For most children, the Juniors Program is their initial nursery school experience, so teachers actively provide needed reassurance to make the adjustment from home to school. Teachers offer support and encouragement in helping children adjust to new experiences, helping children in routine situations, helping children separate from their parent with confidence, and helping children master new skills. There is beginning exploration of art and tactile materials, block building, dramatic play, cooking and manipulatives (i.e. shape and color recognition, counting and sorting, lacing and tracing, etc). In addition, books and stories are used to motivate listening and speaking, and there are social opportunities for the children to communicate their thoughts and feelings verbally.

Activity abounds for ever-moving and inquisitive four-year-olds in the Seniors Program. Teachers encourage communication and provide materials and situations to promote language development. Everything from art to blocks to dramatic play provides opportunity for the children’s imaginations to expand. Opportunities are carefully set up for the children to play and work cooperatively. A portion of the children will be attending Kindergarten the following year. As with the Pre-K class, the curriculum addresses the needs of these children to prepare them for Kindergarten. Examples include learning games that help in the formation of basic math and language concepts; retelling a story with a beginning, middle and an end; sorting; book-making and more complex crafts; and acquiring readiness skills.

The Pre-Kindergarten Program provides alternating quiet and active periods, as well as child- and teacher-directed activities. Emphasis is placed on working independently, productively, and with absorption as well as completing tasks, learning to participate cooperatively in a small group, and acquiring readiness skills. As with the older children in the Senior Program, the Pre-K children have longer attention spans and a great capacity to learn and discover for themselves. The curriculum reflects this in learning games that help in the formation of basic math and language concepts, sorting, seriation, individualized cooking with self-explanatory recipes, book-making, and more complex crafts. The aim of the program is to nurture each child by establishing self-esteem, encouraging basic thinking skills, increasing their ability to express thoughts orally, and achieving self-discipline. The approach is developmental, with self-understanding and an acceptance of the rights and needs of others a primary concern. While the program is more structured, there is also much emphasis on democratic problem-solving and group planning.