Pre-Kindergarten Program

Social/Emotional:
The Pre-Kindergarten program provides a nurturing atmosphere where children learn to be curious, creative and questioning. The students begin the day with Circle Time.  For the remainder of the morning, learning activities are centered on a unified theme.  Because a child's social, emotional, cognitive, physical and language needs can vary greatly at this early age, children are grouped in a way that allows them to participate in the activities that are most developmentally appropriate.

Academic Readiness:
Our Pre-Kindergarten curriculum encourages children to learn to work and play cooperatively within their peer group. Learning to share, take turns, communicate, listen follow classroom rules, and respect each other are important objectives, as is the development of independence and confidence in one's own abilities.

Language Skills:
Our Pre-Kindergarten curriculum helps young children expand their communication ability through the development of receptive and expressive language skills.  Children are taught how to sequence events in a story.  They memorize verses, participate in group discussions and learn to follow directions.

Academic Skills:
In Pre-Kindergarten, a child develops skills that will be important for success in Kindergarten.  Through work and play with manipulatives, computer games, puzzles, hands-on activities, and games, students come to understand cause-and-effect relationships.  They develop the ability to discriminate between different sounds and different shapes and letters, they learn to rhyme words and identify patterns. Pre- Kindergarten students are also introduced to phonics and number concepts.

Physical Education:
Through play and individual and group work. our Pre-Kindergarten students further develop the coordination of their large and small muscles. Our Physical Education program includes time for both movement exploration and noncompetitive group activities that focus upon the sequential development of listening, fitness, coordination and cooperation.

Music:
Music is a part of the everyday program in Glenwood Country Day School's Pre-Kindergarten. Our curriculum encourages the development of listening skills, auditory discrimination ability, and pattern awareness through movement, use of rhythm instruments, and singing. Some performance and sharing is encouraged as these young children learn to enjoy music and drama.