LNS During COVID

In our current environment, LNS faculty worked throughout the summer to create a reopening plan that ensures the safety of our community while upholding our core values of:

• Respecting children and listening with intention to their ideas to create a democratic community

• Honoring the presence of nature where its slower pace mirrors that of children’s inclinations to observe and make connections to our world

• Involving parents in our cooperative educational philosophy

An outdoor learning environment is directly connected to each classroom. In addition, our learning spaces extend into the deCordova Sculpture Park and into the woods, ponds and fields of neighboring conservation land. Children spend much of their day outdoors! Take a tour of our outdoor spaces in the video below.

Distance Educational Ties
Understanding that there may come a time when a studio or our whole school may need to close, we have designed a program that supports our relationships and the children’s continued play and learning while at home. We always remain in conversation with families about their child’s experience and needs. We will remain consistent in our approach whether our physical school is open or closed.

In the classroom, we are continually adjusting our ways of engaging children and families based on our observations and reflections. This is what documentation is all about! The same will be true for our work at a distance. Our experience this past spring guides our approach for this coming year. We observed even the youngest children gaining comfort and capability connecting through video. When the need arises, we will use the following tools to help us remain in community and support our learning. We will choose from this menu of options always being mindful that individual families may decide not to engage online at all.

Synchronous engagement
Using technology as a tool, we will provide a variety of opportunities to connect live online with the intention to maintain and deepen relationships and enrich play on and off the screen. Children will have a daily opportunity to engage live with a teacher or classmates on the days your child typically attends school.
  • One-on-one calls with a teacher
  • Small group gatherings
  • Whole group gatherings
  • Music & Movement with Studio teachers

Asynchronous engagement
Through email and our website, teachers will provide further opportunities for connection.
  •  Morning invitations to extend home explorations
  •  Letters or emails to children
  •  Studio blog documentation
  •  Recorded story books
  •  Resource webpage

LNS Covid Committee
In planning our re-opening, LNS formed a Covid Committee comprised of parents who have backgrounds in medicine, science and business to help guide our response to Covid with best practices for keeping our community safe and open. The Covid Committee regularly meets with the Director and Steering Committee as well as offering Zoom calls to the larger parent body to provide an update on LNS’s evolving Covid response strategies.