We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Marti Freeman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Marti below.

Marti, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

The pandemic created the opportunity for me to not only complete graduate school, but it was also the impetus for the creation of The Neighborhood Play School. Since the pandemic, many other quality private preschools in the area have changed from part-time models to full-time only models. While this might work for some families, I strongly believes that the option for part-time high-quality care should exist in our community, as well. I believe that families need this choice not only philosophically, but also financially. Part-time programming also gives opportunities for high quality teachers to work part-time. The Neighborhood Play School was created to fill this niche for children, families, and teachers.

Marti, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I always knew that I would work with children, and while in college, I committed to a teacher education and certification program. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from Brown University and started teaching science immediately out of college. I taught in the Fall River, MA area before moving to Philadelphia, PA. While in Philadelphia and teaching, I earned a master’s degree in Integrated Science Education from the University of Pennsylvania. In 2009, my husband and I and our first child returned to Denver, my hometown. I decided to stay home and take care of and grow my family for the next few years. At that time, I had my first experiences with early childhood education, and I began to feel passionate about educating the youngest learners. I first began my own business running art enrichment classes for toddlers and their caregivers. I then transitioned to a classroom teacher, and during the pandemic, I undertook a master’s degree in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy from Erikson Institute in Chicago.

The Neighborhood Play School offers part time preschool programming for children ages 2.5 – 4 and caregiver-child classes for children ages 1 and 2. The mission of the program is “a community learning space where the intentional learning environment encourages whole child development and nurture connections for children and their caregivers.” Not only does the program have highly educated and qualified teachers, but it is more intimate with a stronger ratio of teachers to students. The open-ended materials in the classroom are intentional used and designed to match specific skill building goals for children, and the curriculum is planned purposefully. In the part-time program, the educators can provide high quality programming throughout the shorter hours.

I am passionate about the value of social and emotional learning through intentional play activities in the classroom. I believe that while children can learn academic skills at the preschool age, that the focus in the preschool classroom environment should be on maximizing socio-emotional development. Academic research supports the value of play as the strongest foundation for not only socio-emotional development but also eventual cognitive development. I consider parents and caregivers imperative partners in the education of children, and the program will help to bridge that learning gap for families. If I could have a gigantic billboard with anything on it, I would have one that says, “Intentional and positive caregiver-child interactions through play-based education matter!” I believe that there are too many lost opportunities to develop skills and relationships for children and that the best way to accomplish these interactions is through play.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

A potential family touring the school asked me the other day if The Neighborhood Play School has been my dream for a while. I had to think about this question, and I continue to think about it. No, it wasn’t a childhood dream or even a dream five years ago, but it is now. It’s the culmination of a series of professional and personal events throughout my life, and it’s currently connecting all the dots for me and for my family. I’m also hesitant to say that this is “my dream,” because then I think it puts finality to it. This is my dream for now. However, I am also open to the idea that this dream could expand or morph over the years. I think it’s important to take everything one step at a time, keep an open mind throughout the process, and to continue dreaming as a business owner.

How’d you meet your business partner?

While I am the sole owner of The Neighborhood Play School, I have relied on a vast network of professionals, family, and friends to get this program to where it is today. One of my best friends, Jessica Tribe, was first my co-teacher. She has been pivotal in helping me throughout this business creation process. We met because she was paired to co-teach with me very randomly and last minute at our previous school. Our former director had an uncanny ability to create good co-teaching matches, and when she paired us together, she said, “She reminds me of you!” Little did she know that she would be paramount in creating a life-long friendship and business partnership. I always say that we were fated to meet. Not only do we work extremely well together and have a strong friendship, but we have some strange connections. For example, her two children have the same birth dates as two of my own children. I am not sure of the exact probability of that, but I’m pretty sure it means we were destined to be friends!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theneighborhoodplayschool.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theneighborhoodplayschool/

Image Credits
www.EricEinsteinPhotography.com