Program Foundations

At FPS, we empower children to be active in their own learning process by encouraging and supporting their innate curiosity. Our curriculum emerges as we pay careful attention to our students’ interests within the context of the changing seasons.

We use a balance of provocations, child-led, open-ended programming, free play, and sensory exploration in natural environments to support the development of the whole child and inspire relevant and meaningful learning. We use the nature playscape, meadows, and forest as our classroom.

Each day includes “loose parts play” in the nature playscape. This is a time to explore nature-inspired art projects, seasonal, open-ended materials that may be manipulated in multiple ways.

Songs, storytelling, fingerplays, books and imaginative play come together to promote foundational literacy development. Our provocations often invite students to experiment with early math concepts including measuring, counting, comparing, and sorting.

We provide opportunities for children to learn how to safely use real tools including hammers, whittling peelers, and saws. Using real tools promotes fine motor skill development, a sense of agency, and a positive self-concept.

Because learning and risk-taking often go hand in hand, we also support children’s exploration of healthy risk-taking. This may take the form of climbing a rock or small tree, balancing on a log, etc. In taking healthy risks, children develop confidence and the ability to assess and calculate risk for themselves.   

FPS is emphatically committed to weaving equity and social justice learning into our curriculum. FPS staff use books, open and honest conversation, images, provocations, classroom guests, and family members to build a strong foundation of learning around social justice and equity. We highly value family input, involvement, and support of this ever-evolving aspect of our curriculum. As a staff, we are committed to ongoing learning, stretching, and growing in this area in an effort to provide informed, thoughtful guidance for your children.