St. Odilo Full Day
PreKPre-K. will prepare your child for
the rigors of kindergarten. Specifically, it meets the
social, the emotional, the intellectual, and the physical
needs of your child as recommended by NAEYC, the National
Association for the Education of Young Children.
Throughout our day, your child will be given many
opportunities to socialize. We play as well as work
together in small groups. In sharing time together, your
child will learn such skills as how to help one another,
how to cooperate, and how to negotiate. These skills are
so important for everyday life.
Emotionally, your child will learn
self control while being supported by a full time teacher
and an aide. The adults have many chances to interact with
your child on a one-to-one basis, and they love doing so.
Academically, we will provide your
child with a foundation in reading, math, science, and
religion. By the end of Pre-K, your child will have gained
an appreciation of literature and poetry. They will also
be able to recognize the alphabet- both upper and lower
case. They will also have gained such pre-reading skills
as print awareness. In math, your child will be exposed to
graphing, measuring, and sorting. Your child will also be
able to recognize numbers one through ten as well as know
the value of those numbers. However, since learning in
Pre-K is individualized, the academic goals are
personalized to fit your child. Whether your child is
gifted of not, the appropriate goals will be set for them.
In science, we discuss the five senses and living and
nonliving. We also complete themes on plants and the
lifecycle of a butterfly- all to our amazement.
In religion, your child will be
introduced to Jesus Our Lord, and learn the Our Father.
Physically, your child will have recess on a daily basis and gym once a week. This activity will help your child develop their gross motor skills, but most importantly, it encourages having fun! In Pre-K. your child will learn that education is fun!
With a Masters degree in early childhood development from National Louis University and seventeen years of teaching experience, Susan Como considers teaching at St. Odilo School a privilege because of the young lives she is able to touch. “I love being with four and five year-olds because they make such significant strides at this age. It is utterly amazing watching these small children attain their learning goals with such happiness.” Much of that happiness stems from hands-on learning through play. Academic goals are achieved through poetry, songs, dance, games, art and books. Preschoolers even get a glimpse of science as they watch butterflies emerge from their chrysalis. Mrs. Como knows she’s succeeding with her students because parents often tell her that kids want to come to school on Saturday and Sunday.