WINDY HILL LABORATORY SCHOOL
2016–2017 IN REVIEW
A PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOOL In 2016–2017, faculty, teachers, parents and students worked together to provide quality early childhood care and learning experiences to approximately 45 children, ages 13 months through pre-k. Staffing included seven fulltime teachers (all with four-year degrees/ certification, three with master’s degrees), with an average of more than 10 years’ experience. Additional staffing included two part-time teachers, one director (faculty/ doctorate), one associate director (doctorate) and 30 work-study students from nine majors: biology, business administration, child development, English, exercise science, media studies, psychology, public health and sociology. A child development internship, in conjunction with the Newport Health Center, focused on creating wellness presentations for families to develop home-to-school connections. Other interns conducted required course research at Windy Hill exploring yoga and self-regulation, infant toddler language development, Montessori activities for the pre-k classroom, classroom management techniques, and language and art experiences with toddlers. Several students worked with Windy Hill to complete their Capstone Projects. Two child development majors hosted a bookmaking event, two additional child development majors conducted research on gender differences in block play, and a media studies major created a video featuring Windy Hill. Teachers and students helped children to document their learning through photo journals and portfolios created in Windy Hill’s resource room/technology lab using computers, digital cameras, scanners, software and other technologies.
A LABORATORY SCHOOL Child development courses taught at Windy Hill created a visible connection between the children and the college curriculum. Colby-Sawyer students were an integral part of the Windy Hill classrooms that provided a responsive, creative and safe learning environment for children and college students. The school courses with a lab school component included: CHI 101: Child Growth and Development Students had three mini-observations with the class and one larger observation assignment in which they connected developmental theories to classroom behaviors. CHI 102: Intro to Early Childhood Education Students created activities that were presented to families during the annual art show. CHI 105: Health, Safety and Nutrition for Young Children Students engaged with children in cooking activities, health promotion and playground safety checks. Poster presentations were displayed for parents. CHI 206: Family and Community Collaboration Students conducted observations at local childcare facilities to report how their experiences/observations compared with their readings and the theories they studied. CHI 207: Developmentally Appropriate Practice Students observed and presented appropriate materials for different age groups. CHI 210: Infant and Toddler Development Students observed and interacted with children in the toddler rooms. CHI 314: Language & Creative Arts Birth-5 Students planned and implemented activities for children in all classrooms and conducted assessments. ESS 211: Nutrition Students engaged in cooking/nutritional assignments at Windy Hill. GD 350: Illustration Students created alphabet posters for Windy Hill hallways. PSY 240: Life-Span Development Students observed Piaget’s experiences exploring conservation of mass, volume and number.
A CAMPUS-WIDE EXPERIENCE Windy Hill students regularly engaged in fitness activities, including dance at the Sawyer Fine and Performing Arts Center, hiking in the 100Acre Wood, swimming at the Hogan Sports Center and rock climbing at the Ray Climbing Wall. The children also enjoyed Bike Day and the annual campus Halloween parade. Cultural activities at Windy Hill included learning about Abenaki culture (complete with regalia, dances and food) and a concert by a Windy Hill graduate, while campus activities included Day of the Dead, the Diversity Fair and a pumpkin people competition. The Annual Windy Hill Art Show, open to family, friends and community, highlighted children’s art and the individual creative process. During the fall, the children gathered apples and made cider with Professor of Natural Sciences Nick Baer and Associate Professor of Natural Sciences Darrell Kuykendall. They also visited the organic gardens and planted garlic with Professor of Environmental Studies Leon-C Malan. Other science-related outings included visiting the tapped maple trees and the sap house to learn about the sugaring process; time in Susan’s Swamp to observe geese, bugs, frog eggs, muskrats, a beaver lodge, animal prints and plant life; trips to Boulder Forest to construct forts from fallen limbs and observe geese and other animals in their natural habitats; and exploring snow, mushrooms, worms and seeds. Preschool and pre-k children expanded their experiences through community engagement. They collected and delivered food donations to the Kearsarge Lake Sunapee Region Food Pantry; baked bread for the New London Baptist Church’s soup night; visited the New London Fire Department; collected food for N.H. Kitten Rescue; participated in story time at Tracy Memorial Library; and became pen pals with a pre-k class at James House. Children invited the community to Windy Hill for a variety of events including a dance party, tea party and winter concert as well as inviting family and faculty into the classroom to be “mystery readers.”
photo:greg danilowski
FOUNDED IN 1976, Windy Hill is an integral part of Colby-Sawyer College and offers quality early care and learning experiences for toddlers, preschoolers and pre-kindergarteners. College students from multiple disciplines work alongside classroom teachers and collaborate on research initiatives. Windy Hill boasts child development faculty with doctoral degrees who integrate their curriculum with lab school experiences, as well as highly qualified, degreed classroom teachers credentialed by the N.H. Department of Education or N.H. Department of Health and Human Services Child Development Bureau. In 2010, Windy Hill School moved to its current location, a $2.4 million LEED-Silver Certified facility designed to be environmentally friendly while meeting the early care and learning needs of children. Windy Hill is licensed by N.H. Department of Health and Human Services to better prepare students who plan to work in state licensed childcare programs.
Windy Hill School offers early care and learning experiences for toddlers, preschoolers and pre-kindergarteners from 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., with an optional three-hour extension.
Windy Hill School 541 Main Street New London, NH 03257 jbauer@colby-sawyer.edu 603.526.3774