The Early Childhood Development Center: Joyfully Teaching and Forming Children in the Faith

As Pope Francis once stated to a general audience, “Children are the joy of the family and of society.” At St. Francis Xavier’s Early Childhood Development Center, we take the formation of our children seriously. Young children bring life into our church and watching our children grow in faith and knowledge is a joy for our teachers.

Years ago, before the new church was built, Amy Crawford’s children attended St. Francis Xavier’s preschool program. Now, Mrs. Crawford is back for her fourth year teaching in the 2-year-old classroom. While she also has experience working in public school, Mrs. Crawford has found that teaching in a Catholic school brings a particular joy to her work.

“I love being able to get a few reminders every day of why we are all really here,” Mrs. Crawford says. “I love being able to pray with the kids.”

While many of the families who send their children to the program aren’t Catholic, Mrs. Crawford says that they are all incredibly respectful and it is understood that the teachers will be praying, teaching the faith, and talking about Jesus.

“For parents, it might be their first time in a church setting,” Mrs. Crawford says. “I realized that the way I behave and the things I say are observed. It’s made me want to be better and do better so I can help those children and families.”

As Mrs. Crawford teaches the 2-year-olds to pray and make the Sign of the Cross, she also gets to hear the humorous things they pray for, like a cartoon character that had a bad day.

“I love hearing their prayers,” she says. “They’re showing that they realize people need to be prayed for. Hopefully, we are setting a foundation for these children that they’re going to continue to grow on to become their own disciples of Christ.”

Teaching has left its mark on Mrs. Crawford. Working in a Catholic school has provided her with the wonderful opportunity to grow in her own faith.

“It’s taught me compassion and patience for sure,” Mrs. Crawford says. “It’s made me stronger in my faith and I rely on my faith in different situations throughout the day. I’m very thankful.”

In particular, Mrs. Crawford loves seeing how quickly the children learn, and she has found teaching to be incredibly rewarding.

“I love the individual teaching moments that I hadn’t planned for,” she says. “These children are so special and I’m so thankful that I get to be a small part of their early education.”

If you would like to learn more about the Early Childhood Development Center, please visit the website at www.sfxstillwater.org/ecdc or call the center at 405-334-5154.

Amy Crawford with her class of 2-year-olds