9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Fours class
Main room
Parent co-op preschool
A preschool where the parents work in the classroom
Acorn is a parent co-op in Seattle's Greenwood neighborhood for children ages 3 and 4. Three teachers lead the classes, and every family works a classroom morning on a rotation, so you know the room your child spends the morning in.
How the co-op works
The jobs families share
Acorn belongs to the families who run it. Duty hours are a rule of membership, counted per family, and every job has a teacher beside it.
Classroom helper
You work beside a teacher for the class morning: reading a story, helping at the art table, walking to the yard. Families take a morning on a rotation, so you see every part of the day.
A duty morning, step by stepSnack
The helper family washes the fruit, sets the table and wipes up after. The teachers post the snack list ahead and tell you about any allergy in the room.
Materials
One family keeps the art shelf, the paper and the glue stocked, and gives the teachers a list of what is running low.
Board jobs
Treasurer, secretary, membership, the yard: each family takes one job for the year, chosen at the first family meeting.
Tours and new families
Families who have been here a while show the room to new ones on tour mornings and answer the questions a teacher can't.
Yard workdays
Twice a year, families spend a Saturday morning on the yard, the shelves and the toy wash, with coffee and the teachers.
The week
Class mornings and the duty morning
Threes come Tuesday and Thursday mornings and fours Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On every class morning, two families work beside the teachers.
Fall session
Monday
8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Duty morning
Main room
Family adultsTwo families each morning
Tuesday
9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Threes class
Main room
8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Duty morning
Main room
Family adultsTwo families each morning
Wednesday
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Fours class
Main room
8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Duty morning
Main room
Family adultsTwo families each morning
Thursday
9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Threes class
Main room
8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Duty morning
Main room
Family adultsTwo families each morning6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Family meeting
Main room
Family adultsFirst Thursday of the month
Friday
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Fours class
Main room
8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Duty morning
Main room
Family adultsTwo families each morning
Sample classes.
Days and hours can shift a little by session. We confirm them on the tour.
Our classes
Classes by age and schedule
Two classes, each in the main room with a teacher and the family helpers for the day.
| Ages | Adults to children | Group size | Two mornings9:00 – 11:30 a.m.Tuesday and Thursday | Three mornings9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.Monday, Wednesday and Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Threes3-year-olds | 1 adult to 10 children | 20 | Offered | Not offered |
| Fours4-year-olds | 1 adult to 10 children | 20 | Not offered | Offered |
Fees and what each is for
- Registration
- Opens your family's file and covers the forms and the first month's materials. It is due once, when you accept a place.
- Monthly tuition
- Set by the child's class and the mornings a week they come. We go through the figures with you on the tour.
- Co-op membership
- Belongs to the family, not the child: duty mornings, one family job and the monthly meeting.
- Supplies
- Art materials and the snack supplies the helper families use.
Sample programs.
Membership
Co-op membership, by class
Membership belongs to the family and is met with duty mornings and a family job. Tuition is explained on its own page.
Threes class
For a family with a 3-year-old, two mornings a week.
- A classroom duty morning about every other week
- One family job for the year
- One family meeting a month, in the evening
- A vote on how the co-op runs
- Term:
- One school year, September to June
- Cancellation:
- A month's written notice.
- Refunds:
- What happens with the month in progress is explained in writing when you enroll.
Fours class
For a family with a 4-year-old, three mornings a week.
- A classroom duty morning about every other week
- One family job for the year
- One family meeting a month, in the evening
- A vote on how the co-op runs
- Term:
- One school year, September to June
- Cancellation:
- A month's written notice.
- Refunds:
- What happens with the month in progress is explained in writing when you enroll.
A family with two children
Duty hours are counted per family, not per child. We talk it through on the tour.
- One rotation of duty mornings for the family
- One family job for the year
- The same family meeting, however many children attend
- A vote on how the co-op runs
- Term:
- One school year, September to June
- Cancellation:
- A month's written notice.
- Refunds:
- What happens with the month in progress is explained in writing when you enroll.
If a family can't work a duty morning, they tell us and we look for another way to help, such as a job that can be done from home or a swap with another family.
The year
Information sessions, tours and enrollment
We give exact dates at the information session. These are the months.
The school year
- Open house
Information sessions
November and February
An evening with the teachers and the board. You hear how a duty morning works and ask what you like.
Tours
Tuesday and Thursday mornings, all year
See the room while class is running. Children can come along.
- Applications open
Fall registration opens
January
Returning families go first, then families on the waitlist, then new families.
- Decisions
Offers go out
Late March
- Event
Orientation for new families
August
Meet your teacher, see the duty rotation and choose a family job.
- First day
First day of the fall session
September
Sample dates.
License and safety
License, adults per child and our routines
The state license, the adults for each age group, and what we do every morning to keep track of every child.
License
Licensed by DCYF
Child care center license · WA License # 000000Verify
Adults to children
1 adult to 10 children
3-year-olds
Group size: 20
1 adult to 10 children
4-year-olds
Group size: 20
Group size
Up to 20 children
with 2 adults
Ages 3 years to 4 years
Staff checks and training
- Background checks
- CPR and first aid
- Mandated reporter training
- Food handler training
Safety routines
A teacher in the room
A teacher leads every class morning. Family helpers work beside a teacher and are not left alone with the group.
Headcount
We count the children at arrival, when we go out to the yard, when we come back in and at pickup. One adult counts and a second adult confirms.
Pickup
Children leave only with the adults you listed when you enrolled. We ask for ID at the door from anyone we don't know.
Illness
A child with a fever or a contagious illness stays home. If a child gets sick at school, we call you right away.
Helper orientation
Every family hears how the room works before their first duty morning: handwashing, where the first aid kit is and when to get a teacher.
Drills
We practice fire and earthquake drills with the children, and families see the plan at orientation.
Ask us about child care assistance
Sample details.
Families
What families say
“I didn't expect to like my duty morning as much as I do. I arrive, they hand me the snack list, and by the end I know the room and the rhythm of the morning.”
Britta H.Parent of a four-year-old
“The teachers tell you what a duty morning is before your first one, and then they stay next to you. It never felt like being thrown in.”
Kimani O.Parent of a three-year-old
“Taking a board job was more work than I thought, and the other families made it easy to share. I know the school from the inside.”
Eri T.Parent of a three-year-old
Sample reviews.
Come and see a class morning
A tour happens on a class morning. You see the room working, meet the teachers and a family on duty, and ask what you like.
