Designed to promote exploration, adventure and play.

We believe that education should be engaging, inspiring and fun. We believe children learn best when they are doing, feeling and actively participating in the learning process.

Children are natural explorers, learners, investigators, and players. As they are exploring and moving through the world, they are taking pieces of what they see and do and integrating it into their minds and hearts. We believe as teachers and parents, we are partners in this learning.

Leading natural learners in a natural setting.

Learning occurs naturally when children are engaged in the setting around them. We value the lessons found in the outdoors and explore nature regularly either playing in our nature-inspired playground or taking hikes along nearby Bolin Creek and Carolina North Forest.

We offer opportunities for kids to explore a wide range of materials, engage in group and individual learning and experience being part of a caring community. Our curriculum is influenced by the ideas of the schools in Reggio Emilia, Italy, particularly that children are competent and natural learners and that the relationships developed between teachers, students and parents complement and enhance learning.  

ABOUT PROVOCATIONS: How we think about curriculum

Our days

Each day, children move through a variety of areas incorporating topics inspired by their interests and discussions. We welcome our day with a free choice play period followed by group gathering time when we share and greet each other, make plans for the day and engage in group project work. Activities in art, music, early literacy, fine motor, gross motor, child-led imaginative play and cooking are all part of our regular curriculum. We work together to build social-emotional skills by discussing feelings, practicing patience and responsibility and by practicing how to be a friend.

Our curriculum is also influenced largely by concepts of justice and community. We begin each year with a study of identity, allowing us to get to know one another as individuals as well as members of a community, and allowing children to begin to understand the privilege and responsibility of being part of a community. This exploration is the beginning of our year long and on-going anti-bias work. We follow an internal anti-bias action plan and engage with both children and parents throughout each school year to question decisions, actions and ways we can further ideas of social justice and anti-bias learning at school and at home.

We work to encourage children as thoughtful, inquisitive, creative and independent people both inside and outside of our space. At school children are assigned rotating, age-appropriate tasks to help around the school. Away, children are likewise asked to be good community members and stewards. For example, a discussion on trash found along the Bolin Creek trail spurred action with a litter clean-up day and the installation of decorated trash cans along the trail by the kids.

Since we are within walking distance of several parks and love to go exploring, we utilize community spaces with weekly hikes and occasional bus rides to explore events and locales around Carrboro. We go out in the wind and rain and enjoy all kinds of weather!  Our community is our classroom.

Please click on the photos below to see more

Our Teachers

The Morningside School is a Certified Living Wage Employer by Orange County Living Wage. Read more HERE.

Sadie Bauer (she/her), Founder & Teacher

Sadie (she/her) has been teaching and learning from young children for 23+ years.  After earning a Masters in Early Childhood Education with a duel degree Masters of Social Work at the Bank Street College of Education and Columbia University, she taught at both full-day child care centers and small, private preschools. She has been the director of two preschools, including a parent cooperative school and one she co-founded. These experiences left her wondering what a preschool would look like that centered children as learners and as having agency in their own education. She wanted to be part of a school that allowed children to discover and share, research and question, and to take ownership over their own experiences.  She opened The Morningside School in 2012 and absolutely loves being part of this school community and deeply enjoys the honor of being welcomed into children’s early learning experiences.

Sadie is the mother of two and is an alumna of Carolina Friends School in Durham, NC, both of which deeply influence her teaching. In her “spare” time, Sadie enjoys doing yoga, reading and being outside with her family.

Dallas Stromberg (she/her), Teacher

Dallas (she/her) began teaching in San Francisco in 2016 at play-based, Reggio Emilia and nature-inspired preschools. These schools helped develop her passion in teaching young children problem-solving and flexible-thinking, as well as promoting curiosity through inquiry-based learning. She also wants to share her love of nature and help the children build a strong connection to the natural world. 

Before entering her early childhood career, Dallas was an Instructional Designer in the corporate world. She completed her Early Childhood Education coursework at City College of San Francisco, and has a Bachelor's degree in Journalism from UNC, and a Master’s degree in Instructional Technology from Indiana University. After 20 years away from North Carolina, Dallas returned to Chapel Hill last year with her husband and two daughters to be closer to family. She loves traveling, spends her free time playing with clay, and is looking forward to cycling to school this year.

The Morningside School is always interested in boosting our pool of wonderful Sometimes Teachers, A.K.A substitute teachers. If you would be interested in applying, please reach out to Sadie at sadie@themorningsideschool.com

The Morningside School is owned and operated by The Morningside School, LLC