Class size and ratios

Small group sizes, mixed age groups, and special interest groups are common

Children learn group process skills and how to be an effective group member

Individual differences and diversity of all kinds are encouraged and facilitated

Class sizes and teacher ratios vary by age group. C5 supports small total class size and low ratios of children to teachers.

We also meet or exceed all California State Licensing requirements for adult-to-child classroom ratios and for facility health and safety compliance. In addition to your child’s teaching team, there is a strong team of other teachers and support staff members who work with your child daily.

Your Child’s Small Learning Groups, Teaching Teams, Program-wide Resources, and Specialists: Most all children develop and learn best when they socialize and learn with their peers and adults in addition to their parents and other family members.

Your child will have access to many resources in their classroom, center, building, and throughout the program and surrounding community. When your child is enrolled in the program, they are assigned to a teaching team and a small Learning Group. The teaching team members provide a variety of skills, knowledge, experience, and personal styles for all of the children in each classroom.

In addition, your child’s classroom teaching team is part of a larger Center and Program-wide teaching and child development team. It includes many people on staff and some people who are outside resources to the program, such as lead teachers; center directors; the program’s executive director; consultants in child development and education; various support staff at the centers; and, parents, friends of C5, and other volunteers who contribute to the program.

Our program provides a continuous and seamless progression of learning, child development, and nurturing for your child from their infancy through their toddler ages and on through their preschool years to their entry into kindergarten. There is a carefully thought-out and facilitated transition between Learning Groups. The following descriptions of age groupings generally apply.

Infant Learning Groups: These groups include children at the Infant-Toddler Center who are 2 months old until approximately 9-12 months old and mobile. The size of the small Learning Group can vary. However, it is usually 3 children. Two of these small groups are typically clustered into a classroom. The two infant classrooms are named the Caterpillars and the Butterflies. The ratio of teacher to infants is 1:3.

Younger Toddler Learning Groups: These groups include children at the Infant-Toddler Center who are approximately 9 months to 24 months of age. The size of the Learning Group can vary and is usually 3-4 children at most. These groups are named the Bumblebees and the Penguins. Your child’s Infant-toddler teaching team and the other C5 staff members at both Centers help you and your child to make an effective transition to the toddler rooms at the Preschool Center when space is available and your child is developmentally ready to move. The ratio of teacher to toddlers is 1:6.

Older Toddler Learning Groups: These groups include children at the Preschool Center who are approximately 18 months to two and one half years of age. Your child is part of a small Learning Group of 4 to 6 other children and supported by a skillful and caring toddler teaching team. These toddler groups are named the Monkeys and the Elephants. The ratio of teacher to toddlers is 1:6.

Younger Preschool Learning Groups: These groups include children at the Preschool Center who are approximately 2½ years of age to about 3½ years of age. The group size at this level is typically about 6 to 9 children, depending on enrollment and staffing patterns. The children help to name their learning groups. So, the names can change over time. Recent examples have been the Robots, Ice Creams, Tigers, Rhinoceroses, and Rainbows. The ratio of teacher to young preschoolers is approximately 1:8.

Older Preschool Learning Groups: These groups include children at the Preschool Center who are approximately 3½ years of age until they are old enough to go to kindergarten. The group size can typically be 8 to 12 children, depending on enrollment and staffing patterns. The children also help to name their groups. So, these names can also change over time. The ratio of teacher to preschoolers and pre-kindergarten children is approximately 1:8.