Article Link: http://stage.exchangepress.com/article/a-program-showcase/5019484/
Since 1809, there has almost always been a school in Macworth Point (now Falmouth), Maine, just north of Portland. In 1916 a brick, one-room schoolhouse was built on this property and named Pine Grove School. Unfortunately, it burned down a few days before the school opened and was rebuilt, and then expanded in 1941. In 1984, after a brief closure, Barbara (BJ) Fifield and Paula Silsby purchased it and restored the building, opening the Pine Grove Child Development Center the next year. This year it celebrates its 25th birthday. According to BJ, “The school is a developmental, discovery-oriented preschool dedicated to peace and to teaching respectful ways of resolving conflict. We are deeply committed to individualized, child-centered learning and believe that young children learn best when they are stimulated to explore a rich array of hands-on materials at their own pace.”
The school, surrounded by a 27-acre wooded park, offers eight schedule choices for parents, including morning and full-time preschool options, kindergarten, an extended-day option, an after-school enrichment program, and early- and late-care options. It serves a total of 96 children per week. Accredited by NAEYC, the school has also received the highest level (Step 4) from Maine’s Child Care Quality Rating ...