Ms Sara’s philosophy is to care for each child and teach to each child’s individual needs. As a naturalist she believes everything can be taught through natural or social science. She welcomes parents and non-disruptive toddlers into the learning environment.  Kindergarten students have the option to home school part of the time with assignments generated by the teacher.

Sara Crandell Hoxie has a California Professional Clear Multiple Subject Teaching credential and holds a MA in environmental education. She is CLAD certified and meets the No Child Left Behind requirement of a Highly Qualified Teacher. She is the mother of 3 and is a poet and song writer.  This is her 9th year with Chrysalis.

The Chrysalis Kindergarten Program

Does your child love lizards and bugs? Does he or she love to watch birds, sneak up on deer or experiment with eggs or ice?  Is your child interested in the stars and planets, attending star parties or visiting the planetarium? Would your child enjoy routine visits to the Turtle Bay Museum and Paul Bunyan Forest Camp?  If your answer is yes, the Chrysalis kindergarten program may be for your child!

The first four days of every week are spent in the classroom.  The day starts with circle time where we learn the calendar, sharing and sing. Ms. Sara teaches a lot of songs and plays her guitar. Then students attend motor skills with a motor skills specialist. Students are given small group instruction in reading, formation of sounds in speech, and writing. Math is fun and hands on. After learning numbers students are taught basic geometry and the beginning of algebraic thought. All content areas are standards based except when we go beyond the standards. Art, social studies and lab science are all part of the Chrysalis kindergarten experience.

The fifth day of each week is spent on field study.  The class meets at the Sundial Bridge . From there we go exploring. Over the years Ms. Sara’s students have seen foxes, beavers, river otters, coyotes, bald eagles, ospreys, various reptiles, amphibians, fish and all kinds of insects. We study the salmon run and visit our own secret redd (spawning area). It is not unusual for our class to visit other places in our community such as Safeway, the Fire Station, Shasta Dam and Coleman Fish Hatchery.

Curriculum materials used in the Chrysalis Kindergarten program include Zoo-Phonics, BOB Books, Math Their Way and Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS).

Anyone interested in the Chrysalis Kindergarten is encouraged to come for a visit.

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