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Educational Program

• POE COOPERATIVE NURSERY SCHOOL (POE-CO) operates in two classrooms within Edgar Allan Poe Elementary School. The classrooms are divided between three and four year old children. Enrollment is generally limited to no more than sixteen children in each classroom (typical enrollment is less than sixteen).

• The preschool program begins at 8:30a.m. and ends at 11:30a.m., Monday - Friday.*

• The Poe-Co facilities form a "school within a school" with Poe Elementary. The two Poe-Co classrooms share a student restroom, restricted to Poe-Co students. Poe-Co has a separate outside entrance, as well as a separate secured playground. However, Poe-Co students feel very much a part of the "big school", and are included in many Poe Elementary activities. Poe-Co students with an older sibling at Poe Elementary are particularly excited about the opportunity to go to school with their older brother or sister. The academic calendar for Poe-Co is coordinated with the academic calendar for Poe Elementary.

• Poe-Co seeks to foster the developing child's social, emotional, physical and intellectual growth.  Learning centers encourage children to freely explore and initiate their own activities in art, science, math, manipulative games, dramatic play, music, books and language arts.

• Poe-Co proudly presents Arts Alive.  This extracurricular program incorporates activities from all the expressive arts (drama, dance, music and visual arts) to foster creativity, improve communication skills and develop self-esteem. 

• Poe-Co teachers are trained in Rice University's highly acclaimed School Literacy & Culture Project.  The program draws upon children's stories and language learning experiences to lay a foundation for the child's future school success in language arts.

• Poe-Co has an amazing 6:1 child to adult ratio.

• The curriculum at Poe-Co is carefully planned by professional teachers to meet the needs of the child within the group setting.

• Our classrooms and playground function as a highly flexible environment for the children's daily experiences.

• Learning concepts and developmental processes are central concerns of the teachers in their planning.

• Each professional teacher who guides the class is assisted by an experienced teacher assistant and by a parent.

• All parents, who participate in or out of the classroom, add to their child rearing skills and find a sense of community through shared experiences with other parents.

*Early drop-off is available Monday - Friday beginning at 8:00a.m., coinciding with the beginning of the school day at Poe Elementary. Extended care is also available from 11:30 until 2:50 Monday-Thursday (no extended care on Fridays). Parents must provide their children with lunch for extended care. Registration for early drop-off and extended care is limited to sixteen students (total) from both classes. See Admissions for additional information regarding early drop off and extended care.

Poe-Co is a child's place. It is a placed where each child is free to initiate his or her own activities and follow through with ideas. The teachers and parent-helpers are extensions of a child's thoughts and experiences; their goal is to provide an atmosphere in which a child can develop a positive attitude toward school and learning.

Parental involvement in the classroom is an integral part of a cooperative nursery program. A parent-helper is more than a body who watches for the safety of children and performs routine tasks. The parent-helper cooperates with the teacher in providing learning experiences for young children.