History & Location
For more than 50 years, we’ve provided high-quality early childhood education and care for Upper Valley families.
We’ve been in business a long time, evolving in response to the changing needs of families in the Upper Connecticut River Valley of Vermont and New Hampshire. The Child Care Center in Norwich was founded in 1971 by a group of local parents in need of high quality, affordable child care. They purchased a distinctive red A-frame house from a local homeowner who decided to sell after the completion of Interstate 91, a major highway which runs adjacent to our school. What a boon for children. With its ups and downs and twists and turns, the building structure itself is a playful invitation to wonder—what might be around the next corner?
Launched as a program for preschoolers, the Center expanded in 1982 to include care for infants and toddlers. In 2009, responding to another community need, we expanded to provide after-school care to local elementary school students. (Our after school program wound down in early 2024.)
In 2020, our Board of Directors began a process of reimagining the Center’s place and possibilities in the Upper Valley. With our 2022 shift in philosophy and practice—from that of a childcare center to a children’s school—the Treehouse offers a new early education model not only to Upper Valley families, but to educators as well. We ultimately aspire to be a learning lab for children and grown-ups both, opening our doors wide to area teachers who want to learn about Reggio-inspired understandings and practices.
Our location offers the best of all worlds: convenience for working families and a natural wonderland for children.
Nestled in a mixed pine and deciduous forest…
The Treehouse is conveniently located just one mile from the center of Norwich, Vermont and one mile from the Hanover, New Hampshire green. We are 2/10 of a mile off exit 13 on Interstate 91. Despite our central location, we work and play in a pastoral setting with four acres of playgrounds and woods, complete with paved trike tracks and a sledding hill. Our children hike and explore on an extensive trail system, climb boulders, build forts and visit vernal pools.
Our closest neighbor is the Montshire Museum of Science. Our older children visit the museum often, taking a short walk down the road, while MMS educators bring STEM challenges and “Science Yoga” directly into our preK classrooms. Preschoolers also visit the magnificent Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth where we collaborate with their Art Education team. Invariably, a trip highlight is riding the Advanced Transit bus from the bottom of our road into Hanover and back again.
