16 Better Beginnings
The youngest years Storybook Village Preschool, located in Santa Rosa, focuses on building a strong community around its infant care program. “Our infant and toddler programs aim to implement relationship-driven learning and strategies through continuing caregiving routines while being partners in care with families,” said Nicole Monachello, the director of Storybook Village. “Our goal is to strengthen families while keeping children safe and loved. As a high-quality, trained site through the Program for Infant/Toddler Care (PITC) Partners for Quality, Storybook Village Preschool believes each infant has the right to be very
special to the people who care for them. Infant and toddler care teachers are mentored and coached on implementing the PITC philosophy and essential policies to promote high-quality, responsive, relationship-based infant and toddler care,” she continued. Monachello said that she’s tried to transform Storybook Village into a place where both children and parents are supported and valued through hiring passionate teachers and building a caring community. “As a single mom to an amazing son who is days away from being a teenager, I knew the power of community care,” she
Photos courtesy Storybook Village Preschool Storybook Village Preschool in Santa Rosa focuses on social-emotional development by emphasizing free play and small groups.
said, reflecting on her experience finding child care when her son was younger. “I learned how my son’s preschool experience in Millbrae strengthened our family through support and connections: I balanced work, went to school and raised a young child. As a single parent, I was never raising a child alone. We were surrounded by people who cared about us.” For parents trying to find infant and preschool care programs for their kids, Monachello wants Storybook Village to provide a similar experience. Storybook Village is a partner site for California’s Teaching Pyramid Program, which focuses on social and emotional development, so children are ready for kindergarten and life as kind, lifelong learners. “The activities for infants and toddlers are facilitated through small groups and free play. They will
have opportunities to explore and learn through interactions, music and movement, sensory and art, and outdoor physical
“I love my role within our preschool because there will be moments when a child or family needs an advocate, and that is who I am.”
activity,” said Monachello. The first steps toward enrolling in the Storybook Village’s infant/child care program starts with families visiting the preschool. If there is availability, the families will pay a registration fee and complete an enrollment packet to enroll their children. If they are full, the Continued on next page ...
