Oak Lane Day Care in Westtown, PA | Child Day Cares | Pennsylvania Catalog

Oak Lane Day Care

The Oak Lane community consists of approximately 30 families every year and is continuously growing as we are welcoming new families and staying in touch with “old” families.
About Us
In the summer of 1993, Betsy Swan, Jon Kimmel and Lisa Cromley, three teachers from the Westtown School, were looking for a place for their children to spend their day while they were at work. Inspiration struck and on August 23, 1993, they started Oak Lane Day Care in the ca. 1928 Quaker Meeting House on the Westtown School campus. Within the first year the daycare had seven children enrolled. Today, celebrating our 15th anniversary, Oak Lane Day Care serves approximately 35 children each year and the staff has expanded to include 7 teachers. We are proud to say that two of the first teachers at Oak Lane are still with us today. In addition, Oak Lane Day Care is a member of the Friends Council on Education.
Oak Lane Day Care is a cooperative program. Parents who enroll their children in Oak Lane Day Care are expected to participate for at least six hours per family each contract year in activities which maintain the facilities and program. Parent participation is essential for fostering group responsibility for the program as well as controlling our costs.
Oak Lane Day Care is located in the Westtown Monthly Meeting House on the campus of Westtown School. Though located on its campus, Oak Lane Day Care and Westtown School are independent organizations. Admission to the day care is not associated with admission to the school.
Our Philosophy
Children at Oak Lane are nurtured in a manner consistent with the Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality, and stewardship. We incorporate these testimonies in everything we do. Our focus is on the whole child and we strive to provide a safe and nurturing environment in which children can learn through structured play. We establish developmentally appropriate goals for every age group, which we achieve through hands-on activities with various materials, small group interactions and outdoor play. Low student to teacher ratios allow the teacher to adjust daily activities to the class as well as to the individual child. Children are exposed to numbers, letters and other concepts through play and experimentation. One of our goals is to unleash their curiosity for the world around them and nurture their imagination.
Parent involvement is an integral part of Oak Lane’s success and continuous improvement. Parents are always welcome in the classrooms and often help out with other tasks such as a spring cleaning and organizing fundraising events. Oak Lane’s vision is to go beyond providing a service and create a community that includes the entire family. Throughout the year we host dinners in which the entire family is invited. On special days such as Pancake & Pajama day we welcome everyone, from siblings to grandparents. We believe that when the whole family is involved, the children are more likely to feel that the day care is a safe place for them.