Lyme Nursery School is a non-profit, cooperative nursery school whose purpose is to promote the social, emotional, physical, intellectual, and artistic growth of young children. This is accomplished by fostering self-esteem, self-control, respect for others, and a sense of security with both peers and adults. In order to meet the educational needs of young children, the school provides an enriching environment that stimulates learning, imagination, and creative expression, and encourages the development of each child’s communication and problem-solving skills. In addition to the social and academic aspects of our program, LNS places great emphasis on time spent outdoors, helping children to explore the environment and world around them.

‍LNS is operated by a board of directors (made up of parent volunteers) in conjunction with our program director and faculty. We depend on parents to participate in our school and programs whenever possible: attending board meetings, assuming board positions, driving for field trips, participating in our school clean-up programs or simply giving us feedback, which allows us to continually improve our program.

‍The Lyme Nursery School was started by Abbie Penfield in 1964 and for 41 years was located in the Lyme Congregational Church next to the village common in Lyme. Since opening its doors, LNS has had the privilege of helping to prepare hundreds of local children for grade school in Lyme and other towns.
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In 1971, the school was relaunched as a cooperative, operating with the help of the parents and a board of directors. Nowadays we are no longer a cooperative, but we do still rely on parents to pitch in and help with various tasks to keep our tuition fees at a reasonable rate.
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In 2004 to 2005, money was raised to fund a new purpose-built facility for the school. The new building was completed in 2005 and is designed to look like a one-room schoolhouse, bell and all, fitting aesthetically into our little town. The school provides a bright and cheery environment in which our preschool children can learn and grow.
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The new school building project was made possible due to the efforts of dedicated volunteers. Many businesses and individuals from Lyme and the Upper Valley contributed to the cause. LNS is indebted to the kindness of many organizations and individuals. We would especially like to thank the following: The Lyme Congregational Church, the 2005 LNS Board and Staff (Julie McCutcheon, Kate Cook, Michelle Couture, Denby Coyle, Kelly Downing, Heidi Nichols, Michelle Lingiardi, Barbara Lynch, J.J. Pippin and Mimi Lichtenstein) and all the parents and friends of Lyme Nursery School.