About Us
Pea Pod Playschool is an active education environment for parents and children. We are looking for families who are intentional about gaining a community they can learn from and grow with in order to gain awareness, insight, and day-to-day hands on experiences that will help them be the best parents they can be.
Our goal is to create a whole-hearted parenting community that focuses on empathy (telling your story), leadership skills (being the calm captain), and connection to others (community) with the mission to support caretakers on their parenting journey with practical tools based in respectful parenting, and to provide a supportive environment where parents are seen, heard, and valued.
Our Parent Coach works in the playroom along side the parents. The Parent Coach provides a consistent face in the playroom, acts as lead, keeps the group to the schedule, engages parents and children, models conflict resolution and social-emotional regulation, delegates responsibilities to the group, and leads the monthly parent education meetings. Having a parent coach present in the playroom is an indispensable parenting resource to those who will be working in the playroom which we call "podding," by providing parents with a hands-on learning experience to daily challenges. "Podding" comes from our term, Parent on Duty (POD).
Our philosophy pulls from many respectful parenting philosophies and is centered on the idea of being the calm, capable leader by being aware of our triggers and modeling the behavior you want to teach your child, knowing that you are the most important and influential teacher your child will ever have. Our philosophy is based on brain science from Dan Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson, and behavioral research by Brene Brown, as well as the inspirational teachings of Fred Rogers and Janet Lansbury via Magda Gerber who founded the RIE (Resources for Infant Educarers) respectful parenting philosophy.
We strongly believe there are no bad kids (or bad parents). We approach challenging behavior through the lens of unmet needs and a call for help. We problem solve and address conflict with self-compassion and generosity towards others in this community by practicing healthy boundaries which allows us to be generous with one another and assume positive intent. Ultimately, this brave work fosters authenticity through respectful interactions, trust, accountability, collaboration and joy by creating a safe, nurturing environment with a strong sense of belonging.
*Pea Pod Playschool is part of Pea Pod Family Resource Center, which empowers families and builds community by creating and providing access to resources and programs that families need to thrive. Pea Pod Playschool is our flagship program.
Rights of Participation
No person shall be denied the services or facilities of this organization or be excluded from participation or services because of race, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, creed, religion, disability, or national origin; discrimination of any kind is expressly prohibited.