Preschool

Ministry Licensed Program (The Treetop & The Den)

Ratios 1:8 (2 ECEs + 1 ECE Assistant)

The Preschool years are part of the same highly critical educational and emotional development period as the Toddler level. However, within this period children transform themselves from the unconscious development of a toddler, to the conscious development of a preschooler. They begin to ask questions, to blossom with curiosity and express desire to learn about their environment. Their questions evolve from the Toddler version of “what’s that?” to questions like “why?” & “how?” They are now curious as to what makes the sky blue and why flowers only bloom for a short while. Utilizing their curiosity and inquiries helps us deliver a program that is engaging, dynamic and fun.

Our fun, vibrant classrooms inspire children to get excited and to imagine new ways to play. Utilizing play to stimulate inquiries gently pushes children to create their own hypotheses, push the boundaries of their knowledge and be in control of their own learning. We believe this creates a love of learning, a love of personal development and the confidence to ask questions.

Through opportunities to engage with and make contributions to the world around them, children develop a sense of belonging and connectedness to their local community, the natural environment, and the larger universe of living things. Supporting children’s connections to the natural world is an important area of focus. Opportunities to experience nature every day and to care for and interact with the natural world enhance children’s connections to the world around them. A growing body of research suggests that connecting to the natural world contributes to children’s mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being.

Louv, R. (2008) Last child in the woods: Saving our children from nature deficit disorder. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin Books.