Birth to One Year Olds

Welcome to our birth through one pod, where curiosity takes center stage, and every tiny explorer is on a journey of discovery. Our program enrolls children from 6 weeks through their first year of age, providing an environment tailored to meet their developmental needs at every stage. Here, we celebrate the natural inquisitiveness of children by creating a canvas for wonder and exploration.

In our birth to one classrooms, we foster a sense of joy in learning through engaging experiences. Each child is encouraged to explore, question, and make sense of the world around them. Our attentive and responsive educators are dedicated to creating a warm and secure atmosphere, ensuring that every inquisitive mind feels supported on their exciting voyage of early exploration.

Our birth to one pod consists of three classrooms, each with two primary educators who provide dedicated and personalized care. Additionally, there are three to five support educators and one mentor educator assigned to the pod, ensuring comprehensive support and guidance for both children and faculty.

Our environment is crafted around children’s interests, skills, and the changing seasons. The children have access to a wide variety of open-ended natural materials and household objects, inviting them to play and engage with purpose and concentration, individually or alongside others. This allows children to discover, explore, experiment, and problem-solve, knowing they will uncover the world in their own unique way.

Care routines are an integral part of our program. Educators spend time with each child in a calm and interactive manner to build bonds of friendship and trust. We believe in the power of uninterrupted play, allowing children to initiate their own learning while educators provide unobtrusive support. Small groups of children are encouraged to play together, developing cooperative skills and learning to solve conflicts independently. This process helps children develop the language to express their feelings and ideas, fostering both verbal and non-verbal communication skills.

We value patterns of caring that respect the child’s autonomy and natural development. For example, we do not carry children to get them to sleep, use high chairs, or prop children who cannot sit by themselves. Instead, we place children on the floor to explore and encourage them to learn to feed themselves. If you have developed different patterns at home, we will work together to find common practices that can be supported by our close adult-to-child ratio of approximately 1:3.

At Hilltop Children’s Center, we believe that every child’s exploration and play are essential to their search for meaning in life. We are committed to laying the foundation for a lifelong love of learning, joyfully and respectfully nurturing the inquisitive minds of our youngest learners.