Why Attend
Child care in the Boulder area is among the most expensive in the country. Unfortunately cost is in no way a guarantee of quality. According to the national Cost, Quality, and Child Outcomes in Child Care Centers Study (a large portion of which was done right here in Boulder), child care at most centers in Colorado is poor to mediocre, with almost half of the infant and toddler rooms having poor quality. Additionally, the study found that in Colorado: only 1 in 7 centers provide a level of quality that promotes healthy development; child care at 1 in 8 centers threatens health and safety; 40% of infant and toddler rooms were observed to threaten health and safety; only 1 in 12 infant and toddler centers are providing developmentally appropriate care; and, 7 in 10 centers are providing mediocre quality care which will compromise children’s ability to enter school ready to learn.Studies conclude that quality early-childhood education makes a difference. Young children exposed to high-quality settings exhibit better language and mathematics skills, better cognitive and social skills, and better relationships with classmates than do children in lower-quality care. Evaluations of well-run early-learning programs also have found that children in those environments were less likely to drop out of school, repeat grades, need special education, or get into future trouble with the law than similar children who did not have such exposure. (Education Week, Quality Counts).
Another study conducted over a period of 20 years by the University of North Carolina tracked disadvantaged children – some of who attended an intensive child care program like Boulder Day Nursery, and others from regular day care programs. The findings indicate that those children in intensive programs like the ones Boulder Day Nursery operates were more likely to attend college, hold jobs, and delay parenthood. Boulder Day Nursery’s experiences with low-income children have been consistent with this study.
Boulder Day Nursery provides affordable, high quality and developmentally appropriate child care, early learning and family support services for challenged and normally developing children ages six weeks to six years old. That age range is spread across four individual classrooms. The Program is open year-round, weekdays 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Boulder Day Nursery and its programs operate in its historic building in downtown Boulder in Barker Park at 15th and Spruce Streets. Services provide for the general supervision and care of children, enhanced early learning and education activities, as well as integrated early intervention, health and mental health services for children and parents.
Curriculum and daily activities for the children enrolled in the program are based on Developmentally Appropriate Practice, are highly individualized and are customized to challenge and stimulate a child’s development and ultimately prepare them for school. Teachers make daily developmental observations and design play environments and activities that promote individual growth and well-being. Activities are individually designed, culturally sensitive and experientially based to promote growth in social, emotional, cognitive, language and physical domains. Activities and curriculum are built around best practices and standards for brain development in young children. The physical environment is clean and filled with an array of stimulating, fun to play with toys.
As children get older, a great deal of time is spent focusing on building a foundation for school readiness. Children are provided with ample opportunities for experiential learning through play and creative activities. Basic reading skills are heavily emphasized - weekly field trips to the library are made and each child in the program receives a free book every month until they go to Kindergarten. And while one could find other programs that are much more academically based, children graduate from the program with a solid understanding of math, science and language appropriate to their age. In addition to the academic components of school readiness, children are also prepared socially and emotionally for the demands of elementary school. Before they ever get to a large Kindergarten class with one teacher, our children have learned to self-regulate their behavior, negotiate in a prosocial way with their peers, and accept guidance and instruction from adult teachers.
Child to teacher ratios in the Program are much lower than what is required by licensing, typically 1:3 for the infant classroom and 1:7 for the preschool classroom. For comparison, State licensing allows for a ratio of one adult for every fifteen children in the preschool age group. University of Colorado work-study students, volunteers, and foster grandparents also help to provide plenty of supervision and guidance. The low ratios allow professional staff to spend more one-on-one time with each child, as well as allow the teachers to look for developmental issues, or conduct interventions where needed.
The Boulder Day Nursery also utilizes a style of curriculum based on the book The Storybook Journey. This curriculum focuses on children's literature, poems, songs, rhymes and the creative endeavors of the children and staff. It provides the core of our weekly planning including events of special interest. The Storybook Journey provides a foundation for emergent literacy and a positive experience for group and individual participation, and tremendously enhances the experience of the children enrolled in this program. It also provides an opportunity to effectively address emotional difficulties that can begin to emerge in at-risk populations in this age group.
Children’s individual needs are a focus while they are at the school, but we also work with parents to provide consistent environments from school to home. In addition to regular daily contact, parents meet with teachers and an early childhood specialist at enrollment, no less than every six months and at transition between programs or discharge from the program. We also foster an environment of collaboration between parents, teachers and administration. Over the years, parent input and feedback has been a large factor in this program’s design, garnered through board and committee participation.
In addition to the child care and early learning components of the Program, Boulder Day Nursery operates the Family Resource Program to promote the development of healthy families. This part of the program uses a relationship-based mental health consultation model in which a licensed psychologist specializing in early childhood uses a holistic approach of attachment, child development, cognitive-behavioral and systems theories. The specialist conducts developmental screenings, behavioral assessments and therapeutic intervention with children; trainings, clinical consultation and supervision to teachers and administrators; and activities such as workshops, advice and supportive counseling to parents.
For more information on how your child can attend Boulder Day Nursery, check out the Admissions page.