone of our parent communication process, enabling us to offer digital check-in, daily reports, photo updates, photo sharing, parent correspondence platforms, and observation options. It is the "go to" source for information on your child's experience at Creative Early Learning Center.

Parent Postcards:

In addition to monthly newsletters, our Innovations Curriculum features postcards as natural extensions of our classroom activities and experiences. They provide valuable information from experts on a variety of child development topics.

Documentation:

We make learning visible in our classrooms by providing parents with visual displays that document learning experiences in the classroom via photos, work samples, and child development information. More detailed collections of children's work are included in individual classroom portfolios which are available to parents.

Volunteering:

Our parents are encouraged to lend their knowledge and talents to the classroom on a regular basis. The children love for parents to come read, share their experiences and/or careers, or teach a skill. We have regular parties and field trips which parents can attend as helpers or chaperones. When children see their parents interact with teachers, it strengthens the bond and helps build trust.

Planning Partners:

Our teachers work with families to help create individualized plans for their children. When parents and teachers share information, they get a picture of the "whole child" and then set goals for the child's development. Parents provide valuable feedback and assessment information that helps teachers create experiences, environments, and interactions that will benefit the child. Parents complete regular developmental assessments every few months to provide updated information.

Feedback:

We solicit feedback from parents on a regular basis through regular online surveys. We gain information on their ideas and opinions and use this information to shape our program policies and offerings.

Special Events:

Creative Early Learning Center plays host to frequent celebrations and special events including holidays, birthdays, graduations, and more. Families are always invited to join the celebration and share in the joy.

Transition Process:

We work with each family to design a transition and orientation process for their child as they enter our program, or graduate to a new classroom. We know that each family's needs are different and make adjustments accordingly to provide the most seamless transition possible.

Family Resources:

Our centers have dedicated family resource areas with flyers, pamphlets, and important forms for immediate reference. If families are looking for a service or trying to gain information, we help them make connections to get what they need.

Parent Education Classes:

Just as children are constantly learning, parents and teachers benefit form a belief in the power of lifelong learning.

Donation of Materials:

Classroom projects often require the use of found, recyclable, or unique materials. We welcome donations that can help make these projects a reality. The donation process is reciprocal, as we find ways to make use of our surplus of materials as well.

Take Home Opportunities:

While our teachers don't assign typical homework, we find ways to connect what is learned in the classroom to what a child's experiences are at home. We send materials home with the children and likewise welcome them to bring materials in. Our classrooms have literacy take-home bags and feature regular weekly show-and-tell events. We encourage parents to expand on the child's classroom learning by having conversations and continuing exploration of topics of interest at home.