About Us

The Nicholson School was founded by a mom to honor her grandmother, Novella Nicholson, a strong woman who worked both inside and outside of the home, raised three children and always wanted to be an educator of young children.  While Novella's dream was never realized, she passionately believed that a well-educated child is capable of wonderful things.

This conviction is at the core of everything we do at The Nicholson School. We see our primary role as that  of caring facilitators. Our mission is to help children embark on their personal paths by encouraging them to get excited about learning and excited about asking why. 

At The Nicholson School we believe that children learn best in environments in which they feel safe, nurtured and confident.  Our teachers focus on meeting each child where he or she is developmentally so that they feel comfortable exploring and learning.  Children create their own unique classroom community facilitated by teachers who help them learn how to respect and care for themselves, each other and the environment.

Our Philosophy
We believe that children absorb and understand knowledge through their own unique combination of experiences and representations - their Multiple Intelligences.  At The Nicholson School we respect children's Multiple Intelligences by creating a play-based, age-appropriate, intentional environment for teacher-led, small group and self-directed exploration across a wide range of concepts - literacy, science, art, numbers, and music.  The classroom environment is dynamic and evolves over the year with the children and their interests.

The Nicholson School believes that our children share this earth with people from many cultures.  The school environment affords children the opportunity to learn about different peoples together. Lastly, The Nicholson School believes in the competence of children - our teachers support each child's individual learning style and path of inquiry.  Children are encouraged to reason, ask why, experiment and make decisions.

Joanna Taylor
Founder / Executive Director