The Lambs Workshop; Bedford, NH
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How old does a child need to be to qualify for one of your classes?
To be part of our Three Year Old Program a child must be 3 years old by September 30th. Likewise, a child must be 4 years old by September 30th to qualify for the Four Year Old Program, and 5 years old by September 30th to qualify for our Kindergarten Program.
2. What is your pupil/teacher ratio?
There is an average of 6-7 to 1 (student/teacher) ratio in the Three and Four Year Old Programs, with an average of 6-8 to 1 ratio in our Kindergarten Program. Our teaching staff hold a minimum of a high school degree, and certification in Early Childhood Education.
3. How long have your teachers been working at Lamb's?
Most of our teachers and assistant teachers have been with Lamb's for more than 5 years, some for 10-15 years. We have very little "turn- over" among our staff.
4. What do you expect of an incoming 3 year old to be ready for preschool?
We do expect all children entering our preschool to be fully toilet trained. Even though we do not expect 3and 4 year olds to be fully accomplished with their toileting skills, it is helpful if they are able to manage their clothing (for the most part), and are familiar with the use of toilet paper and steps to washing hands. It is also helpful if they can make their needs be known by verbal expression.
For our HELPFUL HINTS handout for our 3s students, please click here.
5. How many classes are there?
We have 3 morning Three-Year-Old Classes, and we have 4 Four-Year-Old Classes (3 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon). There is one Kindergarten class, held each morning for a three hour session; while Kindergarten Enrichment (KE) is held two (2) afternoons each week. (Our KE program is open to both Lambs students as well as students who attend other Kindergarten programs).
6. How many children are in a classroom?
The preschool consists of two classrooms with an average of 13 children in each class, with one teacher and one teacher's assistant for each class. There is one larger classroom with an average of 18 children, one teacher and two teacher's assistants. The Kindergarten class is composed of a maximum 22 children.
7. How do you decide which classroom a child should have?
Our Educational Director (Donna Gamans) tries to balance the boy/girl ratio. She also tries to have a balance of younger 3 year olds (or 4's) and older 3 year olds (or 4's). Donna also likes to have the parents' input regarding their child's temperament and sociability. For example the big room might not be best for a quiet or shy child, as it can be overwhelming, too busy, noisy. One of the smaller rooms would probably be better. Teacher requests can be made, but we cannot guarantee your request will be granted.
8. How do I enroll my child in The Lamb's Workshop?
We begin registration in January for Fall classes for the following school year (e.g.: January 2009 for Fall 2009 classes). Our Educational Director has a "wait list" of people who have expressed interest in our school, and she starts confirmation calls beginning at the top of the list. If you are interested in our program, you are welcome to call in order to schedule a visit to the school, and/or to get your name on the "wait list".
9. How do you incorporate Christianity into the curriculum?
The Three Year Olds begin their Meeting time with a prayer and recitation of the monthly Bible verse. One of the children gets to lead the Grace at snack time and there are Bible stories read and discussed each week.
Our 4's and K students have "Chapel" once a month where they go upstairs to the main Church sanctuary, sing songs, and have a short Bible lesson given by Bethany's Pastor Joel Kruggel (pictured above).
10. How do you accomodate for children with Food Allergies?
Over our 25 years experience, we have had many occasions where we have had to accomodate to children's needs in this area. We are a "nut free" zone, and we encourage every parent whose child has allergies to communicate the child's specific needs to our Director, Donna Gamans, and their child's teacher(s) in person. We ask our parents to document the children's needs at the beginning of the school year, as well as any emergency-related procedures and/or medications, so that we are prepared and able to ensure each child's safety to the best of our ability. With the information the parents provide, our teachers are then able to provide the necessary precautions for the well-being of the students in their class.
While we endeavor to do our utmost to ensure each child's safety, we ask that each parent be vigilant in their overseeing their child's needs. This is especially important for those who have children with food-related allergies. We now require that these parents check the day's snack at drop off to ensure snack safety. If the parent deems the day's snack to be safe, then they must sign a permission sheet indicating their child may partake of that day's snack. However, there are times when parental permission is missing and/or we are unsure of the safety of the snack; this is why we ask parents of children with food allergies to bring in a "safe" snack each day for their child. In this way we endeavor to accommodate for the many needs of our students, and help to protect them to the best of our ability.
11. What do you do for Field Trips? (Applicable for the 4-year- olds and Kindergarten only).
We offer field trips that complement and reinforce our thematic units. A few examples are: Orchard trips; the Krista McCauliff Planetarium; and the Bedford Fire Station.
The Four-Year-Old Classes learn about the Fruit of the Spirit during the course of the year, and have a Bible memory verse each month that coincides with this theme. We concentrate on Old Testament Bible stories during the months prior to Christmas and then move on into reading from the New Testament.
The Kindergarten class concentrates on several Bible verses each month as well as a devotional time based on each letter of the alphabet. (A Bible lesson with a "key" word starting with a letter from the alphabet.) The kindergarten children are given opportunities to pray each day for their friends, families, and/or "whatever" is relevant to them that day.
We try to make Christianity relevant and a natural expression of who we are. Virtues and "life lessons" can be beautifully tied in with learning about God's love for us and how we need to honor him with our hearts and our service to others. (We do request that our Lamb's students wear either a Lamb's sweat/t-shirt, or are red/white top for identification purposes during the duration of the field trip).
If you have questions not answered here, please call our Main Office at 472-2113.
