The Orioles classroom is a full-time, mixed age group consisting of children ages 3-5 years old. Children must be three years old by December 31st of the school year in which they enroll as an Oriole.
The Oriole's class runs 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, Monday thru Friday.

The early part of the day includes both snack and lunch. Naptime, for the children who do nap, is from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm. Children who do not nap, have quiet rest time from 3:00- 3:30 pm. Each child has a cot and may look at books, do puzzles, listen to stories and music tapes, or just rest.

After nap or rest, the children have a snack and then free-choice time in the classroom or on the playground. The children who stay until 6:00 pm enjoy free choice indoor activities, cooking, science projects, indoor and outdoor learning experiences, and may also play on the playground.

The full-time program strives to meet the needs of working parents while balancing the many holidays and vacations throughout the typical school year. We close for one week at the end of August for staff training, building cleaning, and maintenance.

There is a maximum of 18 children and three teachers per class. The Earthplace Preschool standard of one teacher per six children is maintained.

In The Orioles classroom, we like to take the importance of social and emotional growth and apply it to all aspects of our day. From snack to trail trips, our goal in the Orioles is for our students to be able to experience nature in an environment that benefits not only their growing minds and selves but to the benefit of the animals and nature that we are investing and immersing ourselves in. We focus on caring and kindness, being kind to everyone, from one another in the classroom, to the animals we interact with in Animal Hall, right down to our very important earthworms we find while at Big Rock Junction! Kindness is key, and here in the Orioles, we hope to plant the seeds of compassion and watch them grow!