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About Us
We Believe
Our mission is to take advantage of the teachable moments that happen every day by fostering the intellectual, creative, social, emotional, and physical growth and development of our students and to inspire a lifelong commitment to learning.
A caring, cooperative school environment promotes cultural values and supports positive relationships and respectful interaction. We provide an environment that allows children to learn by doing – moving from concrete, hands-on experiences to more abstract concept development.
Our priority is to provide a healthy balance of child-directed and teacher-guided activities, as well as time for children to work individually, in small groups and in large groups.
We believe that a stable, safe, healthy, comfortable, and culturally relevant environment is crucial to a child’s growth. A play-based approach provides a child-centered curriculum directed by teachers in which children are encouraged to construct their own knowledge. We believe that our program reflects the needs and goals of children and families. We look forward to working closely with families which will provide an integrated, comprehensive approach to learning.
Two convenient locations
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Big picture windows with lots of natural light.
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Wood floors allow for extra cleanliness but soft surfaces throughout keep the space “user” friendly.
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All modern equipment and furnishings.
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Several Chicago Park District playgrounds within walking distance of each facility.
Teachers
Many of our staff have a Bachelor’s Degree or higher in Early Childhood Education or a related field such as child development. We provide continuing education for the teachers through in-services and paid days off to attend professional seminars and classes.
We also provide CPR and first aid classes for all full time staff members. Our teachers submit weekly, developmentally appropriate lesson plans based on the Illinois state benchmarks.
In addition to providing feedback daily at drop off and pick we also offer bi-yearly written evaluations, as well as parent-teacher conference each winter. Teachers attend monthly staff meetings to keep everyone informed of school events and special projects and to ask questions, share ideas, and seek advice from other staff members.
A minimum of a one year contract is mandatory for all teachers to reduce the amount of turn-over and therefore maintain consistency in the lives of our students. All full time staff are salaried and the teacher contract includes a paid vacation package and sick time which decreases the chances of teacher burn-out often found in the field of early childhood education.
Time Outdoors
We believe that time spent outdoors is crucial to young children’s growth and development. There are several Chicago Park District parks located near each facility. The playgrounds are used on a regular basis to allow for gross motor development.
Classes are taken outdoors daily, weather permitting. We also take advantage of local resources, such as trips to bookstores for story time and walks around the neighborhood.
Bus field trips are planned for the 3-5 year old classroom and parent volunteers accompany students on the trips. This helps ensure the safety of the children as well as fortify the connection between home and school.
Home School Connection
For Your Child Preschool implements many programs to strengthen the home-school connection. We operate with an “open door” policy for our parents which allows for a detailed look at exactly how their child spends his/her days.
Quarterly after school events provide parents a chance to meet other families participating in our program. After school events include activities for children to participate in with their parents.
Each room has a parent board and parents can easily communicate with teachers through the Tadpoles App. Instant message in real time, get lesson plans and the weekly newsletter on the app.
For Your Child Preschool offers bi-annual formal written assessments and yearly parent teacher conferences.
Nutrition
For Your Child Preschool understands the importance of offering nutritious and safe food to children. Meals and snacks are provided by an organic catering company Beyond Green Catering.
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We are a nut and peanut-free facility.
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Vegetarian options are also included with every lunch.
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All items are served with fresh, organic fruits and crisp, local vegetables.
We have chosen to partner with Beyond Green Catering because it prioritizes sustainability including composting left over food and using compostable paper products.
Extra Curricular
Research overwhelmingly supports teaching a second languages early in life, because it can be more difficult to learn a second language as we get older. Children — from birth to about three years old — are ripe for receiving new information.
Spanish class is offered once a week, for all ages, provided by Rise Education.
Additional programs coming soon.
