Learning Curriculum
Early Childhood Education is important to St. Mark Lutheran Church. We have centered our Childcare Center around our Preschool program, which has been a part of the ministry of St. Mark Lutheran Church for over 30 years.
What makes our approach to Childcare distinctive is our requirement to have all children enrolled in our childcare center also attend the age-appropriate Preschool class and receive the special benefits that this unique and dedicated programming offers. Current preschool families now have the opportunity to add Childcare to more fully meet their child’s needs.
Our Preschool classes run from September 1st through the 3rd week of May. Our center offers three different preschool classes; 3-year-old, 4-year-old and Pre-K 5 class. We use the One-in-Christ curriculum in all our classes. Each week the children learn a new story from over 200 Old and New Testament Bible stories in this curriculum. The bible stories are reinforced in weekly activities, songs and art projects that teach preschoolers about God’s unconditional love for them in Jesus. Weekly chapel in our sanctuary is scheduled for all classes.
When planning weekly lessons, our teachers follow the Early Learning Guidelines: Nebraska’s Birth to Five Learning and Development Standards.
These guidelines follow a play-based learning philosophy. We develop activities centered on stories, songs, math, fine and gross motor skills, circle time, science, music, theater, and arts/crafts. We strive to prepare your children for their early school years by exposing them regularly to letters, numbers, colors, shapes, name recognition, and new vocabulary.
Weekly lessons include activities in the following domains:
- Social & Emotional Development
- Approaches to Learning
- Health & Physical Development
- Language & Literacy Development
- Mathematics
- Science
- Creative Arts
Before- and after-school childcare reinforces the lessons taught in our preschool classes by incorporating STEM activities along with a variety of large motor play, story time, activity centers and opportunity for free art.
Just because Preschool is out of session in the summer, doesn’t mean the learning stops!
Our summer Childcare is offered from the 3rd week in May to September 1st. Children are stimulated all summer with weekly theme-based lessons. Each week they will be immersed in a fun-filled week of activities planned around a single theme, while continuing to learn about the wonderful world God has created for them. Teachers will plan lessons in language and literacy, math, science, gross motor skills, and creative arts based on the weekly theme. All these activities are designed to work on age-appropriate skills in a way the children see as play. Children will be actively engaged in learning guided by their teachers.
More information:
» https://www.cph.org/t-early-childhood.aspx
» https://www.education.ne.gov/oec/early-learning-guidelines/