By
Lorraine Glowczak
Preschools and early childhood education
centers provide an environment for children to explore; gaining social,
intellectual and self-confidence skills. Realizing the important contributing
factors to their child’s success, parents strive to find the best child care,
but it is not always an easy feat. Often there are many hurdles to overcome:
long waitlists and center hours that often conflict with work schedules. The
Playhouse Child Care Center, located at 322 West Gray Road in Gray (with a
Westbrook Location coming soon) is about to change all of that.
“As a grandparent, I began to see how difficult it was for
my grandchildren to get into the highest quality preschools,” stated John F.
Chase, owner of The Playhouse. “I wanted to do something to offer my own
grandchildren as well as to all other young folks in the Lakes Region
community, a high-quality child care center without the long wait.”
Also the owner of Chase Custom Homes and Finance in
Westbrook, Chase reached out to a 15 year veteran in the early childhood
business, Ashley Moulton, whose lifelong dream matched the mission of Chase.
Moulton, who will act as District Manager of the Gray (and
eventually the Westbrook) location, stated that child care has been a passion
of hers since she was a young girl. “Helping children begin the foundation to a
successful life is something I’ve always dreamed of - and as an adult working
with young children, working in this field has been the most rewarding job I’ve
ever had.”
According to the parent handbook, The Playhouse’s mission
is to provide a safe, healthy and nurturing environment for every child. Their
philosophy is simple: allow children to learn through play. “At the Playhouse,
children follow a formal curriculum, enhanced by meaningful play, which promotes
the development of independence, creative thinking, healthy bodies,
self-discipline, problem solving, and self-confidence. We realize that children
are constantly learning through structure as well as play.”
The play-based, hands-on programs will engage children in
several ways that includes music and movement classes, yoga, sign language,
arts and craft projects and more. All programs will motivate children to become
involved in a variety of captivating and fun play-based activities, all the
while learning very important skills that will prepare for their future and
educational career.
“Every
child learns and grows differently,” Moulton stated. “We support and guide each
child as an individual with a variety of programs from which they can choose
and focus on what engages them the most. We also offer an outdoor classroom
where children of all ages will be able to explore and learn together. While
keeping with the play-based theme, we also want to prepare them for
Kindergarten.”
As a
result, The Playhouse will adhere to and follow the State of Maine Early
Childhood Educational Curriculum Standards. “We want each child to be prepared
for a smooth transition into the school system,” Moulton said. “We will follow
the standards and curriculum guidelines by the state and will do so in a
hands-on and fun way.”
Parents have a lot of decisions to make when it comes to
child care and who to entrust with their little ones. “We understand this is a
very personal decision, so we are hiring staff with only strong backgrounds and
many years of experience in child care,” Moulton said. “Our lead teachers have
degrees in early childhood education and assistant teachers will work towards
earning a degree while taking continuing education classes. We will support our
staff in paying for ongoing training and education.”
Safety is another factor on parents’ minds. They want to
know their child will be loved, nurtured and most of all, safe during the day.
“Security has been of the utmost importance in the building renovations and design,”
Moulton said. “Every family will have a key code and all classrooms will have
cameras for security and safety purposes.”
The Playhouse Child Care Center, “Where Learning and Play
Come Together,” will be opening soon and is now enrolling children from six
weeks to five years old. Slots are filling fast! To learn more and find out
about upcoming open house dates, visit their website at
www.theplayhousekids.com and the Facebook page.
To request an enrollment packet for
your child, contact District Manager, Ashley Moulton by email
info@theplayhousekids.com. The Playhouse Child Care is still accepting
applications for early childhood educators and infant teachers. <
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