Our highly trained early childhood teachers develop curriculum targeted toward their students' learning goals, developmental milestones, and current interests to increase attention and engagement. They include developmentally appropriate sensory, science, fine motor, gross motor, creative arts, language and literacy, and music activities in their daily routines for children from infancy to pre-kindergarten.

We encourage our students to feel their feelings while supporting and guiding them through their emotions!

The Village Academy prioritizes the development of our students' social-emotional skills because we understand that they are crucial for our children's future success. We achieve this by nurturing relationships between children and adults through warm and respectful communication. Our teachers work diligently to establish trust and connections with their students, ensuring that they feel secure in the classroom. We are committed to helping each child develop a positive self-image and strong self-esteem, fostering independence. Teachers actively support children as they learn to collaborate and cooperate with their peers and serve as role models in navigating challenging behaviors and strong emotions.

At Village Academy, we ENCOURAGE our students to make a mess. We believe that sensory play is beneficial for children's overall development. It enables them to explore and understand the world by using their five senses and learning about cause and effect. Through activities such as scooping, pouring, molding, and picking up small items, children can enhance their fine motor skills, strengthening the muscles in their hands and fingers, which is essential for skills like writing. Additionally, sensory play often involves group participation, teaching children how to share, take turns, and engage cooperatively, which in turn supports the development of empathy and cooperation. Many sensory activities, such as playing with sand, water, or dough, have a calming effect and help children regulate their emotions, especially in a daycare setting where they are learning to manage their feelings in a new environment. Successfully navigating new textures or experiences during sensory play can boost confidence, encouraging children to take on more challenges and feel competent. Furthermore, sensory play helps children with sensory processing challenges to tolerate and manage sensory inputs better, and it provides them with opportunities to experience new textures, sounds, and sights in a safe manner.

Our favorite sensory fillers and tools are rice/beans, water, foam, kinetic sand, flour, oats, jello, and more!

Gross Motor Skills

Gross motor skills refer to the ability to control and effectively use the body's larger muscles, which are crucial for children's future activities, both in and out of school. These skills are essential for activities such as walking, playing on the playground, participating in sports, riding a bicycle, and sitting at a desk. We provide many opportunities for children to develop these skills throughout the day, both indoors and outdoors. Our facility features four playgrounds designed for different age groups, as well as various structures, tents, tunnels, and music players in our classrooms. Additionally, we have an indoor gym equipped with balls, bikes, hula hoops, and more for days when outdoor play is not possible due to the weather.

Fine Motor Skills

Fine motor skills are essential for the ability to control and manipulate small objects with one's hands. These skills are crucial for tasks such as writing, drawing, and activities as simple as picking up small items like dropped Cheerios or coins from your pocket. To support the development of fine motor skills, it's important to provide hands-on experiences such as drawing, painting, cutting, gluing, and using stickers. Additionally, sensory experiences like playing with finger paint, sand, and water can also contribute to the development of these skills.

Engaging children in art activities at daycare offers significant developmental benefits. It fosters creativity and imagination, allowing children to express themselves freely and explore new ways of thinking. Art also plays a crucial role in enhancing fine motor skills, as tasks like drawing, painting and sculpting help improve hand-eye coordination and strengthen muscles, which are essential for writing and other tasks. Additionally, art provides an emotional outlet, enabling children to communicate complex feelings when they may not have the language skills to do so verbally. Furthermore, participating in creative activities supports cognitive development as children learn to make decisions, solve problems, and think critically through artistic expression.