Welcome to St. Edmunds’s Academy

PreKindergarten at St. Edmund’s Academy is a developmentally appropriate environment that is designed to meet the needs of children 3 - 5 years of age. The goal for PreKindergarten is for each child to reach his or her potential by experiencing activities that enhance social skills, creativity, imagination, experimentation and problem solving.

PreKindergarten’s nurturing, child-centered atmosphere provides cozy spaces for quiet play as well as carefully planned learning centers located throughout the room. A nearby playdeck and playing field provide opportunities for outside time daily. In order to meet the developing needs of the children, they separate into PreK I for the younger children and PreK II for the older children for planned structured activities.  Both groups are designed to prepare children for St. Edmund's Academy's Kindergarten Program. There is a head teacher and an assistant teacher for each group of 15 children (a student to teacher ratio of 7:1).

At St. Edmund’s Academy, the children in the PreKindergarten class explore the environment by using all of their senses through the art of play. Play provides each child with the opportunity to demonstrate their individual talents and challenges them to try new activities. Social skills and problem solving efforts are promoted and positively reinforced.

Children in the St. Edmund’s Academy PreKindergarten program will leave the PreKindergarten classroom to go to “specialty classes”. These classes are taught by specialty teachers and include: music, computer, art, physical education and library.
Parent participation, such as reading a story, sharing a special project or accompanying us on a field trip, is always welcome.

A wide variety of activities are planned each day to provide a balance of developmental skills:
Table project: An art, science, fine motor and/or theme-based activity is available daily.
Circle time: A gathering time to provide daily schedules and information to the children and some small group activities.
Specials: music, computer, physical education, art and library.
Story time: Daily stories often relating to planned themes.
Finger plays: Songs and poems sung after story time.
Snack time: Children participate by doing jobs such as passing out cups, napkins and snack. Snack is also a social time to talk about daily events and interact with peers.
Outdoor play: Gross motor activities and group games are available to children on a daily basis.
Rest time: Rest time occurs after lunch and provides a time for the children to rest their bodies in their own space. The children listen to soothing classical music. This period of the day helps children to learn to manage their own activity level.
Enrichment program occurs following a short rest in the afternoon. This program includes math, letter/phonics activities, creative story dictation, literature based activities, thematic art projects and dramatic play.

Kindergarten is a very special place at St. Edmund’s Academy.  The rooms are wonderfully spacious, complemented by nooks and crannies, delightful lofts and a wall of large windows looking out on the adjacent play deck. With four full-time teachers, students spend much of their day in small clusters, working on projects, moving from center to center.

Creative, child-centered, spirited, comfortable, challenging and enthusiastic are a few ways to describe the energetic classroom. The program has been created with the developmental needs of five and six-year-olds in mind. Through a collection of carefully designed activities, St. Edmund’s Academy Kindergarten works to expand each child’s competence and mastery in a multitude of areas.

Each day begins with morning meeting to review the plans and schedule for the day, explore the calendar and share ideas and experiences. Learning to listen to others, to express one’s own thoughts clearly and to internalize the day’s structure are important to a feeling of predictability and trust. Children must feel safe, comfortable and understood in order to do their best. To grow in mind, spirit and body, they must feel secure in order to risk making mistakes. Students then move into groups, making choices about which activities to pursue. Block corner, dramatic play, painting, construction projects and the like allow each child to work with classmates in a cooperative and self-determined way.

Small groups are teacher-determined and focused on the more academic tasks of Kindergarten: pre-reading skills, mathematical problem-solving and illustrating ideas.

St. Edmund’s Academy Kindergarten stresses activities that foster critical thinking, problem-solving and reasoning. While never “product-oriented,” the program stresses trying the new, working hard and doing one’s best. There is often no right or wrong but there is always encouragement and praise for innovation, making connections and the satisfaction of knowing more and mastering new skills.

Snack, music, art, computer, world cultures, rest, library, physical education and outdoor play round out a full and busy day. The enthusiasm of five and six-year-olds is contagious,  and despite the natural ups and downs of childhood, teachers and children leave at the end of the day tired, but with a smile.

Kindergarten at St. Edmund's Academy is understanding the whys, hows and wherefores of the way the world works, specifically:
• Independence
• Self-confidence
• Risk-taking
• Pride in Workmanship
• Letter Recognition
• Problem Solving
• Math Concepts
• Visual-motor Coordination
• Communication
• Making Choices
• Following Directions
• Listening
• Cooperation with Peers
• Artistic Expression
• Resolving Differences
• Manners
• Respecting Others
• Handwriting
• Predicting Outcomes
• Completing Tasks
• Letter-Sound Correspondence
• Recognizing Similarities and Differences
• Understanding Time, Days, Months, Seasons
• Appreciation of Family and Friends