Serena L. Krombach, MA, MSEd
Director/Educator
I’m a certified Special and General Education teacher and have taught in preschools and elementary schools for close to a decade. The seeds of Sideways School were planted when I moved my teaching from the classroom to the park during the pandemic, knowing that nature provides all the resources needed for skills development—especially when the children lead the play! I'm most influenced by the Bank Street developmental–interaction approach, but I also draw from Reggio Emilia, Montessori, Forest School, and DIR/Floortime. In all of these, success in school and life depends on the mastery of social–emotional skills and the forming of positive relationships—which is where I'm most enthusiastic about supporting children.​​
I grew up in Manhattan and have lived in Park Slope, Brooklyn, since my kids were born. Being a part of this vibrant, supportive community means the world to me! I love the city, but the Vermont mountains come second in my list of happy places. Thanks to having spent a lot of my childhood in the woods, I have no problem getting my hands dirty, and—most critically for this work—I'm not at all squeamish about handling worms, spiders, or any other of the many fascinating critters that live in the park!
I look forward to learning about you and your child. Please reach out! Get in touch via the form below, and I'll get back to you asap.
I believe that education is a partnership between teachers and parents. I'm a parent myself, of two teenagers, so I've experienced (and somehow survived!) every prior parenting stage. The empathy, flexibility, and understanding that I've needed from teachers myself are what I give to each family I'm lucky to get to know.