Sara Sullivan of SandCastles Child Care in Hingham

Meet The Owner
Sara Sullivan owns SandCastles Child Care Center in Hingham. “I bought SandCastles from the previous owners six years ago,” said Sullivan. “Both of my sons went here and just loved it.

“My staff is the most amazing part of this business,” said Sullivan. “I’m a Human Resources person, and I came from the corporate world. So I rely on my amazing directors. One handles curriculum, one handles enrollment staffing, and so on. The previous owners of SandCastles had it all figured out.”

The Program
“Most programs go right from infants to toddlers,” Sullivan said. “We transition from infants, who are up to ten months old, to younger toddlers until they are two. Older toddlers are two years to two years, nine months. Of course, it all depends on the child. If the child is ready—and the parents are ready—they move up. If not, we give them some time. At two years, nine months, they go to the preschool side of the building.

“We have three preschool and pre-kindergarten classrooms. Prekindergarten is an enrichment program, so they get a year of kindergarten curriculum before kindergarten. We benchmark with a lot of the local schools, so we know what they need to know when they get to kindergarten. The most gratifying thing is when I talk to parents whose children were here, and they tell me, ‘He’s at such-and-such school now, and he’s just thriving.”

“We have flexible hours for preschool. I don’t offer less than three days for toddlers, because it becomes difficult for them to assimilate if they come less frequently. Once they get to preschool, it’s a two-day minimum. I offer half days in the morning but not in the afternoon. It’s too difficult for them to dive in if they come after everyone else is already involved in the day’s activities.”

SandCastles is open from 7:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday year round. For kindergarten, the school offers a full day program, and, according to Sullivan, “at three o’clock, we ‘lighten up.’” Sullivan brings in dedicated teachers for art, music and Spanish. In the summer, the program feels more like camp. “We bring in barnyard babies, puppet shows and other really fun things. Now that we have this wonderful outdoor space, the children can spend a lot of time outside. It’s really fun.”

The Staff
“The continuum of care is so important,” Sullivan said. “There can be so much staff turnover in child care centers. My oldest son is ten now, and the same teachers who held him as a baby are still here. That’s what is so special about SandCastles—the homey, nurturing, positive, enthusiastic environment. Most of our staff have or have had their own children here.

“We have almost 100 children enrolled right now, with a pretty extensive waiting list for all classrooms. We were not sure how the recession was going to hit us, but lately we’ve seen some positive indicators. Lately we’ve seen quite a few relocations. Because housing prices have come down, and we now have the train, young families with children are moving into the area. The economy seems to have affected everybody, in all walks of life, and it’s been hard to watch. But we are seeing some positive signs now, so hopefully we’re coming out of it.”

The School Facility
SandCastles is located in an historic building in Hingham. “The building was built as a house in 1690,” said Sullivan. “I thought it was a perfect layout for the school, with all the different rooms and three acres of land. Before, the center was in Cohasset and we had a parking lot and a sandbox. It’s nice to have grass. We’ve been here about a year and a half.

“The potential we have here is amazing. We are just completing renovations on the upstairs space for a gym and community center.”

The top floor of the building is now a large, open room, with hardwood floors, vaulted ceilings and large windows. The space will be used for gym classes for the children, as well as dance and yoga classes which will be offered to the community, and birthday parties.

“A couple of years ago we installed an air purification system to control allergens and odors. I just read a news story that said that this particular system also eradicates the swine flu virus. That’s very reassuring to parents as they drop off their infant or toddler, because they are very concerned about colds, flu and allergies. I think we’ve done really well keeping that at bay. And we have hand sanitizer everywhere!”

Early Childhood Education Philosophy
“Catering to each child and providing a home-like environment are very important,” Sullivan said. “We have a very set curriculum, because structure is very important, but within that, we really make it fun. We lighten it up and vary it, within the structure.

“In terms of discipline, one thing I’m an absolute stickler against is harshness. Being firm with children is acceptable, and sometimes necessary, but I won’t tolerate a teacher using a harsh tone. We redirect if we see a child acting out. If it’s physical, that’s the only time we would have a child take a break and not allow her back with the group until she is ready to apologize and the group is ready to accept her back.

“My two boys, who are now seven and ten years old, went to SandCastles and they are thriving now. They really got a running start. Socialization is so important. They learned to respect themselves and others. They are both very sweet.”

By Karen Doyle
Photos by Jack Foley
www.kiddingaround.com
December 2009