3 & 4's Pre-School

• Children attend for 5 days each week
• Early Morning Care: 7:30-8:00 a.m. (pre-registration required)
• Sunrise Club: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.
• Regular class hours: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
• Lunch Bunch hours: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
• Extended Day: 1:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Monday-Thursday (pre-registration required)
• After School: Monday-Thursday, 3:15 to 5:30 p.m., Friday from 1:45-5:30 p.m.

At the Pre-School level, the language arts are taught through an integrated approach – the aim is to create a language and literature rich environment which develops phonemic awareness and beginning phonics skills. Activities occur throughout the day both in small group and whole group settings. The program is designed to accommodate a range of literacy levels. Children who are ready for more challenging experiences have opportunities to work with the teacher in small groups and one-on-one during the school day. Our teachers ensure that lessons include significant exposure to phonemic awareness, alphabetic knowledge, rich vocabulary and a wide variety of quality children’s literature.

Everyday Math provides the framework for our approach in making mathematics an important hands-on experience. Teachers use concrete materials to help children develop their understanding of and insight into the patterns of mathematics.

Students explore basic scientific principles through a variety of hands-on experiences. At their level of inquiry, children explore their curiosity about the world around them as they add to their knowledge base. Our teachers encourage each child to make comparisons, to sort and classify and to ask questions to help them begin to understand how each idea relates to the next. Pre-School teachers stimulate curiosity and exploration as students continue the initial steps of becoming life-long learners.

Our program offers daily opportunities for gross motor experiences providing for individual differences and varying levels of maturity. Each child will develop gross motor skills, spatial awareness, agility, balance, coordination and strength. Children are also given fine motor tasks which support correct pencil grip and body posture. All children have numerous opportunities to use a wide range of materials and tools to support the development of fine motor skills.

Visual Arts: Children explore and experiment with a wealth of media, materials, processes and ideas that promote self-expression and creativity. Activities are an extension of the Reading and Language Arts and Math units. The focus of Pre-School Art is on the process rather than the product produced.

Music: Music surrounds the Pre-School students and it is an important part of the Reading and Language Arts Program. In addition to classroom experiences, musicians from the other divisions entertain our students throughout the school year.

Dramatic Play: Dramatic play rounds out the Pre-School fine arts experience. Dramatic play centers are changed monthly to arouse student interest and invite engagement. Stories, songs and poems are acted out and puppets are used extensively to help develop communication and social skills.