Acorn Oaks Academy is open to infants ages 6 weeks to 2 years.

Each full-time child will have their own crib or cot and will have access on a frequent basis to individual care and a play area. Infants' and Toddlers' schedules are kept as consistent as possible with parental wishes regarding care. Toddlers will be assisted in learning self-help skills.

Parents will receive a Daily Record of their infants'/toddlers' activities (sleeping, eating, play, diaper changes) when they pick them up each day.

Based on an individual child's needs and feeding schedules, there will be one staff person for every four infants, and one staff person for every five toddlers. All infants are provided with clean bedding, swings, mobiles, age appropriate toys, and most importantly, love. Our major goals are communication and socialization.

The program for the 2-Year-Old child is designed to promote learning experience and development in:

• Language Arts/Skills: Refer to self by name, do projects with letters and objects that begin with those letters, sit and listen to stories with one sentence on each page, name familiar objects in pictures.

• Math: Identify shapes, count to 10.

• Social Studies/Social Skills: Understand simple class rules, participate in group activities, begin to take turns and share, start to show concern for others.

• Science: Enjoy simple experiments that include pouring and mixing, nature projects (planting, watering, checking growth), talk about the weather and start to understand weather concepts, explore colors.

• Fine Arts: Manipulate play dough, enjoy musical instruments, start to do projects that include gluing and painting, learn most of the words to simple songs and finger plays.

• Good Health/Nutrition: Begin to use the potty, wash and dry hands with some assistance, drink from an open cup, learn about different food groups, experience a healthy diet.

The program for the 3-Year-Old child is designed to promote learning experience and development in:

• Language Arts/Skills: Recognize all capital letters, start to print name, can recognize other student's names, can listen and understand short stories, can follow directions for a simple game, can tell a story.

• Math: Count to 20, name and recognize 1-10, sort objects by their attributes.

• Social Studies/Social Skills: Explain why different individuals and events are celebrated with different holidays, follow school and classroom rules, begin to take turns and try to share, take part in circle time.

• Science: Participate in activities that include measuring, pouring and mixing, understand the basics of weather, i.e. "sun is hot" and "snow is cold", take part in nature walks

• Fine Arts: Participate in art activities that include simple cutting, gluing, coloring and painting, experience and use drama tools (i.e. kitchen set and clothes), play different roles, sing simple songs, pound and mold play-dough.

• Good Health/Nutrition: Practice skills of balancing, hopping and jumping, participate in activities involving throwing, catching, rolling and kicking, experience a healthy diet.

The program for the Pre-Kindergarten child is designed to promote learning experience and development in:

• Language Arts/Skills: Recognize all capital and most lower-case letters, start printing their alphabet, recognize and spell their name and classmate's names, use of invented spelling, print their first name, learn phonetic sounds, dictate a story through pictures, illustrate pictures for a story.

• Math: Identify shapes, count to 30, name and recognize numbers 0-20, match amount of objects to numbers, sort objects by their attributes.

• Social Studies/Social Skills: Explain why different events are celebrated with different holidays or days of recognition, learn about history (past U.S. Presidents), build an understanding of different cultures, learn to cooperate and work with classmates, share with others

• Science: Participate in activities that include measuring, pouring, mixing, baking, understand changing weather conditions (seasons and temperature), take part in nature walks and projects, understand the concept of weight.

• Fine Arts: Participate in arts activities that include cutting, gluing and drawing, experience and use drama tools (i.e. kitchen set, clothes, puppets), imitate different emotions and expressions, play different family roles, sing simple songs, play instruments, imitate dances.

• Good Health/Nutrition: Participate in activities that involve throwing, catching, rolling and kicking, practice skills of balancing, hopping and jumping, play organized games that involve using a parachute, learn about and experience a healthy diet.

What parents should know about Preschool For All:

Preschool For All is an exciting initiative to make voluntary preschool available to all 3 and 4 year olds. That means that as a parent, you decide what early learning experiences are best for your child. By fostering social, emotional and thinking skills, Preschool For All helps prepare children for kindergarten and their school career.

Preschool For All is a high quality Early Childhood Education Program for children 3 and 4 years old. Preschool For All programs operate on a school calendar, the same as your local school district. Classes are 2.5 hours long, 5 days a week.

Inquire with our office to learn if your child qualifies.

Before/After School Care:

Before and after school care is available to families for children ages 6 years-12 years. Before school hours begin at 6:30 a.m.

After school care hours go until 6:30 p.m.

Depending on need, transportation to/from schools near AOA is available.

Full day programs are planned for public school breaks and holidays.

See our Summer Camp Page for more options for those ages 5-12 years old.