It’s an annual rite of spring, the Chilmark Preschool celebration fundraiser. For those who haven’t attended, this is not just another face-painting, pony riding, food and gameapalooza. It is also the place to get your baby chicks.

Every year a great crop of young birds is on display. Kids get to pet the baby chicks and, if you’re that kind of parent, take them home and start setting up the coop.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Chilmark Community Center.

When four-year-old Dashiell Christy begins his day at the Chilmark Preschool, he decides which activity he wants to do first - playdough, blocks, or maybe making a pot of pretend coffee in a miniature kitchen.

This morning, Dashiell - or Dash, as his classmates call him - chose blocks.

Choice is a central tenet of the Chilmark Preschool philosophy, as laid out by director Christine Abrams.

Armed with the results of an anonymous survey that praised the Chilmark School for it small class sizes and strong sense of community but was critical of its leadership, communication and staff turnover, the chairman of a fledgling school task force unveiled a report last night, urging regional school board members to take action on more than a dozen areas of concern.