Photos and video

Preschool Faculty

Helen Neumann
Preschool Art Instructor

Helen Neumann holds a B.A. in studio art from Grinnell College and an M.A.and M.F.A. in painting and drawing from the University of Iowa. Helen has taught art at the University of Iowa and the Art Institute of Atlanta, and privately in her home. Raised in Macomb, Illinois, Helen was trained in Suzuki violin since the age of four in the studio of Roland and Almita Vamos. The mother of two, Helen is interested in the relationship between art, especially conceptual art, and the imaginative expressions of young children. She sees the preschool classroom as a place to tap into and develop those creative energies.

Jennifer Newman
Music Together® and Preschool Music

Jennifer Newman became a registered Music Together® teacher in 2005, she then taught Music Together® in the Des Moines Metro area for two years. In 2008 Jennifer relocated to the Iowa City area with her husband and two children and joined the Early Childhood Education team at the Preucil School. Jennifer teaches Music Together® classes and preschool music.




Julie Prestegaard

Julie has spent 21 years teaching preschool. She grew up in Madison, Wisconsin, and lived several years in Brazil, and West Lafayette, Indiana. She attended UW-Platteville transferring to the University of Iowa when her husband was hired by Iowa City. Julie majored in the Social Sciences. She has three grown children and kept active following their music, dance, art, and sporting events through college. Julie is a visual artist, enjoys reading, traveling, and getting together with the extended family at the lake in Northern Wisconsin.

Kirsten Williamson
Preschool 5-Day Teacher

Kirsten received her B.A. from Luther College in Elementary and Art Education. She has been teaching K-5 in the Cedar Rapids School District.








Tricia Windschitl
Preschool Director and 2/3-day Lead Teacher

Tricia received both her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees at Iowa State University in Early Childhood Education. Tricia, her husband and two children keep busy going to soccer games, building with Legos, biking and playing in the backyard. She enjoys finding time to garden, read and take walks. Tricia thoroughly enjoys the bustle and playfulness of the early childhood classroom and delights in helping children explore, discover and think about their world.

Jennifer Winegarden
Early Childhood Music Teacher & Music Together® Specialist

Jennifer graduated from the University of Iowa in 2001 with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Therapy. Since earning her degree, she worked for the City of Cedar Rapids teaching parent and child music classes as well as providing adaptive music to children and adults with special needs. Jennifer first taught parent and child classes at the Preucil School in the summer of 1999. Recently registered as a Music Together® teacher, Jennifer will be returning this fall to teach preschool music and introduce Music Together® to the school’s parent/child classes. Jennifer lives in Iowa City with her husband and two small children.

Registration policies and forms

To put your child on our waiting list for Preschool:

1. Read the Placement and Financial Policies for Preschool
2. Print the Placement Form: Early Childhood Education (ECE) Placement Form
3. Complete the form and return it to us with the $40 placement fee

Send placement forms for Preschool/ECE to:
Preucil School of Music - North Campus
2916 Northgate Dr.
Iowa City, IA 52245-9570

Financial aid is available for preschool students.

Philosophy and curriculum

The preschool environment evolves as children’s ideas are accepted and explored in our discovery-based curriculum. Children delight in exploration, problem-solving, risk taking, investigation and humor as they learn. The Twinkie Tunes Preschool nurtures cooperation, caring, action, intellect, knowledge and inherent motivation.

Preucil Preschool offers 2-day (T, Th), 3-day (M, W, F) and 5-day (M,T, W, Th, F) classes. The preschool meets in a two-classroom setting with an accessible art room between the two classrooms. Class sizes number between 16 and 18. Each class has a lead teacher and an aide. In addition, children are free to work in the art room, staffed by the art teacher/preschool director, during any unscheduled times. The academic session meets from after Labor Day to the end of May. A seven-week summer session begins in Mid-June.

General Daily Schedule

8:45 Morning begins…
Free choice from a variety of activities such as painting, drawing, block play, clay, cooking, number games, dramatic play, woodworking, water play and science experiments.
9:45 Clean-up, wash hands.
10:00 All group meeting.
10:15 Music, small group play and snack.
11:15 Outdoors play.
12:00 Wash hands, group time, story or puppet show.
12:15 Lunch (Children bring their own.)
12:45 Parents arrive. Day ends.

An extended day to 2:45 is offered on Monday, Tuesday Wednesday, and Friday. Children register for all four days or if space allows, children may register for one, two, or three of the days; for example, all Mondays or all Mondays and Fridays. Drop-in spots for children who stay only occasionally may be available on a daily sign-up basis.

Admission Policy

The Preucil School of Music is a non-discriminatory, non-profit organization and a member of the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts. Any child between the ages of three and five who is toilet trained is eligible to enroll in the Preucil School of Music Preschool.

Children are accepted for enrollment through the preschool waiting list placement policy, which is consistent with the standard waiting list procedure for the school. Parents interested in enrolling their children are encouraged to fill out a waiting list form. A nonrefundable, nontransferable $40 fee is required to place your child on the waiting list.

Philosophy

We believe children are human beings worthy of respect. It is our goal to help each child learn as much as they can in all areas of human experience as it fosters cooperation, caring, action, intellect, knowledge and inherent motivation.

Eleanor Duckworth, teaching fellow at Harvard who authored an excellent book The Having of Wonderful Ideas, writes, “When I speak of ‘teaching,’ I do not necessarily mean school teaching. By ‘teacher’ I mean someone who engages learners, who seeks to involve each person wholly – mind, sense of self, sense of humor, range of interests, interactions with other people – in learning.”

As the children learn, we, as teachers, learn too. Teaching is about being "curious" about the concerns of children, their thoughts, fears, dreams and plans. It is trying to imagine the world through the eye of a four year old to help them make sense of experiences. Good teaching wonders, "How does an idea lead to a new question?" It is about what is meaningful work for a child. It is not searching for a right answer. A right answer is a dead end.

Curriculum

The preschool environment is ever evolving as children's ideas are explored in our in-depth project approach curriculum. The preschool curriculum begins by listening to what the children wonder about. Because children's curiosities are considered in the selection process, the project is developmentally appropriate. The investigation happens individually, in small groups or as a class. There are a variety of instructional approaches: storytelling, drawing, painting, guest speakers, fieldtrips, discussion. Multiple ways to explore a topic provide children with diverse backgrounds or abilities easy equal opportunity to participate. The project approach enhances a child's feelings of competence, belonging, and being a contributor to the class. Every child brings their own experiences to school so all responses are valuable with levels of participation not determined by age.

The arts are a vital aspect of our curriculum, recognizing the crucial need for children to be able to express their ideas in multiple ways. The arts support problem solving, reflection, personal expression and community. When children have an opportunity to express their own ideas, they invent their own challenges, learn to consider possibilities, define themselves and express feelings. Working side by side there is a natural sharing of symbols. This back and forth teaches empathy and promotes friendships and community.

Orff Music Class

The Orff Schulwerk approach to teaching music was first created by German musician and educator Carl Orff, in partnership with musician and dancer Gunild Keetman, in Munich in the 1920’s. It was highly experiential and Orff called it “Rhythmical Education,” a combination of movement and music. Instruments used are rhythmic and unsophisticated. Music created by students is elemental in form and harmonic structure.

In the Orff approach, students learn musical behavior through creating, listening and performing. It is designed for all children, and is based on things children like to do, such as games, chants, rhymes, songs, poems and dances. Process is more important than product in the Orff classroom. Students are always participating in the practice of music making, learning how to use musical tools and developing musical skills. The Orff teacher involves all students in music making, in ways that are useful and productive for the entire ensemble. Each student must participate at a level that is appropriately challenging. Musical endeavors vary in the types and difficulty of musical skills needed. Due to these variations, students will take on varying roles depending on the scope of the particular activity and the strengths the student possesses at that time to contribute to the music making process.

At the preschool level, students will focus mainly on exploration of musical elements such as texture, dynamics, timbre, pitch and rhythm. Creativity will be encouraged as students develop elemental musical forms and learn how to express ideas and feelings through music. Students will create personally meaningful musical experiences using a variety of media, including Orff instruments, literature, folk music and un-pitched percussion. Through singing, chanting, moving and playing instruments, students will develop a strong foundation in rhythmic accuracy, aural skills and musical expression. Every child will benefit in the Orff Schulwerk classroom, as they begin to grow their musical identities and work as an integral member of the classroom community.