Second Presbyterian Preschool was founded in 1953 as a mission of Second Presbyterian Church.  It has run continuously for over 55 years! Our mission is “Providing Christian nurture of young children, encouraging growth and learning through play.”  We are a non-profit, religiously exempt school designed to provide a developmentally appropriate total learning experience for children age four months to five years.  We believe each child is a gift from God with unique talents, characteristics, needs, skills and abilities.  Our teachers and staff strive in conjunction with the parents of each child to create the most nurturing and loving environment possible.

    The philosophy of Second Presbyterian Preschool is to interact with the whole family and teach children by actively engaging each child through music, creative arts and crafts, manipulative toys and games, science activities, pre-reading experiences, and simple math and alphabet concepts.  All learning concepts are presented in a manner that acknowledges the wide developmental range of preschool children.  Our activities are hands-on to provide discovery for each child, spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically.  Our children learn in relationship with the whole school community by “doing” and “playing”.

General Information

    Second Presbyterian Preschool and The Children’s Garden run September through May.  Classes begin after Labor Day and end just prior to Memorial Day. Our core classes start at 8:50 a.m. ending at noon.  We offer Early Morning Drop-off from 8:15 to 8:30 every morning and Lunch Bunch Tuesday through Friday from noon until 1:00 p.m. There is an additional charge for each of these options.

    The Children’s Garden refers to classes for our youngest children ages four to 30 months.  Our Children’s Garden teachers present all learning concepts in a loving, low-key atmosphere. They provide a developmentally appropriate environment in which the child can learn through play and activities that develop physical growth and both language and thinking skills. We provide several “two year old” options spanning both our Children’s Garden and Preschool to ensure that each child is in the environment that best suits his or her developmental abilities.

    The Preschool offers a more structured environment for the older child who is ready to participate in group activities, can transition from one activity to another, and is ready to sit and listen at both “Story Time” and the daily “Circle Time”.  Additionally the preschool child participates in Hallelujah Mountain, our bimonthly chapel time, Workshop/Gardening classes, and music classes with a certified Musikgarten teacher.

    Our building and facilities were built specifically for preschool age children.  The rooms are inviting, clean and filled with age appropriate, learning directed toys.  Each room has a one-way viewing mirror as well as bathrooms with appropriate size fixtures.  Our Workshop has tools and sawhorses where the older children learn to hammer, nail  and create with wood.  We also plant flowers and vegetables on our grounds.  Take a look! (Link to photo gallery)