In the Wood Acres Three Year Old Program, early reading skills are cultivated through a print rich environment that encourages students to use their innate curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. Purposeful inquiry is at the heart of our literacy program that awakens the scientist and the explorer in every child.

A closer look into Wood Acres Early Literacy Program would reveal:

• Discrimination and identification of sounds in spoken language
• Demonstration of awareness of concepts of print
• Engagement in written exploration
• Knowledge that letters of the alphabet are a special category of visual graphics
• Association of pictures with their labels
• Engagement in activities related to stories
• Continued emphasis on the joys of books, stories, and rhythmic poetry

The Wood Acres early numeracy program offers an activity-centered, manipulative math program in which students learn through the five senses. Materials, from pattern blocks to acorn tops, are real and physically present before the student, engaging the child’s senses. The activities are, in themselves, enjoyable and interesting. Embedding significant mathematical learning in play and classroom routines allows the integration of mathematical learning throughout the day, not just during “math time”. Initial work with calendars, schedules, times, etc blend naturally here as well.

A closer look into Wood Acres Early Math program would reveal:

• Patterning that supports the development of numeric and spatial sense
• Sorting and classifying encouragement of the development of logical thinking and language skills
• Counting undergirding basic mathematical concepts including number recognition, counting skills, and an understanding of one-to-one correspondence
• Geometric identification promoting shape recognition and manipulation
• Application of these budding skills to seeing them in their actual environment

Students in the Early School Program will gain a global understanding of self, people and their lives, friends and family, and their immediate environment. They will also gain an increasing awareness of the relationship between themselves and the groups to which they belong. Wood Acres students will learn how to contribute to the successful functioning of the classroom community. They will also discover the similarities and differences among people in global communities. It is never too early to begin looking at the world through a more global perspective and learning how to serve others.

Three year old children are naturally curious about the world around them. Wood Acres Three Year Old students begin activities in exploration, investigation, and observation. They will develop their observational skills by using their senses to gather and record information. They will begin making predictions and have discussions about their ideas, critical initial stages of embracing the scientific process. Students will examine change over time in natural settings as well as develop respect for living things in the environment.

Art
Students are introduced to general concepts of shape, form and color, leaving the detail and interpretation to the individual child. Independence, imagination, and creative expression are encouraged through exposure to artists and their techniques. These stepping stones will be the foundation for your little Van Gogh, Monet, or Mary Cassatt.

Music
The Wood Acres School Music Program is specifically tailored to each age and is founded on the musical principle that a child has a song in his or her heart, a tune is his or her voice, and the passion to let it be free! By developing a musical “ear”, building the student’s confidence to be musical and just have fun with song and lyric, a child’s musicality can be nurtured and developed.

Physical Education
Physical education emphasizes the development of small and gross motor movements as well as the rudiments of cooperative games and activities appropriate for these young students. It may seem just like play to a three or four year old, but the program is based on developing the skills necessary for becoming a healthy, happy, and physically fit young person.

Spanish
Paco and Lola, the Wood Acres puppet versions of Dora and Diego, introduce Spanish to the students in the early school programs. Music, songs, poems, finger plays, and games are used to provide a multi-sensory experience for students to begin listening, understanding, and speaking Spanish. Classroom teachers then reinforce Spanish vocabulary and culture in reading and cultural activities within the classroom.