Four Year Olds

Overview

Our four year old program is designed to improve writing and math skills while starting pre-reading development. We also place an emphasis on supporting the growth of confidence that many children naturally begin to develop at this age. Children will have usually turned four before entering the program although some may turn four shortly after starting.

Program

Academics

Four year olds are introduced to more structure and opportunities to explore. Children work more regularly on their writing skills including capital and lower case letters. They also spend a significant amount of time learning about phonics since it teaches the fundamental building blocks of successful reading. Math?

At this age, children start to become aware of their own talents and begin recognizing how they compare to other children. This is an important year to build confidence by making sure each child feels supported to try every activity, even if they perhaps do not always get the answer right the first time. Although the children still have free play time, it is usually planned in the afternoon.

Children participate in the following weekly specialty classes:

Gym
Spanish
Music
Computer (by request)

Field Trips

Four year old's also participate in monthly field trips to places like the Natural History Museum, Cox Farm and local playgrounds. For a longer list of places we enjoy visiting, consult our field trips page.

Daily Schedule

A typical day in the life of a four year old:

6:45am - 9:00am	Drop-off	3:00pm - 3:30pm	Afternoon Snack
8:30am - 9:00am	Breakfast	3:30pm - 6:15pm	Classroom Activities
9:00am - 11:00am	Morning Academics	4:30pm - 5:00pm	Recess
11:00am - 11:30am	Recess	5:00pm - 5:15pm	Evening Snack
11:30am - 12:00pm	Lunch	3:00pm - 6:15pm	Pick-Up
12:30pm - 3:00pm	Nap Time

Communication

We recognize the great trust it requires to place your child in the care of another person. To help provide your family the best possible experience:

A Family Care Representative is assigned to your family to provide support and information as your child progresses through their time at First Steps.
Weekly Reports - generated by the teacher, to give you an overview of how your child has excelled both academically and behaviorally in the past week, including ways you can help at home.
eBoard – a weekly overview of the activities and focus of the classroom during the past week and reminders for the next week.
The classrooms are equipped with telephones allowing you to connect directly with your teacher.
Medical issues and significant changes in mood are responded to with prompt phone calls to you, so you can make a decision based on the most immediate information available.

Teacher Qualifications

There is a lead-qualified teacher in each of our classrooms. These teachers have either a bachelor's degree in a child related field, a CDA or equivalent.
Each classroom is assisted by a teacher assistant who works alongside the teacher in providing for your child.
We look for teachers that have that special blend of attention to detail and love of children.
And finally, we look for teachers that we would want our daughter to be safe with, learn from, and loved deeply.

People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.

Eleanor Roosevelt