LITTLE CATS FAQs
CALENDAR
We follow the Whitko Community School calendar available on the Calendars page. If there are delays or closings, please be aware we will also be delayed or closed. We will be closed on the scheduled eLearning days for trainings and sanitation.
A play-based environment accommodates the preschooler’s need for variety by moving through a variety of types of play activities. Academics are built into play.
- Opening greetings and play
- Breakfast (Family Style)
- Large group activity
- Learning through play small group stations
- Story time and snack
- Language Arts play stations
- Outside play/ nature-based learning time
- Art/STEM/Project-Based Learning/Math stations
- Lunch (Family Style)
- Rest time
- Play Time
- Snack
- Outside play/ nature-based learning time
- Inside play activities
Play-based learning is a type of early childhood education based on child-led and open-ended play. If you’re picturing preschoolers finger painting or ‘playing house’, you’re spot on.
Play itself is a voluntary, enjoyable activity with no purpose or end goal. Believe it or not, activities like this lay the foundation for a child to become a curious and excited learner later in life. Play-based learning helps children develop social skills, motivation to learn, and even language and numeracy skills. Taking initiative, focused attention, and curiosity about the world are all a part of play.
Children are naturally wired to do the very thing that will help them learn and grow. According to the NAEYC, “The impulse to play comes from a natural desire to understand the world.”
Quality outdoor time is essential to healthy development in children. Connecting children with nature helps them to develop a more positive attitude while being more active, absorbed and involved.
Outdoor Learning Environments (OLEs) give children the opportunity to:
- experience with all their senses,
- develop fine and gross motor skills,
- be physically active,
- learn through observation,
- build using natural materials, and
- connect to the world around them.
Each family is a child’s first teacher. We value families as partners in the growth and development of children in our program. We encourage parents and other family members to be involved in the program, visit children’s classrooms, participate in events, and provide feedback on the program. We offer a variety of ways in which families can participate in helping us establish and reach our program goals.
Please contact us for enrollment cost.
We offer flexible scheduling opportunities, before and after school care, care for infants and toddlers (infant care is currently only available for Whitko Community School staff and students), plus developmentally appropriate practices to meet the needs of every child. Our Pre-K program is available to any child ages 3-5.