Green Group

The Green Group is indeed a very special place. For some children, it is their first group experience in a setting away from home. In our classroom of two-and three-year-old children, a great portion of our day centers around creating a classroom environment in which the children feel secure and connected in a loving place that is an extension of their homes. One of the most important ways in which we create this haven is through fostering a strong and constant home-school partnership. We create this bond by moving, both literally and figuratively in both directions. We make the home and school seem connected in the eyes of the child. To help families feel welcomed and comfortable in the school setting, we invite them to join us in the classroom to see firsthand what their child's day at school is like. In addition to teachers visiting children in their homes, families come to the Day Care for events such as a Green Group breakfast welcoming a new member into our community or an all-school potluck. Having a family member visit the classroom is an empowering experience for Green Groupers, and it gives them a great sense of pride.

A strong foundation for the future is built during a child's year in the Green Group. For example, a broad school goal (for the entire time a child is at Tufts) is for every child to welcome and seek out variety. The Green Group offers the first opportunity for membership in an enormously diverse group of children, families, and teachers. Right from the start, the children begin to understand that similarities and differences exist among us all. For instance, in a unit on "hair," Green Groupers learned that there are all kinds of hair: brown, blond, black, red, short, long, straight, and curly. The children learned that everybody has hair but no two people have the same kind of hair. In a study on transportation, we explored how we all get to school each morning. Everyone comes to school each day, but not everyone travels the same way. We discovered that some of us drive in cars, ride on a bus, pedal a bike, ride in a stroller, or walk. As the children discover the ways in which we are all unique, they learn to celebrate the diversity that we represent. Green Groupers learn that they are all valued members of our classroom and school communities.

Green Groupers also begin to understand that we all have something we are working on, and that not every child has the same exact needs. We help Green Groupers figure out why one child needs a special chair to sit in during group times, why another child needs "home food" for lunch, why another child is having some quiet time in a cozy spot with an adult to help calm her body down, or why another child needs a certain piece of equipment to help him walk. The children also come to understand that although a particular child cannot walk without assistance, he may be an expert at drawing, taking care of baby dolls, or building with blocks.

In getting to know each child, we recognize that some children may need additional educational services in order to help them participate fully in each part of the day. Teachers help families work with various public school systems, arrange for evaluations, and get the services their child needs. Once a plan is in place, teachers, families, and therapists collaborate to ensure that skill development continues within the context of the inclusive classroom. It is our mission to ensure that every child gets what she or he needs.

Through every part of our day, we facilitate social interactions between children. In this important time for language development, teachers support youngsters as they learn to use language for a variety of reasons, including sharing ideas, listening to each other, and taking turns. Teachers model appropriate language such as, "Can I play?" or "Do you want to play a game with me?" When conflicts do arise, and they inevitably do, teachers walk children through the steps of adult-assisted problem solving. Green Groupers learn to ask, for example, "Are you okay? What will make you feel better? It sounds like you are too sad to talk right now. We'll talk later." It is important to us that we validate children's feelings, whether they be positive or negative. Just as we celebrate and acknowledge feelings of joy and pride, we encourage children to bring feelings of anger and fear out in the open as well. In such an environment they learn how to take care of one another and know that they in turn are going to be taken care of.

From all of this hard work, Green Groupers learn to come together as a community. There is a time in the year where the dynamic of the classroom changes, and the children shift from being absorbed in their own worlds, as is developmentally appropriate, to wanting to be a member of a group that works together to achieve greater goals for all. It is an exciting time when the children reach this moment!