Early Childhood

Strengthened by our Quaker values, the important skills of exploration, investigation, and inquiry are the basis for all learning that takes place in the Friends Academy Early Childhood program. We believe children learn best when they are passionate and motivated about their learning.

Multi-sensory and hands-on experiences help children develop critical thinking skills such as problem-solving, perseverance, and the ability to express themselves and value the voices and ideas of others.

Our Early Childhood program uses Responsive Classroom, which is an evidence-based approach to teaching and learning that puts students at the center of their academic and social journey.

Its guiding principles focus on how we teach versus what we teach, cognitive growth, and building relationships. This approach recognizes that the deepest learning happens when both social/emotional and academic learning are prioritized.

As part of Responsive Classroom, children gather each day to greet each other, make eye contact, shake hands, communicate and share their thoughts. These simple but powerful actions help children learn what inclusion looks like in action, practicing care, kindness, and belonging.

Our Reggio Emilia curriculum is a student-centered approach to teaching that uses self-directed, experiential learning in relationship-driven environments. We begin with questions that spark children’s interest in a topic, and then encourage them to generate their own ideas, making their way to the answer through question and collaboration. This approach allows children to use their sense of wonder to explore the different questions and solutions at hand. As a result, our youngest students develop the critical thinking, collaboration, and communication skills necessary to enter the next phase of life.

Our Emergent curriculum puts the power of learning in the children's hands as they give voice to their imagination and wonderings. Through their excitement and enthusiasm for a topic, we create a sophisticated curriculum that teaches key themes and critical thinking skills.

Emergent curriculum leverages students' natural curiosity and interests to build active engagement, thereby cultivating a love of learning and collaboration.  Emergent curriculum helps students take initiative and ownership of their learning.

In Playgroup, children are given the opportunity to create letters before they’re ready to write them on paper. Learning about letters through shapes and physical application helps students gain valuable cognitive abilities that will assist them with their developing fine motor skills.

In Pre-K, the Fundations Writing approach evolves our students' literacy as they are formally introduced to letters and their sounds, and encouraged to recognize and write letters in a print-rich environment.

Building phonemic skills prepares them for a successful transition to Kindergarten.

The Early Childhood Science Curriculum, integrated throughout the school day, is Reggio Emilia-inspired and fosters the “scientist” in each child. Children explore, investigate, experiment, and predict both inside and outside of the classroom using both natural and manmade materials. In this way, children do not just learn scientific concepts, but build the intrinsic habits and skills of young scientists.

Students are challenged to dive deeper into topics, including light and sound, matter, weather phenomena, the water cycle, and exploration of plant and animal ecosystems.

Math is a language and is learned, organically, within the emergent curriculum to provide meaning and context that children can relate to.

Children learn by doing and our Early Childhood program affords students the opportunity to build their early numeracy skills and number sense by applying them to real-world experiences both within the classroom and in nature.

For example, our Block curriculum affords children the opportunity to reason, communicate, and develop their spatial understanding,  while nature-based exploration in our Forest Program provides opportunities for children to collect, sort, and manage a variety of natural resources and materials that encourage them to problem-solve.

Block play is emphasized throughout the day, creating a space for the children to be creative, explorative, imaginative, and inventive. Block play encourages spatial awareness, socialization, shape recognition, and sparks play scenarios that encourage children to work together to create stories, which incorporate early literacy skills.

Blocks represent mathematical units and help build on early mathematical literacy concepts and understanding. Block play also encourages children to learn the important analytical skills of  prediction and cause and effect,  and expands their vocabulary as they communicate with each other through collaboration.

Our World Language Program begins in Play Group with the exploration of Spanish. Through the Organic World Language Approach (OWL), students engage in a multisensory environment, including dance, music, and role-play.

OWL encourages students to better understand and appreciate different cultures and influential figures across Spanish-speaking countries. Exposure to different ways of thinking, speaking, and communicating allow students to understand and appreciate global cultures from an early age.

Arts in Early Childhood is deeply embedded in a student’s daily experience as well as supported by dedicated time with music, dance, and visual arts faculty. Our approach is guided by the Reggio Emilia philosophy of immersion, integration, and the lived experience of engaging in the world around you through curiosity and exploration.