PPP staff was honored to recently have Dr. Lella Gandini and Amelia Gambetti join them for a colloborative meeting to discuss project work within the classrooms. Lella Gandini, Liaison for the Dissemination of the Reggio Emilia Approach, has been working with the preschool since 2007. First time visitor, Amelia Gambetti, is currently serving with Reggio Children/International Centre Loris Malaguzzi as well as the International Liaison and Consultant for Schools.  We are looking forward to another visit from Lella Gandini in April, for an Educator Workshop that will be held here at PPP focusing on Creative Literacy.

Pinnacle has once again received accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

A child’s most important developmental years are those leading up to kindergarten.  Since 1985, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has established a voluntary accreditation system, setting professional standards for early childhood education programs and helping families identify high quality programs.

Pinnacle Presbyterian Preschool is one of a handful of schools in the Phoenix valley to receive this high level of accreditation.  To earn NAEYC accreditation, the preschool went through an extensive assessment process, measuring the program and its services against the NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards and more than 400 related NAEYC Accreditation Criteria.  The preschool received accreditation after an on-site visit by a NAEYC evaluator to ensure that the program meets and demonstrates each of the NAEYC program standards.  

NAEYC accredited schools provide: safe and healthy learning environments; highly educated teachers; classrooms and materials that simulate children at different stages of learning; and, low staff to child ratios so that children get the attention and support they need.

Click this link for more information about NAEYC

PPP recently teamed up with Marjon Ceramics and PF Changs to raise funds for UMOM New Day Centers, the largest homeless shelter for families in Arizona. All PreK classes created clay soup bowls and once the bowls were glazed and fired, the children shared a 500-calorie lunch with their families. This simple meal of noodles represented the typical amount of calories a child living in poverty would receive in one day.

In 2011, approximately 3,832 families in Arizona experienced homelessness. The average age of a child in a homeless family is seven years old and 44% of homeless children in Arizona are under the age of five. Our Preschoolers sold their bowls for donations and raised a total $1,600 for UMOM. Channel 12 News covered the event and aired the story on their evening news. Click here to view the wonderful story of "Empty Bowls".