Welcome to Bridge School!

Welcome! So, what is Bridge School, anyway?

Hi! I'm Julie, and I run The Bridge School here in Santa Rosa. I've been doing this since 1995, and in 2004 my husband and I took over ownership, so at this point, this place is basically family. I figured since we've got this fancy new website, the least I could do is actually write something on it. (Ask my husband, that's a big step for me. I have a love-hate relationship with computers. Mostly love. Sometimes hate. We joke about it a lot.)

So here's the thing about our name. When the previous owners started this place, they called it "The Bridge School" because they were bridging respect, responsibility, and kindness, along with reading, writing, and arithmetic. Very academic. I kept the bridge part, but honestly, I dropped the academic piece a long time ago. That's just not who I am. For me, it's about bridging respect, responsibility, and kindness with just letting kids be kids. Learning how to be independent, how to be curious, how to care about the people around them. That's the foundation. Everything else comes later.

What a day here actually looks like

We do circle time in the morning, and then the kids head off into what I call our curiosity centers. One room is more science, pre-math, dress-up. The other side is fine motor, creative arts, sensory play. They pick where they want to go and what they want to do, and honestly, that's the whole point. If a kid comes up to me and says, "Miss Julie, these animal blocks need cars to ride on," great, let's go get the cars. We're not changing the curriculum every five minutes because I want them to actually have time to master something, to create something, to get lost in it a little. We're there to guide them, sure, but it's their world in here.

People walk in and they always say the same things. They love how bright it is in here (I really do love a lot of light, it just feels happy). They love the kids' artwork on the walls. And honestly, they love how loud and busy it gets sometimes, because that's just what happy, engaged kids sound like. Even on the chaotic days, that's part of it. That's life. That's part of our job too, helping them work through the loud, messy parts.

Why relationships are everything to me

Here's something I'm genuinely proud of. I still have relationships with kids who went here decades ago. My very first students are grown adults now, some of them have their own kids here. That, to me, is the whole point. If you get one thing from this post, let it be this: I am not the type of school where there's someone sitting in a back office somewhere. I am here, every day, in it with your kids. And once we build that relationship, it doesn't just end when your child graduates on to kindergarten.

A quick story that says it all

I always tell people about the day of 9/11. I walked in that morning having heard on the radio that something happened, a plane, an accident, I didn't know much yet. But once I stepped inside, none of that came in with me. We had music playing, kids were building and playing like always. A parent came in and asked if I'd heard the news, and I genuinely hadn't, because that's not what comes through this door. A four year old asked me about "the building," and I remember thinking, this is not their world to carry. Kids should get to see a plane in the sky and think it's amazing, not scary. That's the kind of space I want to protect in here. Whatever's happening outside, this is a safe, happy little bubble, and I take that seriously.

A little about our schedules

We offer half day and full day options, and honestly, we try to be flexible. Maybe you need Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Maybe grandma's got Tuesdays covered but you need Monday, Thursday, and Friday. We can figure it out together, it really doesn't have to be one-size-fits-all.

I'll be using this blog to share little updates along the way, what we've been up to, fun things happening at school, that kind of thing. Consider this an open invitation. Come see us during the morning activity time if you're curious what it's really like in here. I promise it'll tell you more than anything I could type up here ever could.

Talk soon, Julie