The First School opened in 1975 with one small group of three and four year olds. Founder Ellie Spezell had a vision of the most effective approach to educating young children, and she based The First School program upon a careful understanding of child development. Ellie believed that within a nurturing and growth-promoting environment, young children would thrive socially, emotionally and cognitively.

After thirty years of growth and change, the original philosophy continues to be the foundation of our programs. The First School's developmental orientation is reflected in our three sites. The program at each site is geared toward the developmental stage of the children in that age group.

The First School curriculum progresses from nurturing a child's emerging autonomy to promoting initiative and accomplishment. Throughout the preschool experience, we support play as the heart of our program because we believe that play activities foster a child's natural inclination to develop the primary building blocks for all future learning: motivation, initiative, curiosity, exploration, persistence and skill mastery. Within the structure of a predictable and consistent school day, our teachers focus on facilitating problem solving, encouraging creativity, providing developmentallly appropriate activities, and promoting social skills.

At The First School we respect each child's individual needs and unique abilities. Our goal is to help children build upon their inner resources and to enable them to grow to meet the challenges and joys of life with confidence and flexibility.

Kim Israel -- Director