A Caring Introduction To Education

The Two Year-Old Program is a self-contained classroom designed to support toddlers’ budding curiosity and independence while meeting their needs for trust and security. Our Two Year-Old Program is offered two days a week: Thursday and Friday from 9:10 a.m. to noon.

Classrooms

Children join their respective classes at Home Base for teacher-led group activities such as singing, social stories, and conversation in circle. The students enjoy a family-style snack together, clean up and venturing out to play.
Students share their news and learn to listen to their peers' stories and updates. They learn to care for their friends and respond to the emotions and feelings of others. As their social skills develop, the twos become a cohesive group, where children often form their first friendships with peers!

Mini Open Centers

The twos classrooms enjoy mini open centers after home base. The doorway between both classrooms is opened, and each teacher has planned activities such as arts, building, science experiments and sensory experiences.
Mini open centers allows the students to experience the activities and environments created by both twos teachers! This allows children to broaden their social circle, by interacting with the students in the other room, as well as develop a growing sense of independence, as they venture to a different room and try new activities.

SHPS 364.jpg — Outside Time

Sleepy Hollow Preschool playground stretches out over a half acre of land and has something for every child--swings, sandboxes, a climbing wall, imagination play, hills, gardens, trees, sand, mud puddles on rainy days and snowballs in the winter.
We play in all sorts of weather, and find a rainy day of running in mud to be as important as a sunny day digging in the sandbox or playing on the tire swing. We love turning over stumps to find bugs, and helping earthworms find a home in our flower and herb garden! Students also run, jump and balance; frequently while engaging in rich pretend play.

Schedule A Tour

Typical Twos Schedule:

Parent drop-off in the classroom
Classroom play: Activity centers provide appropriate opportunities for water and sand play, art activities, dramatic play, puzzles, toys, and a quiet corner.
Circle: Teachers lead children in a variety of stories, songs and discussions. Special music and science themed circles also take place every month.
Snack: Each co-oping parent provides a nutritious snack for children to enjoy while practicing meal time social skills and engaging with one another.
Playground: Two year-olds have their own size-appropriate structure where they slide, climb and jump. They also swing, ride bicycles, balance on logs and stumps, jump in mud puddles, dig in the garden and play with water and sand.

Spotlight Redfish

The Redfish room is filled with music and experimentation. As a former preschool music teacher, Mrs. Healey brings songs into all aspects of her students' day. Children mix water and dirt to make mud, love watching baking soda fizz as they squeeze drops of vinegar onto it and mix cream and food coloring so they can paint their very own rainbow toast! Children are encouraged to explore and share their observations at their own pace.

Spotlight Bluefish

The Bluefish room is full of art and creativity! Children love gathering at the easels and tables to paint, stamp, glue and sprinkle glitter! There are also sensory tables and lots of dress-ups and pretend play! On any given day, you are very likely to run into a dinosaur princess playing at the water table, or see Spiderman working on his latest play-doh sculpture.

Adult To Child Ratio

Each classroom is staffed by a teacher and a teaching assistant in addition to a co-oping adult. Sleepy Hollow follows or improves upon the adult/child ratio as set forth by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. This ratio for Two Year Old Classes is 1 adult for each 6 children.

Requirements

The birthday cutoff for all classes is September 30, in accordance with the kindergarten entry age of the Fairfax County public school system. Children enrolling in the Two Year-Old classes must be 2 1/2 by September 30. Limited spaces are available for students who are not yet 2 1/2 by September 30.

Students are NOT required to be potty trained at SHPS. Your child will be accommodated, whether he/she is still in diapers, in the midst of toilet training or fully trained.

Communication

At Sleepy Hollow, we believe that good communication makes for a tight-knit and trusting community. All teachers keep in close contact with parents, providing a recap of the day at pick-up time, as well as frequent emails about what the children are learning and enjoying. Parent class representatives also keep the other parents abreast of upcoming school events, meet-up opportunities outside of school and more.