The Haverford Center is a NAEYC-accredited and state-licensed child care center for children 6 weeks to 4 years of age. We provide a creative, child-centered and well-balanced program that supports your child’s individual physical, emotional, cognitive, and social development. Our teachers use “The Creative Curriculum” to help meet these goals.
Infants
Infant room staff members provide a safe, language-rich environment designed for exploration and development. Each baby’s schedule is individualized to meet his or her needs. The environment includes soft toys, inviting manipulatives of varying colors and textures, picture books, and a range of multicultural music. Infants are supervised by sight and sound at all times.
Toddlers and Preschool
Toddler and Preschool staff members work hard to provide a predictable daily routine that provides a balance of active and quiet play, indoor and outdoor experiences, large and small motor activities, and child/teacher initiated activities. Children develop life skills – feeding, toileting, dressing – through constant encouragement and acknowledgement of their efforts. Daily schedules and routines are posted in each classroom space.
Teachers
The Haverford Center is proud of its dedicated teachers. We enjoy a very low turnover rate of our staff. Our full-time teachers are supported in receiving their degrees in early childhood education.
Our mission
The Haverford Center’s mission is to provide a nurturing and safe environment while encouraging children to build upon their individual character. The Haverford Center implements developmentally appropriate curriculum based upon national and state standards that target the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical growth of all students. Children are encouraged to build a sense of self through activities that allow them to try, think, and act with increasing independence. For each child, we strive to promote a lifelong love of learning and respect for others through stimulating and interactive activities. The Haverford Center values open communication between teachers and families allowing for a deeper and more personal understanding of children’s daily routines and activities.
What I value most is that at The Haverford Center my children are excited to go every morning and sad to leave when they come home. Every day they tell me what interesting activities they did in “science” or “music.” Not only are my children given exceptional care, they are also enjoying learning every day.
– Kara Cleffi, parent
Why The Haverford Center?
Children enrolled in The Haverford Center benefit from:
-
Experienced, caring teachers
-
Small class sizes
- A safe, secure, clean, and healthy learning environment
- Curriculum based on scientific research and best practices
- Special area programs including art, music, and science
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Technology use and integration
What our parents are saying:
We asked a few parents why they chose The Haverford Center for their children. Here’s what they had to say:
The Haverford Center is the best kept secret on the Main Line. As first-timers, we spent a lot of time researching day care locations for our son and we were immediately impressed with the educational backgrounds of the teachers, cleanliness of the facility, hands-on learning approach, and small group instruction. One of the most unique aspects of the center is that it is based on the grounds of The Haverford School, an elite prep school with world-class facilities. The most meaningful part of our son's experience at The Haverford Center is that he has made great connections with his teachers and has a new circle of friends. Parents are always welcome at the Center and there is ample communication between home and school. We love the daily updates, lesson plans, and pictures that allow us to see their busy days. Our son comes home every day singing new songs and talking about new learning adventures, and we value our son being in a learning environment where he feels safe and accepted.
– Erin & Peter Howey, parents
There is so much love in The Haverford Center. As parents, we feel so lucky to have access to such an amazing place. The Haverford Center is a part of our family. They don’t just look after our kids – they help raise them. The Haverford Center is really a school; our kids aren’t just kept safe, they are nurtured and developed. Like any great school, what sets The Haverford Center apart are the amazing teachers that work there.
– Sara & Brad Becker, parents
For seven straight years, at least one of my children has been a part of The Haverford Center. The friendships they have forged with teachers and classmates will last a long time. Whether playing, socializing, learning, or all of the above, they always had fun. Everything my family has encountered at The Haverford Center has made my children enjoy school. I cannot ask for any more than that as a parent!
– Doug Knight, parent
The Haverford Center is fully-licensed by the Department of Public Welfare, and earned NAEYC accreditation in 2011.
What is NAEYC?
Since 1985, the National Association for the Education of Young Children
(NAEYC) has offered a voluntary accreditation system to set
professional standards for early childhood education programs, and to
help families identify high-quality programs. Today, NAEYC Accreditation
represents the mark of quality in early childhood education. Over 7,000
childcare programs, preschools, early learning centers, and other
center- or school-based early childhood education programs are currently
NAEYC-Accredited. These programs provide high quality care and
education to nearly one million young children in the United States, its
territories, and programs affiliated with the United States Department
of Defense.
First in Philadelphia
Haverford
is the first independent school in the Philadelphia region to have
achieved NAEYC accreditation. Our strong assessment results are a clear
and fitting tribute to the vision, planning, and construction of our new
Lower School building and to our stellar lower school faculty, staff,
and administration, and the dynamic programs they have built.
Haverford's NAEYC report card:
|
Category |
Score |
|
Relationships |
100 |
| Curriculum |
97
|
|
Teaching |
100 |
|
Assessment |
100
|
|
Health |
100 |
|
Teachers |
100 |
|
Families |
100 |
|
Community Relationships |
100 |
|
Physical Environment |
96 |
|
Leadership and Management |
100 |
About Haverford's accreditation
For a two-year period from 2009-11, the Lower School underwent its first National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) evaluation of its early childhood program. The NAEYC evaluation process included a two-year process of self-study and documentation, followed by an on-site assessment by a NAEYC evaluation team.
Our NAEYC assessment provides scores for each of 10 program standards, and suggestions for ongoing improvement by topic area. We are happy to report perfect scores in eight of 10 categories, with near-perfect scores in the remaining two. Among the specific commendations that the NAEYC evaluation team shared include:
- The promotion of positive relationships among all children and adults and encouraging each child’s sense of individual worth and belonging as part of a community
- Fostering each child’s ability to contribute as a responsible community member
- Implementing a curriculum that promotes learning and development in social, emotional, physical, language, and cognitive areas
- Implementing a curriculum that draws on research, assisting teachers in identifying important concepts and skills as well as effective methods for fostering children’s learning and development
- Using developmentally, culturally and linguistically appropriate and effective teaching approaches that enhance each child’s learning and development in the context of the program’s curriculum goals
- Using ongoing, systematic, formal and informal assessment approaches to provide information on children’s learning and development
- Promoting the nutrition and health of children and protecting children and staff from illness and injury
- Employing and supporting a teaching staff that has the educational qualifications, knowledge, and professional commitment necessary to promote children’s learning and development and to support families’ diverse needs and interests
- Recognizing the importance of a reciprocal relationship between families and programs to ensure that programs are meeting the needs of the children and families that the program serves
- Effectively establishing and maintaining reciprocal relationships with agencies and institutions that can support it in achieving its goals for the curriculum, health promotion, children’s transitions, inclusion, and diversity
- Creating an environment, both indoors and outdoors that fosters the growth and development of the children
- Administering a program efficiently and effectively, ensuring that all involved persons, staff, children, and families are included