By Ann McCreary
A collaboration between the new Methow Mentoring and Childcare program and Methow Valley Community School (MVCS) is providing daylong preschool as well as after-school child care for elementary students.
Methow Mentoring offers morning preschool at the Methow Valley United Methodist Church every weekday from 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. for $20 per session.
The Community School is offering afternoon preschool from 1 – 5 p.m. for children 3 to 5 years old, and an after-school program for students 5 through 12 years old.
The afternoon child care programs fill a pressing need, said Crystal Bacon, executive director of the Community School.
“We’re so happy to be able to fill this need. We have the space and the desire to be of service,” she said.
The program will offer play and craft-based learning for preschoolers, and reading, writing, craft projects and homework support for elementary students.
The preschool and after-school sessions began Tuesday (Sept. 8) and will be taught by MVCS Crew Leader Sabrina Freedman on Monday, Thursday and Friday. Tara Rickabaugh, who previously ran a preschool based on a Waldorf School model, will teach on Tuesday and Wednesday, Bacon said.
The cost for the afternoon preschool and after-school program is $8 an hour, or $30 for preschoolers enrolled from 1 – 5 p.m.
The Community School also offers partial enrollment for home school students, Bacon said.
Registration materials are available on the school’s website, mvcommunityschool.org. For more information, call Bacon at 997-4447, or email methowvalleycommunityschool@gmail.com.
