Our Curriculum

Strong Foundations Preschool provides high-quality, exceptional early childhood education that will create a strong foundation for preschool-aged children and their families in the Olympia/Lacey/Tumwater community. We provide a foundation for every child so that they are prepared for the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional demands of kindergarten and beyond. Our goal is that each child will be challenged in developing their skills through creative, fun, engaging, and age-appropriate lessons. Our experienced teachers use individualized, developmentally appropriate, play-based programs for each class with themes that encourage our students to learn through their play and interactions. We combine these individualized programs with a curriculum called Preschool Lessons in Literacy and Preschool Lessons in Math from Stay At Home Educator ©, which offers a unique blend of academic focus while learning through play and having fun!  

Each learning area of the classroom will focus on skills that are necessary when building a foundation of physical, social, emotional, and cognitive scaffolding for children. These areas provide opportunities for children to practice social skills needed to be successful in school such as active listening, coping skills, delayed gratification, advocating for their needs, and taking responsibility for their choices.

We utilize individual and small group class time as an opportunity for children to practice self-advocacy and problem solving through peer interaction, conversation, and compromise. Commonly referred to as “free play,” children will be free to choose from a variety of toys and activities to explore in a creative and developmentally appropriate manner. A variety of teacher-led and child-led activities will be available, including step-by-step art projects, math games, science experiments, sensory exploration, dramatic play, blocks, literacy, fine motor, imaginative play, and STEAM activities. This is a time for children to develop individual and peer resiliency. Resiliency is the ability to develop character, competency, connection, contribution, control, and coping skills. It is a key step in a child’s early learning journey and kindergarten readiness.

Social/emotional learning, also known as SEL, will be modeled throughout class time utilizing books, games, and group activities. Stories will often be repeated during the day, encouraging discussions and predictions of plot and characters. Classroom games are designed to take children from a foundation of parallel play into interactive cooperative play in a fun, engaging manner. They provide opportunities for students to take turns, practice kindness and empathy, build confidence, and develop team building skills. Strong Foundations Preschool values cooperative learning, and prioritizes age-appropriate games and activities that give students the opportunity to independently build confidence in their own success.

Outdoor play will be in the fully fenced backyard with a large cement patio, ample grassy area, and monkey bars. A variety of balls, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, scooters, trikes and other play equipment will be enjoyed. In dry weather, typical indoor activities will be moved outdoors, such as painting, puzzles, reading, and block play. In warmer months, we will occasionally offer a water play day with a splash pad, spray bottles, bubbles and other activities suited for summer. There is a garden space for digging,dumping, raking and exploring! We will play traditional games outside, such as Red Light Green Light, Mother May I, and Simon Says, as well as providing time for independent play and encouraging children to develop their own games. These outdoor and gross motor activities promote safe risk-taking, cooperative play, decision making, problem solving, and self-advocacy. Children learn to trust their bodies to do what they are capable of, while building muscle strength and coordination. We also have several options for indoor gross motor play when the weather does not cooperate. Yoga, charades, and a wide variety of exercise stations are all fun activities to get our bodies moving, develop strong muscles, and get our heart rate up indoors, yet still reinforce social, emotional, and physical foundational skills.

Children will have the opportunity to participate in various field trips within walking distance of the school. They will enjoy nature scavenger hunts, local neighborhood parks, and a chance to see nature up close and personal by observing spider webs, worms, ants, and other creatures. Walking within the safety of a neighborhood setting allows teachers to model and reinforce pedestrian safety such as “Stop, Look, and Listen” before crossing streets, staying on the sidewalk, and always staying with an adult. 

At Strong Foundations Preschool we pride ourselves in providing an exceptional blend of academic and play-based learning by utilizing lessons from Stay At Home Educator ©, combined with individualized learning activities that appeal to children’s natural playfulness. We are confident that children in our care will learn to “Be Strong!” in kindergarten and beyond!