I’m Ms. Charlene, one of the teachers here at First Presbyterian Preschool. Today I’d like to tell you a little bit about what a typical day looks like in my pre-kindergarten classroom. At First Presbyterian Preschool, children are viewed as being capable and intelligent, so I use this philosophy to plan the lessons and activities for each day of school.  

We believe that each child comes to school with a deep sense of wonder and curiosity about the world around them. The day’s schedule is designed to help them explore their curiosity while developing social and intellectual skills. Here’s what a typical day in my classroom looks like:

–   9 AM: I welcome the children, and they start the day with a simple activity at tables that helps develop fine motor skills such as drawing, tracing, or pasting small pieces of paper or objects into shapes.

–   9:15 AM: Group story time and literacy activities. I introduce “centers” for the day. Centers are hands-on activity stations that cover various topics, such as building blocks, painting, sculpting, and journaling (as well as other art and STEM activities).

–   9:30 AM: Students have open time to visit the day’s centers. Depending on the center, the children may work individually or in large groups. For example, painting at the easel may be more productive if one or two children work on a masterpiece together, whereas building a castle in the block center could draw the entire class to work on it as a team.

–   10:30 AM: After wrapping up work at the centers, the class moves on to snack time. This is also valuable learning time, and I’ll lead the children to think about healthy food, or count the number of classmates who will be eating snacks, the number of plates they need to set out, etc. Learning happens organically at First Presbyterian, so any class activity may turn into an opportunity to learn and develop new skills.

–   10:45 AM: Morning meeting. This is a time for the entire class to come together, talk, and listen. We may do a calendar activity, say the Pledge of Allegiance, have show-and-tell, engage in music and movement activities, tell Bible stories, or plan future classroom projects as a group.

–   11:15 AM: Outdoor classroom learning. During this time we head outside to the school’s Certified Outdoor Classroom. The children can play, learn, and explore nature. More than just a playground, our outdoor learning area includes indigenous plants and trees for children to study and explore, and local natural materials like sand and stone.

–   11:45 AM – 12 PM: Back to the classroom to wrap up the day, collect personal items, and say goodbyes.

As you can see, we pack a lot into a half-day preschool class! As a teacher, I strive to mentor and guide each child in my classroom to explore the materials and lessons that have been constructed each day to meet the children’s needs and interests. If you’d like to learn more about First Presbyterian’s faculty and teaching methods, please contact the school today at 915-532-6157.