There is a saying in journalism: “Don’t bury the lead.” The trouble with Rainbow Station‘s early childhood education center in Fishers is that its really difficult to decide which aspect deserves my attention first. So please bear with me as I am technically not a journalist so much as a dad/middle manager for an insurance company that does some writing on the side.
First, the basics: Rainbow Station is an early childhood education center located near Geist Reservoir. This adorable train themed school has all the attention to detail you’d expect from a hands on learning center. Add to that an incredible attention to children’s safety as well as their physical and emotional wellbeing.
That’s painting with broad strokes. When you walk into any of the classrooms you see the pains that were taken to make every classroom a personalized and engaging learning environment for each child. As amazing as the classrooms and the equipment are, that’s not what caught my attention at Rainbow Station.
The thing that makes Rainbow Station exemplary to me was the incredible earnestness of the owners, Debbie and Steve Ramos. Debbie obviously loves education. She was a former HSE teacher of the year, and has spent her life working to help children become the best they can be. That’s evident in her lesson plans and meal selections. But it’s even more evident in the fact that she knows every child in the center by name. It was most evident to me when she talked to me about her willingness to hold a young infant to sleep who isn’t used to a crib yet, whose mother recently returned to work. Steve, likewise, talked about a child who comes on a part-time basis, and although Steve is more of an administration and behind the scenes guy, he steps up during nap time when this particular little guy can’t settle down because he misses his mom. They both will take him out to play quietly with a little one on one attention. As a dad who has watched my wife return to work after the birth of a new baby, or seen the drop off anxiety that breaks a parents heart, that particular feature of the Rainbow Station is “the lead” for me.
However, there is a feature to the Rainbow Station which is entirely new to the child care scene as far as I know. It’s so awesome that you might feel like I have buried the lead. That, my winter-worn parents of snot nosed fever factories, is The Get Well Place. This is a game changer for every one of us who has posted to Facebook at 5am, “Anyone interested in hanging out with my sick 3 year old?” We’ve all been there. You wake up to a kid with a fever on the worst possible day for your career. Or maybe your four kids are like mine: they like to be sick one at a time so that you spend day after day after day at home watching Frozen, and when your fourth child finally wakes up with a fever even YOU think you are lying to your boss. The Get Well Place will take your moderately ill child on a drop-in basis for a fee of $80 a day or $40 for up to 5 hours on a half day. When you are feeling the absolute tyranny of the “fever/vomit free for 24 hour” rule, you will be very glad The Get Well Place is in your life. Your child will be nurtured under the care of a certified nurse, or two, who can administer antibiotics and who will call you back only in the event that your child need major medical intervention.
The Rainbow Station has the neatest and coolest in early childhood toys. The teachers and administrators firmly believe in the development of great teachers as well as great kids. They understand the importance of recess and creative play. They are brave enough to make a rainbow rice sensory table. Most of us would not try without the aid of a well qualified cleaning crew. They have a chef on staff who makes healthy meals from scratch, and this spring they plan to plant a garden with their students to supplement their lunch vegetables. If there has been a study on something for the wellness of children, Debbie has read it and is using it to make improvements to every day childcare. These are the people you want your kids with when they can’t be with you.
MORE INFO: Rainbow Station at Geist is located at 10408 Olio Rd, Fishers, IN 46040
Call their office at 317-401-3800 or visit their website for more information or to schedule a tour.
Call their office at 317-401-3800 or visit their website for more information or to schedule a tour.
[luis]
