Preschool Curriculum

A careful orchestration of materials, activities and support allows our youngest learners to flourish physically, socially, emotionally, and academically.

The A. Fantis preschool philosophy builds a warm, nurturing environment with careful planning of materials, classrooms and activities.

Play-based instruction emphasizing social-emotional growth with daily outdoor play and second language learning. Enrichment continues with daily after-school clubs and our Beyond the Bell extended day program.

Fantis preschoolers are kindergarten-ready because faculty work closely to capitalize on the students’ inherent curiosity and cultivate their depth of knowledge and understanding with sophisticated levels of questioning, concept development and language modeling.

Curriculum

Social and Emotional Growth

Respect and concern for people and materials
Pro-social problem solving strategies
Regulates his/her responses to needs, feelings, events
Has a good self-concept and self-awareness
Play and share cooperatively
Adapting to change

Approaches to Learning

Demonstrating initiative and persistence
Engagement in activities and exploration
Ability to focus on a task
Work well independently and in small groups

Language and Literacy

Phonics and word recognition
Identities and writes letters and words
Vocabulary acquisition and usage
Responds to literature

Speaking and Listening

Speaks clearly and communicates in sentences
Responds to questions and waits turn
Listening stamina
Understands and follows directions

Mathematics

Counting and cardinality
Basic geometry
Uses models and drawing to show thinking
Makes sense of problems and persevere in solving them

Cognition & Knowledge of the World

Understands basic science concepts and shows scientific thinking
Awareness of the broader community and its elements
Creativity and imagination in the arts
Music, creative movement and dramatic play

Autonomy

Follows routines independently
Takes initiative before requesting teacher support
Independently uses bathroom, dresses and undresses
Eats and cleans up during meal times

Fine Motor

Holds and uses crayons, pencils and scissors
Simple puzzle assembly
Proper pincer grip hold
Pastes and glues

Gross Motor

Walks up/down stairs with alternating feet
Walks forward and backward
Runs, hops and jumps
Balances left and right foot
Gallops and skips

Second language acquisition

Greek language speaking and listening
Greek language vocabulary
Greek letters and basic word recognition

Prepared for Kindergarten & Beyond

Getting ready for elementary school is more than simply reading, writing and mathematics. Being ready for kindergarten means preschoolers have learned key social-emotional skills, attained a level of autonomy, and can think creatively and solve problems. Most importantly, we want our graduates to enter kindergarten maintaining what is special about preschool—a sense of wonder, curiosity and passion for understanding the world around them.

Sample Schedules

PreK3

UPK4

The Pre-K Teacher

Our experienced teachers work collaboratively and engage in ongoing professional development to hone their craft. Preschool teachers:

Start with a foundation based on love
Fully understand each student as a unique individual
Support the growth and development of the whole child
Capture preschoolers natural curiosity and wonder with scaffolded questioning and language modeling
Purposefully design the classroom environment and curriculum to enhance learning

Why learn Greek?

Over 60 percent of all English words have Greek or Latin roots. In the vocabulary of the sciences and technology, the figure rises to over 90 percent. Indeed, we speak and write Greek every day without realizing it. Western democracy is based on ancient Greek ideals and universal values, from Plato to Hippocrates. We all can better appreciate our own language and culture through the careful study of the Greek language and Hellenism. In addition, learning a second language has many social and cognitive benefits, beyond simple language acquisition.

Research has shown the positive influence of learning another language has on the development of the brain and a child’s intellectual abilities. Our Greek Language and Hellenic Studies curriculum is academically rigorous and provides students with an opportunity for interdisciplinary learning that is engaging, meaningful and important.