Berea’s Kindergarten – 3rd Grade Program
One Day, Two Day, or Three Day Option
A “Day” is 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. “After Session” classes are available and priced individually. See below.
One Day: $700 semester / $1400 year, $50 materials fee per student for entire year
Two Days: $1400 semester / $2800 year, $100 materials fee per student for entire year
Three Days: $2100 semester / $4200 year, $150 materials fee per student for the entire year
Lunch Monitoring: $25 fee per semester for one day, $50 fee per semester for two days, $75 fee per semester for three days
Art of the Trading Card [and Basic Board Games] $215 semester / $430 full year
Piano Lesson: $390 semester / $780 full year
Physical Education: $215 semester / $430 full year
Art and Science can get very messy! In Fall of 2024, Berea will organize a “sponsor an apron” campaign to provide our “messy” classes with clothing protection. But watch out for smatters of paint across the cheek, or a light dusting of flour in the hair!
2024/2025 Reading Selections: Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Other Stories; A Beatrix Potter Treasury by Beatrix Potter, and European Fairy Tales from The Random House Book of Fairy Tales by Amy Ehrlich.
Syllabus and Cover Letter will be available in August, 2024.
An Enrichment Program
Wonder and Explore is a program for children in Kindergarten – 3rd grade. It is designed using the principles of great books, nature study, and delight-directed learning. What does that mean? It means your student is engaged in active learning, collaborative projects, and disciplined skill-building while exploring the subject of the hour. The day is structured to attend to the students’ physical and spiritual needs as well as academic growth. This program fosters age-appropriate progress in some of the core subjects, as well as adding breadth of experience that can be challenging to accomplish at home.
On Tuesday, class is a single session. Students Kindergarten through Third Grade are blended together in a Montessori style classroom. Tuesday subjects, focused on History and Geography, are well suited to a wider age range of students.
On Wednesday and Thursday, classes are offered in two sections, separated by age group. Section “A” is for Kindergarten and First Grade students. Section “B” is for Second and Third Grade students. Wednesday features Science and Art for A and B sections. Thursday features Math and Literature for A and B sections. We work with parents to place students in the best section. In early October, instructors meet to discuss how students are managing in their assigned group. If appropriate, we will talk with parents to consider changing a student’s section assignment.
Classes start at 10:00 am. The morning session finishes at 11:30 am, giving the students a full hour for lunch and recess before returning to class at 12:30 for the afternoon session. The afternoon session finishes at 2:00 pm. A small fee of $25 per student provides adult oversight during recess/lunch. Full day enrollment is required. Families may choose one or both days. Families can also add a piano lesson with Ms. Sarah after Wonder and Explore wraps up. For 2024/2025, students may also enroll in a physical education group on Thursdays.
The program strives to build cross-curricular bridges, with Literature class setting the foundations. Our instructors gather over the Summer to map out bridge opportunities between subjects. For example, 2024/2025 students will read Little House in the Big Woods. Science may look into the infamous honey bee, as Pa finds a wild hive in the forest. The family harvests honey and makes candles from the beeswax. Or math students may explore measuring and sequencing by making butter by hand. The purpose of these bridges is to help each student connect ideas in new ways.
Our enrichment program is led by Jessica Turcios, Krisi Maichel, and Maggie Sanazaro. Each instructor has a passion for their subject and a unique personal approach to the classroom dynamic.
New Programs for 2024/2025!
There are two major additions to Wonder and Explore for 2024/2025.
First, Wonder and Explore will be available on Tuesdays as well as Wednesday and Thursday. On Tuesday, students are invited to explore history and geography with Ms. Jess. Tuesday class is a wider range of ages, encompassing Kindergarten through Third grade students into the same classes together.
Second, Wonder and Explore students may access the new “after session” programming from 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm. On Wednesday, Ms. Jess is digging into trading cards and board games! On Thursday, students and Ms. Jess get moving in a new P.E. class. Both “after session” classes include all grades, k – 12th.
Our Instructors
Krisi Maichel joined Wonder and Explore in 2021/2022. Ms. Krisi brings an organization to our program previously unseen! Her calm demeanor and patient approach have won over even the most energetic student.
Ms. Krisi leads the Science programming for Wonder and Explore. Ms. Krisi isn’t afraid to get messy! Students gather at the beginning of the class to learn the day’s concepts. Ms. Krisi then brings in a wide variety of hands-on learning activities to help the students understand and retain their new knowledge.
Ms. Maggie
Maggie Sanazaro has been with Berea since our founding. Ms. Maggie has a passion for elementary education and experience teaching math in a classroom setting. She brings this expertise into the classroom to create skill building activities for different levels of understanding and growth.
Ms. Maggie leads Math Adventures for Wonder and Explore. Classroom activities are directed towards number sense and tools for mathematical problem solving. The students may keep a notebook for the mathematical concepts, learn to use number models, practice with money, telling time, and more. This class is not a replacement for a math program at home but an adventure into concepts beyond the textbook.
Jessica Turcios has been a key contributor to the Wonder and Explore program since the beginning! She leads the Literature and Art programming for Wonder and Explore. She guides our students through the book selections, engaging them in exploration, art, understanding, discussion, and enjoyment. Ms. Jess’ boundless enthusiasm for the beauty of story sparks a love of literature in our students, regardless of their reading ability.
Ms. Jess also leads the Art program. Projects focus on learning color interactions, color palette development, personal growth in art theory, and encourage every student to use their personal artistic “eye”. Projects are designed to be a combination of things that require one class period to complete and others that require multiple steps/class days.
New for 2024/2025, Ms Jess is also leading History and Geography! The courses focus on the “what and where” of important people and places. Students connect with a wider world, gaining a new understanding of themselves, their families, and their homes.
Tuesday Features Heroes through History and Mapping the World Around Us
Wednesday Features Science and Art
Special Session Wednesday: Art of the Trading Card and Basic Board Games
Piano Lessons Available Wednesday, space limited.
Thursday Features Math Adventures and Literature
Special Session Thursday: Physical Education