As director, I speak with parents regularly about choosing the right school for their child. My best advice is to parents is to visit schools. Each school has its own unique environment and school culture. Walking through the doors gives you a good insight to the learning environment – the tone of teachers, the size of the campus, the look of the classroom spaces. The visual of the school is so much more powerful than reading their website. Most parents have a “gut-level” reaction to a school. You just know when it FEELS RIGHT.
A big part of FUMP’s charm is our downtown location. Children as young as toddlers love seeing the Cap Metro buses around campus. Excited shouts of “bus, bus!” ring out when they pass by. The Capitol Grounds create many unique opportunities for children. It serves to build a budding sense of citizenship and ownership of our state government. While it sounds quite lofty for a preschoolers, read on for examples.
The State Capitol provides:
- an appreciation of architecture, as the Capitol Dome is recognizable to the children as you pull up to FUMP. We love that it is the biggest capitol building in the county, even taller than the US Capitol dome. When inside, the rotunda and interiors provide even more opportunities for architecture appreciation.
- an enjoyment of nature. Being so close to the Capitol gives us a lovely green space for outdoor play and exploration, and to hold our school picnics. Further, the Capitol ground have an extensive rose garden for the children to visit.
- a measure of history, as there is statuary throughout the grounds. Teachers provide age-appropriate explanations of the monuments that are found on the grounds.
- a positive interaction with law enforcement officials. The state troopers greet our children with a smile and instill a sense of accessibility to our public servants.
- an appreciation for the arts. There are music events held in the rotunda, which FUMP classes attend in December, which are typically middle school and high school students. They are seeing older children participating in fine arts programs.
Our children benefit from all of these aspects of proximity to our state government. It creates a sense of accessibility and familiarity with our Capitol.
Isn’t that a fantastic bonus to our already outstanding program? We sure think so!