Our Curriculum

The Preschool Program includes Art, Music, Dramatic Movement and Literature, Science and Math, and incorporates educational standards. All areas of learning include readiness and thinking skills.

 

Art: Children express their curiosity and wonderment as they explore a variety of media such as crayons, watercolor, finger paints, clay, inks, and many others. Through creating collages, puppets, paintings, or clay sculptures, the students’ multi-sensory investigations of two-and three-dimensional work using the creative art process allows each student to express his/her unique ideas and understanding. Art activities emphasize the development of fine motor skills in grasping, cutting with scissors, pasting, holding and controlling brushes, chalk, pencils, markers, and crayons. This area enhances self-confidence and stimulates the imagination as the children develop their creative and expressive abilities.

 

Music:  Children grow in awareness and curiosity about music within the creative environment of Mercy Center of the Arts. The world of sound is experienced through singing, listening, moving, creating, and playing instruments, as well as through introductory experiences of music theory using Note Puppets. Instruments of the orchestra and marching band are explored, as well as the concepts of tempo, rhythm, dynamics, pitch, and timbre.

 

Dramatic Movement and Literature: This area introduces the child to the world of language and movement through literature and nourishes a love for reading. Dramatic movement encourages verbal and nonverbal expression, and it stimulates creative imagination through role-play, pantomime, puppetry, story dramatization, movement, and music. Kindergarten readiness skills are an integral part of this area, including speaking, listening, vocabulary, comprehension, and phonemic awareness. Gross motor skills are addressed in the Dramatic Movement area.

 

Science: The Science area of the preschool program recognizes the child’s innate qualities of curiosity and strives to guide the young child through exploration and discovery. This area encourages the use of the senses through the scientific processes such as observation, classification, and communication, with an emphasis on nature. The children interact with many kinds of equipment and materials in their exploration. Appropriate math skills such as sequencing, counting, number recognition, and one-to-one correspondence are included.

 

Math: This area supports the child’s development of critical thinking and reasoning skills. Math skills are taught in context of a child’s everyday learning and are presented through hands-on learning. 

 

Friday Special: An optional third weekly session is offered on Friday mornings. This Special Session provides an opportunity for enrichment and deeper exploration in all areas, increased socialization, and extended work on projects. A child must be enrolled in the regular program of two weekly sessions and be 4 years of age by September 1st.

 

Extended Care: This program re-intoduces the Creative Exploration learning area that was a part of our program for more than twenty years. Creative Exploration provides support and hands-on application of concepts and skills that have been presented during the regular sessions. It also provides additional opportunities for the children to develop their social skills. Key areas of focus are art, science, creative exploration, and learning based play. Each day will consist of lunch, quiet play, gross motor, creative exploration, and self-guided learning centers.

 

Return to the Preschool Page

Mercy Center of the Arts

We invite you to make an appointment to visit our classrooms!

1531 E. Grandview Blvd. Erie, PA 16510


Phone: 814-824-2519

Hours: MWF, 8:30-12:00

T/TH, by Appointment 

 

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