Location
Newtowne is located in the historic First Church Congregational, on the corner of Garden and Mason Streets, across from the Cambridge Common. Newtowne is a short walk from Harvard Square and is MBTA accessible. Our address is:
Newtowne School
11 Garden Street
Cambridge, MA02138
T: 617.354.0919
www.newtowneschool.org
The School Year
Newtowne opens in mid-September and closes in June. Vacations generally follow the Cambridge Public School calendar. We offer a fun and flexible Summer Program during the summer weeks. We also have an Extended Day Program to give children more time with their teachers and friends to learn, play, explore, and engage with each other in smaller group settings.
Classrooms and facilities
Newtowne has four large, beautifully-equipped classrooms, a spacious indoor play space, and an enclosed outdoor playground. The older classes also use the playground at the Cambridge Common.
Our classrooms are as follows: Orange Sea Stars (for toddlers from 2.0-2.9); Purple Fish (2.9-3.5); Blue Otters (3-4s) and Green Dragonflies (4-5s). Classrooms are composed primarily by age, with some attention to factors such as gender and developmental stage of each child. There are a number of potential trajectories through the school, depending on the age of a child at admission and the balance of ages throughout the school. The school composition changes each year as families come and go.
Newtowne children thrive in the environment fostered by the school's low child-to-teacher ratio, along with the presence of parent helpers and occasional student teachers. The 2 to 2.9 year old class has two teachers for up to nine children attending each day. The 2.9 to 3.5 year old class has two teachers for up to twelve children attending each day. The 3 to 4 year old and 4 to 5 year old classes each have two teachers for up to sixteen children attending each day.
At Newtowne, we believe that the physical environment is a teacher: the organization of space affects children's learning and mood. Our classrooms are bright, inviting, and carefully organized to promote inquiry and emotional connection. They are also spacious and thus enable children to move around freely with less chaos or potential conflict than in a small room. You will notice an absence of plastic furniture and an abundance of plants, wood toys and manipulatives, and natural elements such as sand, water, and clay. You will also see children caring for much-cherished classroom pets.
At Newtowne, you will see play spaces at different levels, heights, and angles; indoor structures for gross motor play; quiet areas for children to be reflective or work in small groups; cozy corners, lofts, and crawl spaces; and an array of open-ended materials that engage all five senses. Our classroom environments adapt to the evolving needs and interests of the children. A loft might become a grocery store, a doctor's office, or a raccoon den. The use of space varies, of course, by developmental stage: the dramatic play area for four and five year olds might be an airplane or a restaurant; in the two year old class, it might be an engaging space with mirrors and sensory objects.
Our wonderful indoor playroom has gymnastics equipment, climbing structures, a housekeeping corner, and a large space to ride bikes. This indoor gym is popular for year-round gross motor play but is especially valuable to us in the winter months.
Arts studio
Newtowne is privileged to have its own dedicated arts studio called the "Atelier" that is an always-evolving space that both reflects and inspires children's imaginations. It is staffed by a full-time, all-school arts teacher called our "Atelierista" who works with children in small groups to help support their artistic expression.
More than an "art room," we think of the Atelier as a laboratory for ideas. In a traditional art room, the goal is for the child to make a specific product - for example, a pumpkin craft because it is Halloween. In the Atelier, on the other hand, children come to explore their ideas - collaboratively and alone - without preconceived expectations about what they will make or bring home. At Newtowne, we believe that the process is more important than the product.
Our gifted and energetic Atelierista also spends time observing and talking with children in their classrooms. By observing the children at play and engaging them in meaningful discussion, she helps to facilitate project work that often becomes elaborate and open-ended. At Newtowne, each classroom also has dedicated art-making spaces with developmentally appropriate materials.
The children contribute to the organization and use of the studio spaces by bringing in recyclables, categorizing materials, practicing art techniques, and, of course, by making beautiful, unique creations!
Library and Teachers' Lounge
Newtowne has a cozy lending library staffed by a parent volunteer, where children and parents are encouraged to borrow books, the majority of which were generously donated by other Newtowne families. The space is also used by Newtowne teachers to plan for their classroom activities and exchange ideas about the curriculum.
Enrichment programs
Newtowne takes advantage of Cambridge's rich educational and cultural opportunities. Every week the children participate in a dance and movement class at Newtowne. Our proximity to the Longy School of Music has allowed us to partner with the school to offer our children lessons in Dalcroze Eurhythmics, where they learn the basic elements of music through movement, listening, singing, and playing.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is special about a cooperative preschool?
- The most important fact about a cooperative preschool is the primary value placed on the connection between home and school. The cooperative model enables parents and teachers to work in a true partnership to understand and support the child. This is usually a parent's best opportunity for such transparency and collaboration in a child's educational experience. By participating in your child's first school experience in such a hands-on way, you get to see up close how your child feels, thinks, and plays in a community beyond home.
- Cooperative preschools provide another major benefit: the presence of an additional caring adult in the classroom each day enables us to provide a richer and more responsive curriculum than would be possible in a classroom without daily parent support. We believe the presence of these additional helping hands really makes a huge difference in the pedagogy we can offer, such neighborhood excursions.
- As a member of a cooperative preschool, you can learn about early childhood education and child development in a potentially more meaningful way than is possible in a traditional preschool. You also have the opportunity to participate in shaping the practices of the school by serving on the Board. For some parents, this is as rewarding as the experience of being a parent helper in the classroom.
I'd like to be part of a co-op but I'm worried I don't have the time for such a commitment.
- Being part of a cooperative preschool represents a commitment of time and energy that is not for everyone; however, many parents find it to be one of the most worthwhile experiences they have ever had.
- The cooperative preschool model depends on parents' active participation in the life of the school. Everyone must fulfill basic requirements of time and energy, and parents are expected to understand and support Newtowne's educational philosophy. One of the advantages of a cooperative is its flexibility: if a problem or need arises, the cooperative can take immediate action. But this responsiveness requires a commitment from all parents.
- Many parents find that they understand their child on a deeper level through observing their child at play and through connecting with other families. Parents also gain confidence and support from being part of a cooperative. Newtowne parents often make lifelong friendships with the parents of their child's friends. Being part of a close-knit and nurturing community means that many of the school's required commitments become a source of social connection and fun for parents.
I am a single parent. Would I fit in at a parent cooperative school?
- We welcome all parents and all family structures and have seen many single parents manage the parent-helping commitment. Newtowne is a warm and resourceful community where most parents make close friendships and gain support for their personal circumstances. Parents often arrange babysitting swaps and play-dates. They also trade parent-helping days when scheduling conflicts arise.
- Newtowne offers early drop-off and extended day options, as well as a summer program.
I like the idea of a play-based curriculum, but will my child be ready for kindergarten?
- We have unequivocal evidence from educators, developmental psychologists, pediatricians, and neurologists that a play-based curriculum is the best possible preparation for a child's transition to school. Unfortunately, there is a widespread misconception that there is a trade-off between cognitive and social development. This is not so! Play enhances cognition, as well as social-emotional development, because it engages all areas of the brain. A curriculum that focuses on isolated skills, by contrast, is much less able to engage multiple brain pathways. Play is essential for preschoolers for two main reasons:
- First, play strengthens pre-academic skills, including number sense, spatial awareness, vocabulary, memory, attention, comprehension, and fine and gross motor skills. Even more important, play promotes critical thinking skills that are essential for school success. A child pretending to be a Chef in a restaurant - sounding out the beginning consonants of favorite foods and writing them on a pretend menu - is engaging in more sophisticated literacy work than a child pointing to consonants in a book. A child who cooks applesauce with a group of friends is learning more about fractions, number sense, and volume than a preschooler who is learning rote number operations out of context. This is not only because play-acting and cooking engage multiple pathways in the brain but also because children tend to retain knowledge about things that are personally meaningful.
- A play-based curriculum is also valuable because it promotes what we call "emotional readiness" - the social skills that are correlated with academic success. One of the best predictors of school "readiness" is the ability to control impulses. Play-based schools give children a lot of experience with impulse control. They learn, through play, to take turns; observe and listen; negotiate; solve problems; think flexibly; respect the views of others; delay gratification; and work toward common goals.