Whitmore Lake Early Childhood Center Develops Learning and Growth at a Young Age
Offering a number of developmental programs for young, preschool-age children, the Early Childhood Center of Whitmore Lake Public Schools is committed to providing individualized education in a welcoming environment. Learn all about our programs and our HighScope Curriculum to find which will be beneficial to your young learner.
Two Locations
Main Street Campus: GSRP & Head Start
Whitmore Lake Elementary School: ECSE & Tuition Preschool
Explore Our HighScope Curriculum
How Children Learn in Preschool
Children are learning every minute of the day. From the way we organize the classroom, create the daily schedule and plan indoor and outdoor activities, everything is aimed at providing an opportunity to learn. Our classrooms are set up to be developmentally appropriate for learning, offering our children many opportunities to make choices, come up with ideas, experiment, and take responsibility for their work.
Here’s what you’ll see when you visit:
- Materials are on low shelves, in containers, and on hooks so children can get them independently and put them away.
- Shelves are neat and uncluttered so materials are easy to see, remove, and replace.
- Picture and word labels are on containers and shelves so children know where materials belong and learn to use print.
- There are distinct interest areas–blocks, dramatic play, toys and games, art, discovery, library, sand and water, music and movement, cooking, computers, and different play spaces outdoors – so children know what choices are available and make decisions.
- Our facilities also include an indoor gym with a variety of play equipment, an outdoor garden, and a large outdoor play area with a fenced-in playground to stimulate not just the minds of the children but develop their physical capabilities as well.
- There are distinct interest areas – blocks, dramatic play, toys and games, art, discovery, library, sand and water, music and movement, cooking, and different play spaces outdoors – so children know what choices are available and make decisions.
- Similar materials are grouped together to teach children to sort and classify – skills that are important to understanding and solving math problems.
The Daily Schedule
We provide a variety of learning experiences for a well-rounded education, so we plan a daily schedule with these goals in mind. We follow this same schedule, in picture format, day after day. The picture schedule helps children feel secure because they know what comes next. After a few months, children are amazingly independent and begin to communicate what they are supposed to do next!
Classroom Activities
When you visit your child’s classroom, you see a room full of children playing. You may wonder what we are doing to help children learn. As children play, we watch how they use materials. We listen. We talk with them to find out what they are thinking and trying to do. We then help the children become aware of their actions, offer suggestions, and think about what materials to offer next. By challenging them to think further, we encourage the development of skills children will need in elementary school.
Here Are Some Examples of What Children Learn in Preschool:
Blocks
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Use blocks and wooden people to create rooms in their home
Make bridges for cars
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Make maps of their world (social studies, math)
Use shapes to build (math)
Plan ahead (study skills)
Recreate structures they've seen geography, problem solving)
Dramatic Play
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Use a stethoscope to examine a doll and write a prescription
Pretend to be a firefighter
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Pretend with objects (abstract thinking)
Write for a purpose (literacy)
Recall what they know about workers in their community (social studies)
Act out roles (the arts)
Games & Toys
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Finish a puzzle
Group pictures that are the same
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Complete a task (study habits, self-confidence)
Learn about the alphabet (literacy)
Match and classify (math)
Art
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Gather paper, scissors, and glue for a project
Draw a picture of their family
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Plan and carry out a task (study habits, independence)
Use symbols to represent their ideas (literacy)
Gain an understanding of what "family" means (social studies)
Discovery
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Plant seeds and measure each plant's growth
Use eyedroppers to add colors to containers of water
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Measurement (math)
Plant life cycle (science)
Mix colors (science)
Small muscle development (writing)
Sand & Water
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Pour water onto waterwheels to set them in motion
Discover how many cups of sand fill a pail
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Cause and effect (science)
Coordinate eye-hand movement (writing)
Count and measure volume (math)
Computers
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Try out a computer program together with another child
Type the letters of their names
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Share and play cooperatively with others (social skills)
Recognize and use alphabet letters (literacy and pre-reading skills)
Library
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Scribble on paper using some letters and tell what the scribble says
Listen to a story and talk about what happened
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Use writing to communicate (literacy)
Make a connection between letters and the sounds they make (literacy)
Love books, remember details, and express ideas (language development, literacy)
Music & Movement
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Sing or do a finger play with other children and the teacher
Create different sounds by putting more (or fewer) items in cans and shaking them
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Participate cooperatively in a group (social skills)
Recognize rhymes (phonological awareness, listening)
Explore cause and effect (science, logical thinking)
Cooking
WHEN CHILDREN DO THIS:
Follow directions in a recipe that calls for adding ingredients by teaspoons, cups, etc.
Watch bread dough rise or melt butter
THEY ARE LEARNING TO:
Understand measurement (math)
Read a recipe (literacy)
Understand that foods can change their physical states (science)
Outdoor Time
The time children spend outdoors every day is just as important to their learning as the time they spend in the classroom. Large muscle activities are essential for children’s health and well-being. Children need time each day to run, leap, hop, jump, slide, and climb. These activities build strong muscles and a sense of pride. They are also important as brain research shows that physical activity actually wakes up the brain for learning.
The outdoors greatly increases our learning environment which is a natural setting for scientific investigations. Children find and study bugs and butterflies, plant seeds and watch them grow, and compare the feel of the bark on different trees. In some climates they notice the leaves change color and fall to the ground and learn about ice and snow. In other climates they learn how plants survive on almost no water. We talk with children about their discoveries and encourage them to continue investigating what they find outdoors.
| When Children Do This: | They Are Learning To: |
|---|---|
| Follow each other up climbers, down slides, through tunnels | Develop an awareness of shapes and space (math and social studies) Make friends (social skills) |
| Work together to build a tunnel in the sandbox | Pretend with objects (abstract thinking) Share space (social skills) Communicate ideas (literacy) Explore the properties of a natural material (science) |
| Pretend to be police stopping tricycles "cars" | Understand community roles and rules (social studies) |
| Notice color patterns on caterpillars | Recognize patterns in nature (math) Sharpen observational skills (science) |
| Catch and throw balls | Coordinate eye and hand movements (physical development) |
Contact Our ECC Teaching Staff
We encourage parent involvement within and beyond the classroom. With the young ages of our students, it is crucial that their education and socialization be encouraged within and continued outside the classroom. If you have any questions regarding our HighScope Curriculum, your child’s progress, or anything else, please don’t hesitate to contact our ECC staff.
Find Out if the Early Childhood Center is Right for Your Child
The Early Childhood Center of Whitmore Lake Public Schools is a safe and comfortable place for children to begin their educational journey. As children are learning every minute of the day, we provide them with environments and activities where they will feel secure and independent. We aim to provide a well-rounded education and use HighScope Curriculum to plan each day around each child’s unique style of learning. We value high achievement and encourage children to think further while developing skills needed for elementary school.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Early Childhood Center of Whitmore Lake Public Schools, email info@wlps.net.