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Our mission is to provide a positive,
explorative and child-centered environment that promotes creativity,
inner-discipline, independence, problem-solving skills, and positive relationships with peers and caregivers.
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Stepping Stones provides quality Infant and Toddler care for children 6 months to 30 months. Above all else, we will ensure their health and safety while they are in our care. We strive to provide a home-like environment that is warm and comforting, quiet (as possible!) and stimulating. Our guiding philosophy for this young age group is to support the child's individual natural developmental progression. Our teachers and caregivers are mature and responsible adults who love young children and are committed to providing the best possible care to our youngest students in their first experience away from home. We actively engage in Responsive Care Techniques. Infants will be held, talked to, played with and cognitively stimulated. We will encourage their progression by providing the opportunity to roll over, grasp objects, smile, laugh, sit up, crawl and reach other developmental milestones. As the children grow and move into the toddler classroom, our teaching philosophy focuses on the Reggio approach. Emphasis is on verbal skills, expression of needs and of their creativity, positive interaction with peers and adults, and gaining more independence. In both classrooms, you will hear lots of singing, laughing and playing. Children will go outside, do lots of art projects and gain knowledge through interaction with toys, pictures, books, nature objects and people. We track all of the children’s growth throughout the school year with portfolios that document developmental goals, artwork, and photographs of their daily interactions.
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We provide a Preschool Program for children between the ages of 2 ˝ and 5 years. Children belong to a primary care group of their peers, and also get to benefit from interaction with children both younger and older. We offer an emergent curriculum that is varied, engaging, and designed specifically for the children’s developmental levels. We observe our children and truly listen to them, their ideas, and their interests.
Many ideas are then carried out through a project that can last anywhere from one hour to several weeks. This curriculum enables children to think for themselves, make many of their own decisions, be creative, self-motivated and problem solvers.
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Stepping Stones provides a Summer Day Camp program for up to 75 children per day. This is a drop-in program focusing on outdoor education available to resident and visiting children between the ages of 12 months and 8 years. Total enrollment for the '05-'06 school year is 83 children. The Summer Program enrollment increases significantly due to the inclusion of part-time residents, visitors, and school-age children. More information about our Crested Butte Summer Camp. |
History
Our history dates back to the mid 1970's when Crested Butte Nursery School opened. The preschool began in a private home, later was given a room in the elementary school and eventually moved to the Forest Service building. In 1986, 2 teachers, Annie Laverty Starr and Laurie Hayden purchased Crested Butte Nursery School and established the first year round preschool and childcare facility in the area. It became known as Stepping Stones Children's Center, a 501C3 non-profit corporation established in 1987. At this time, the old state shop owned by the Town of Crested Butte was leased and renovated.
In 1995, as the population of children in the community grew, the school expanded. Directors Mark Goldberg and Sally Hensley completed a much needed addition to the school's building and created a classroom space for toddler age students. Then again in 2000, the school expanded and the Infant and Toddler Center was built. Stepping Stones now occupies two buildings at the entrance to Crested Butte. It has been a long-standing icon in this community for over three decades.
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Accomplishments
We at Stepping Stones are proud of our many accomplishments.
Stepping Stones was awarded 3 out of 4 stars by Qualistar Early Learning, a statewide organization
working to improve the quality of early childhood education. A trained observer spent several hours
in our classrooms to arrive at this point total.
Stepping Stones was awarded an accreditation by the National Association for the Education of
Young Children (NAEYC) in 1999 and then re-accredited in 2002. We are currently working on
our 2007 reaccredidation.
We became a member school of the Colorado Preschool Program in 1996 and continue this
membership to the present. (Both of these distinctions carry very comprehensive requirements and
include annual site visits and reports.)
We have completed our 4 tiered safety and accessibility project- improving our facilities in regards to
safety and wheelchair accessibility immensely.
We were nominated by our Board of Directors President, then voted by our community as “The
Non-Profit of the Year” for 2007 through the Chamber of Commerce.
We built a website!! steppingstoneschildrenscenter.com We have all of our forms, upcoming events,
history and programs, and pictures listed.
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