3 minute read

The Wonderful World of Kindergarten

By Sherre Cown

K4 Instructor

37 years of service to GWA - and still going strong

When people ask me what makes GWA’s “preschool” so special, I turn around and ask them “how much time do you have?” First of all, let me be clear, there are tons of good programs out there, I just believe that ours is better. As my grandmother would say, “the proof is in the pudding,” or in our case, the results. Allow me to explain.

We have a wonderful K3 program that was designed specifically to teach, guide, inspire, and encourage children in a safe, child-friendly, imagination-soaring environment. With two teachers, not one, the children are guided through a world of numbers, letters, phonics, fine motor skills, shapes, and colors. With two teachers, there is ample opportunity to work one on one with each child to help them succeed. In our program, children are able to explore the world of academics, play, art, Spanish, music, bible, and books. The teachers foster independence and encourage

students to develop self-help skills that lay the foundation for a strong, successful academic career. This approach continues into K4.

Now onto the K4 program! In our world, every day is an adventure, every day is something new. If you have a four or five year old, you know how inquisitive they are and how they just can’t stay still for very long. We welcome both! We learn through movements, role-play, silly songs and exercise. They question everything. We love this. We want the children to want to come to school, even on the weekends. But first, we have to make a connection. Once this is done, the fun begins. Our program takes letters and

gives them a purpose. Students learn upper and lower case letters, phonics, print, rhyming, beginning sounds, ending sounds, vowels, consonants, and words. In math, they learn their numbers, print, adding, subtracting, shapes, measuring, and counting by 1’s, 5’s and 10’s to 100.

We have monthly units that are broken down into weekly topics that capture the children’s interest and imagination. During this time, we supplement our program with art, books, geography, and science. Children, by their very nature, want to learn. We give them the freedom and guidance to do so. Just like the K3 program, we have

two teachers in the class. This gives us the opportunity to work one on one with each student. Our children are inspired to explore the world of books, PE, Spanish, music, and bible. We work with each child to help them grow in all areas of development: social, emotional, physical and academic.

There is so much more that I could say about both programs but I have to stop somewhere. Let me close by saying that we are NOT a preschool program. We are so much more! The teachers are dedicated, supportive, loving, and understanding. We are here for your child and for you. We are family and we welcome you!

“We work with each child to help them grow in all areas of development: social, emotional, physical and academic... We are here for your child and for you. We are family and we welcome you!”

– SHERRE COWN

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