3 Year-Old Program

Academic Gardens is proud to have the lowest teacher-to-student ratios in the area. The small class sizes are just right for the little ones allowing special loving attention to those first time preschoolers. Being comfortable in this new experience is very important. Being able to work closely with a 3 year old, allows us to nurture their needs and emphasize the joys of learning. Moreover, it gives the little ones an important start to build the self esteem and confidence they need to move on to their next level of education. This is often their first opportunity to learn and socialize in a supervised, loving environment around adults that are not mom and dad. Here they can begin to learn to interact with others their age. It is a small group that allows the children to get to know each other and stress the importance of each child being a valuable participant and contributor to the class.

We will introduce your child to their first school experience in a warm setting that goes beyond babysitters and chaotic daycare! By introducing sharing techniques, one-on-one teaching techniques and many  opportunities for large group play in a variety of settings, we can show your child the joy of learning and exploring the world around them. This program first meets the children’s important emotional needs of safety and belonging, and then provides ample developmentally appropriate academic and social experiences.

Academic Gardens is proud to have the lowest teacher-to-student ratios in the area. This is why we always have 2 teachers in the classroom, whether there are 3 kids or 12…(if there are more than 12, we add teacher #3)!  High student/teacher ratios lead to misbehavior, attention seeking behaviors, and sometimes cause children to get hurt! We want you to know that we start with low ratios to help avoid these mishaps. We value the safety of your child as well as their emotional growth. Two teachers allows a quick response to disturbances in the classroom, followed by modeling problem solving skills, allowing children to learn valuable social emotional responses.

• All teachers maintain full CPR and Bloodborne Pathogens Certification.
• All teachers maintain the required 16 hours of annual clock hour training.
• All teachers and volunteers are state background checked!

Our Small Group setting is one in which the children are broke into groups of 3-6 children. These children work with a teacher on a concept (language arts, mathematics, science, etc.). This small group setting allows for a calm and controlled activity time in which students can ask questions and get help when needed. We find that children thrive when they are not competing with too many other children for attention.  This also allows for your child to get a more in depth discovery. Individual attention can be paid to children who need extra assistance at this time too!

Our Large Group setting focuses on important social emotional growth.  In this setting the students focus on appropriate carpet behaviors, learning to talk in front of a group, listening to others share stories, participate in movements and songs, and raising their hand to share their stories.  Most of this is done during our calendar routine, introduction to letters and math concepts, and Show ‘N’ Tell. This is a great opportunity for your child to practice our 4 year old program.

We will introduce your child to a variety of different fruits and veggies! We follow the CACFP’s menu guidelines for snack.  (Link below) We provide fresh fruits and veggies, yogurt, bagels and much more for your little ones plate! We try to expose your child to as many different new foods and educate their palate too! *We work with all diets and allergies.  ( https://www.fns.usda.gov/cacfp/meals-and-snacks )