Community Cooperative Nature School- Salt Lake
Founded in 1962, CCNS proudly remains one of the few truly cooperative preschools in Utah. It serves children ages two to five with a unique passion and vision combining creativity, play, the child and their family. Centered on a cooperative spirit, the parents own and care for our school, and in doing so, embrace the qualities we strive to instill in our children. The school is licensed by the State of Utah.
Mission: Together, we are dedicated to fostering happy, socially engaged, independent thinking children through a teacher and parent supported community.
Philosophy: At CCNS, we believe children gain confidence and become lifelong learners when their curiosities are peaked and their individual interests are nurtured. We do everything possible to help our children grow and develop by providing opportunities for imaginative play, art exploration, scientific discovery, social interaction, writing, music, movement, literacy, cooking, math, and outdoor fun.
School Community: CCNS is a community of parents and educators coming together in the shared belief that the early years are full of endless possibilities that require the utmost care and attention. Parents are an integral part of the CCNS experience and there is always one parent working with the teacher in the classroom at all times. When we, the parents, take those first steps from home to school with our children, we not only help smooth the transition, we also create an enriching experience for them.
Curriculum: At CCNS we use an Emergent Curriculum method which allows the teacher to follow the lead of the children's interest for topic selection. The children learn how to develop their questions and then discover how to seek answers to what interests them. The emphasis is on the process of discovering the many ways to learn rather than the answers. One class might be interested in dinosaurs and immerse themselves in the topic by creating their own "dig" as they become paleontologists. Another class might be interested in birds and explore and learn about different types of birds, their features and calls, meet with an ornithologist, build birdhouses, bird feeders, and nests. They might even build a tree inside their classroom to house these nests. Finally, another class might want to learn about construction and embark upon learning how to build a range of things from pizzas to houses to airplanes.