Mission Statement
To provide a service to children and parents of this church as an outreach to the community, this program will supplement home experiences for children under six years old who can benefit by joining a group of children in an informal school setting. In this setting, each child will have the opportunity to develop socially, emotionally, physically, intellectually, aesthetically and spiritually in a Christian atmosphere. Parents will have the opportunity to increase their understanding of young children through classroom participation and observation, and through conferences with qualified teaching personnel.
Philosophy
Presbyterian Preschool is a non-profit program that is subsidized by the First Presbyterian Church that accepts children ages 12 months through five years, and includes children of all races, religions, abilities and national origins. Presbyterian Preschool embraces the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s belief in the use of developmentally appropriate practice. Children learn best through play and the teachers at our school meet children where they are and help them reach goals. Teaching practices used are appropriate to the children’s age and developmental stage. The teachers set goals and develop learning experiences that are appropriate for the children’s learning and challenging enough to promote their interest and progress.
Curriculum
Our program supports the development of the whole child. Each class offers learning centers that provide free play experiences in social, emotional, physical and intellectual areas. These experiences are offered in large blocks of uninterrupted time, both indoors and outdoors. Active play is balanced with quieter group times for snack, discussion, music and stories. A dependable yet flexible schedule is followed to give the children the security of knowing what is going to happen throughout the day.
Each day is filled with a variety of activities that cover curriculum areas including language/literacy, social studies, math and science. Children may express themselves through work with creative media such as paints, paste, clay, sand and water. Large muscle development through jumping, climbing and building occurs each day. Music activities include singing, dancing, creative movement and rhythm instruments. As children become verbal, they are guided in developing problem-solving and cooperation skills with peers.
“School readiness” is a term that refers to preparation for the elementary school environment. Research shows that during the preschool years the most crucial preparation involves skills such as focus and self control, perspective taking, communication, critical thinking, self direction and engagement in learning, and abilities like making connections and taking on challenges. Support for these essential skills is intentionally embedded in the environment, activities and choices made available to the children at every age level.
Discipline
Emphasis is placed on helping children develop the control necessary to be SELF- disciplined, with the understanding that this is a learning process that involves lots of trial and error, experimentation, and mistaken assumptions. Therefore, teachers spend time stating clear expectations, modeling correct behavior and positively reinforcing the child’s efforts. Children are encouraged to reconcile with each other after conflicts. When a child is out of control, a brief time-out may be necessary to help regain composure. In the case of biting or other seriously harmful behaviors, the parents will be consulted and a plan of correction formulated. NO physical punishment or verbal abuse of any kind is ever used at Presbyterian Preschool.
Admissions Information
Presbyterian Preschool admits children throughout the school year, as space becomes available. A one-time, non-refundable deposit of $25.00 per family must accompany the enrollment form to place a child in the program. The deposit will hold the child’s place on the waiting list if a space is not available. Every effort will be made to assign children to the parent’s first choice of days, and to coordinate schedules for siblings or carpools. Children are placed in classes according to developmental and chronological age. Because all children are unique, we reserve the right to place children according to our assessment of developmental level and ability in relation to other children in the class, and to balance class size across the program.
An immunization record, or an immunization exemption form and a signed medical/emergency release form ARE required to be on file when the child begins attending Preschool. The State of Oklahoma requires CURRENT immunization records be on file at the school at all times, so parents are required to notify the school any time the child receives a new immunization.
Tuition
Tuition is charged on a yearly basis. Half a month’s tuition is due in August and then there are nine equal payments from September through May. Full payments are due each moth regardless of how many class days the school is in session. Full tuition is charged regardless of whether or not the child attends due to illness or vacation. Tuition may be paid by credit card in the office, through the parent portal or by check made to Presbyterian Preschool.
DELINQUENT FEES: Overdue notices will be sent when tuition payments are behind. If payments continue to be delinquent after 45 days, notice will be sent that the child’s participation in the preschool program will be terminated at the end of the month unless the amount due is paid in full. Special needs can be taken into consideration, and individual payment plans worked out, IF the parent contacts the Director in advance.
Partial scholarships are available through the Deacons committee of the First Presbyterian Church for families in need of financial assistance. Applications are available through the Director and are awarded at the first of each semester.
