Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool
“Rooted and Grounded in Love.”
— Ephesians 3:17
At MPCP, we believe that children learn best with a balance of teacher-directed and child-initiated activities that encourage thinking, reasoning, and communication while building confidence and fostering social-emotional development and friendships. We focus on many units of study, supported by experiences in art, music, literature, science, social studies, math, and Bible. Our days are designed around ways to encourage each of our students to grow in the areas social-emotional, physical, cognitive, spiritual, communicative & creative development.
What are the Classroom Goals of our Preschool?
Broad goals for each class are:
ONES CLASS- Art; reading books and telling stories; listening and dancing to music; singing songs; playing simple games and activities; developing social and motor skills; expanding attention span during structured play and activities; increasing socialization; enhancing verbal skills; introduction to early counting & colors.
TWOS CLASS- Introducing the alphabet and letter sounds; introducing numbers and counting; enhancing verbal communication skills; developing gross- and fine motor skills, developing early reasoning skills; introducing basic shapes; developing good listening skills; following simple directions; playing games with peers; introducing the days of the week and months of the year; enhancing memory and recall; expanding attention span in structured play and whole- and small-group activities; following classroom rules/and routines; developing problem solving skills, both individually and with peers.
THREES CLASS- Letter recognition; producing letter sounds; identifying numbers; identifying first name; counting items; developing gross- and fine motor skills and coordination; increasing problem solving and reasoning skills; recognizing shapes; learning the days of the week and months of the year; introduction to recognizing and writing first name; developing good listening skills and following more complex directions; following classroom rules/routines; forming and strengthening peer relationships.
PRE-K CLASS- Establishing and solidifying preliteracy skills in all areas of phonological awareness; solidifying letter recognition (upper case and lower case) and letter sounds; exploring the environment through hands-on experiences; expressing individuality through music and movement and drama; sharing what they have learned through drawings, constructions and discussion; developing self-help skills; increasing independence and social awareness; developing self-discipline; following classroom rules/routines; making new friends; strengthening problem-solving skills.
What Curriculum is taught at Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool?
Frolic Bible Curriculum (All Ages):
At MPCP, we seek to encourage the spiritual growth of our students. We do this by holding weekly chapel, saying a blessing before meals, praying as a class, and introducing Bible stories through our Frolic Bible curriculum.
The Frolic Nursery and Frolic Preschool curriculums, designed for toddlers and preschoolers, feature age-appropriate play spaces, prayers, storytelling, and music. Each week includes a Bible story and Bible verse with daily activities to reinforce the week’s story.
Chapel: Threes and Pre-K classes will have a weekly Chapel lesson led by Rev. Courtney Pittman or guest congregational elders or members. Chapel time will connect to or reinforce each week’s Frolic lesson or special holidays. Each month, a special birthday chapel will be held. Developmental Curriculum (All Classes):
In all our classrooms, our teachers design lesson plans based on the Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS). These are Georgia’s latest set of high-quality, research-based early learning standards for children ages birth to five. They provide the foundation for instruction in classrooms, and teachers use these goals to plan activities for their students.
Progress reports are sent home mid-year and at the end of the year. These are milestone-based and align with our developmental curriculum. These serve as an opportunity for our families to see all the progress that happens within our walls!
Heggerty Curriculum (Threes & Pre-K Classes):
This early Pre-K Phonological Awareness curriculum is meant for learners in 3- and 4-year-old classrooms with the goal of teaching 5 phonological awareness skills. The 3 skills of rhyme, initial phoneme isolation, and blending are introduced at the beginning of instruction. The remaining 2 skills of segmenting words and final phoneme/sound isolation are introduced in later weeks of instruction. These phonological skills are strong prerequisites for later literacy development. Building pre-readers is one of our proudest jobs at MPCP!
Fundations (Threes & Pre-K Classes):
Fundations is a phonics curriculum (also used in Morgan County Schools) that supports our students’ emerging understanding of the alphabetic principles of letter-sound associations and the written language skill of letter formation.
The skills taught within the Fundations curriculum align with those identified as strong and consistent predictors for the later development of literacy skills: Knowledge and the names of sounds associated with printed letters; ability to manipulate the sounds of spoken language; ability to rapidly name and identify letters, numbers, objects, and colors; ability to remember spoken information for a short time.
Twos classes will use Fundations image-sound routines for teaching letters and letter sounds, modified within each age group for age appropriateness.
What Enrichment Classes are offered at Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool?
Lots of learning takes place within the walls of our classrooms at MPCP, but we believe that all preschoolers need extra opportunities to get a little noisy and a little messy sometimes! To support your child’s creative development, our Monday through Thursday students will participate in weekly Enrichment classes where they’ll be encouraged to explore and grow in new, exciting ways.
Music:
Music offers many opportunities to incorporate socialization, communication, self-expression, motor development, coordination, listening skills and rhythm into an early exposure and appreciation of music. Our preschoolers will enjoy singing together, playing instruments, and using their whole bodies to learn about music. Classic children’s songs will come to life, our students will enjoy learning new songs and rhymes, as well.Creation Station:
In Creation Station, our preschoolers will dive into a colorful world of creativity that blends art with movement, cooking, and STEM. This class will provide a unique variety of creative experiences, allowing children to explore their artistic talents while fostering essential skills for their growth and development. Through guided projects and open-ended exploration, little artists will enhance their fine and gross motor skills, discover colors and shapes, and engage in hands-on activities. With plenty of opportunities to move and express themselves, children will enjoy a fun, messy and imaginative environment where creativity knows no bounds!
When is Registration for Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool?
Registration will be held in February for the following school year. Registration is released to staff children, church members, current students & siblings of current students first (at one time) and then opened to the general public within the community. Ample communication will be sent out well in advance about registration for the upcoming school year.
Registration application priority is given to staff children, church members, current students, siblings of current students, and new students, in that order. Within each of these categories, registration forms are numbered as they are received and spots are filled on a first-come, first served basis. You or someone you designate must be present to register your child.
As a limited number of spots are available within each class, the number of students in each age level changes depending on the year, and our priority is quality instruction in small class sizes for our students, acceptance into MPCP one year does not guarantee acceptance the following year.
Message from the Preschool Director:
Here at MPCP, we are committed to creating a loving, safe environment while nurturing the hearts of each child as they grow in God’s love. Our days are filled with hands-on activities & exploration, play & practice, stories & music, celebrations & fun, but most of all—love.
We celebrate big milestones and small victories, and grow alongside one another. We are so blessed to have one another and a really special congregation at Madison Presbyterian Church praying for our “family” here at our preschool.
— Ansley Cochran
Message from the Pastor:
It is an enormous privilege to provide our tiniest disciples with guidance and Christ’s love and is a responsibility we take seriously.
MPCP is a special place filled with special people. As a part of Madison Presbyterian Church, the preschool serves as an outreach arm to this community—bringing children and their families closer to God through the wily and wild power of the Holy Spirit. I am lucky enough to worship with students each week during chapel service and it provides me with a chance to see and understand Christ through the eyes of a child. It is truly a gift!
— Rev. Courtney Pittman
For more information about Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool,
please contact Ansley Cochran, Director
706-342-4350 or email madisonprespreschool@gmail.com.
