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235 Hope Road, Tinton Falls, NJ 07724  /  732.542.4777

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The Importance of Play and Recess


Ranney School is pleased to announce the new renovations that have been made in its Beginner Wing, the Lower School Music and Art rooms, and the playground. Lower School students now attend art and music classes in the new double-sized classrooms that have ample space needed to support their unique artistic and musical expression. The youngest Panthers at Ranney have begun their year in brightly colored rooms with walls that have expanded the classroom space–this improvement allows three year olds to explore, create and have fun while navigating through a spacious classroom filled with high interest, hands-on activities.

Stephanie Katzman, Early Childhood Director explained, “Ranney’s mission-promise and small student-teacher ratio remains the same while creating more opportunities for our students to explore and develop their interpersonal and cognitive abilities.” With three teachers in a classroom, increased technology in the form of iPads, SMARTboards and improvements in the math/science center, an abundant library, and a dramatic play area that includes a new puppet theater, the Beginners navigate through their day, moving through a variety of centers with increased opportunities to experience small group and 1:1 instruction. Continued weekly specials such as music and library, as well as gym class twice a week and swim once per week in the newly enhanced aquatics center all remain highly anticipated experience during the school week. “Our commitment to teaching developmentally appropriate curriculum while building our student’s self-confidence is still at the forefront of our daily goals,” assured Mrs. Katzman.

Out on the playground, Ranney has increased the choice of activities for all Lower School students, which supports well-supervised, unstructured play. “Over the fall months, the playground will be updated with shade structures for students to gather and play games under, seating areas for friendly afternoon conversations, a chalkboard wall for our budding artists, a chess table for our students who enjoy strategizing, and large interlocking blocks and beams for our budding architects,” explained Shana Lindsey, Assistant Head of the Lower School. “Our early childhood and young Lower School students have construction trucks, foam blocks and rocks, play houses, parachutes, and beanbags for imaginative play and game creation on the playground. For our students who love to jump rope and play ball games, we have created a paved area with a basketball hoop and have increased our quantity of balls to allow for small games of catch between two friends or large games between classes.”

These structural and material improvements for the Beginners through fifth grade students create spaces and activities that support students’ social and physical development. “For them, it means more fun,” added Mrs. Lindsey. “For the educators at Ranney, it means fulfilling our mission-promise to know and value the different aspects of students’ personalities and ways of interacting with peers so that learning, both on and off the playground, is attuned to who they are as young people.” Ranney School continues to strive for the success of its students from Beginners (age three) to grade 12 by continually providing them with innovative and rewarding educational experiences.
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Ranney School

235 Hope Road
Tinton Falls, NJ 07724
Tel. 732.542.4777
Our mission is to know and value every child, nurturing intellectual curiosity and confidence, and inspiring students to lead honorably, think creatively, and contribute meaningfully to society. 

We envision Ranney School as a nurturing learning community, in which families, faculty, alumni, and all of Ranney’s constituents collaborate to know and value every child, foster individual talents, sustain powerful connections between children and adults, and graduate resilient, globally-minded citizens.