Nichols-Bethel United Methodist Preschool
PHILOSOPHY: We will nurture the “whole child” in the areas of intellectual, social/emotional, behavioral, physical, moral, and spiritual development... through age-appropriate activities in a faith-based environment. We will treat each child as special and seek to meet his/her individual needs by offering a wide variety of developmental and instructional learning experiences, both social and academic. Children will learn through individual instruction, large and small groups, teacher-directed and self-directed activities, and exploration of varied learning materials. We will encourage your child to be independent and confident, to problem-solve, to be kind to others, and to pray. We are committed to helping your child experience the love of the Father through relationship with Jesus Christ. We understand and value the important role that parents play and will partner with families in their child’s education. With family support and with teaching that embodies Christian principles, we expect your child to grow and mature in all of the above areas.
MISSION STATEMENT
Our mission is to inspire a life-long love for the Lord through educational instruction that promotes children’s intellectual, moral and behavioral development.
CURRICULUM: The curriculum at NBUMC is based upon Developmentally Appropriate Practices for Early Childhood Education. This means children will be learning concepts by playing with and manipulating materials. Children learn best through supervised play. Play is the work of children. Children will be physically moving their bodies and touching materials through hands-on activities in order to better make sense of the world around them. There are opportunities for the children throughout our daily schedule to engage in large and small group activities. Children are given experiences with teacher-directed activities as well as activities that are child-initiated, such as Centertime, Outdoor time, Independent Reading, etc.
The curriculum at NBUMC is theme-based. We do NOT subscribe to a branded curriculum. These curriculum programs are expensive and don’t provide us with anything we don’t know already. Our imagination and ingenuity are limitless!
The activities included in the curriculum are intended to stimulate your child’s intellectual/cognitive, social/emotional, behavioral, physical, moral, and spiritual development. Specific activities will include: worship, literacy, math, science, social studies, art, music, group games, outdoor play, snack, and special in-house events. All activities are age-appropriate, tailored to meet the unique needs of both the 3 and 4 year old programs and are imbedded in every part of our daily routine.
TEACHERS: Jen graduated from the University of Delaware with a B.S. degree in Human Resources. She graduated with three certifications: Nursery/Kindergarten, Young Exceptional Children (Special Education), and Child Life. She joined the Nichols-Bethel Preschool as a teacher in Fall 2009 and became the school’s director in Fall 2010.
Deborah graduated from the University of Maryland School of Medicine with a B.S. degree in Medical and Research Technology and a Chemistry minor. She first served at Nichols-Bethel Preschool as a classroom volunteer when her children attended our program. Deborah came on board as a substitute teacher in the fall of 2014. Deborah has been a full-time teacher with the preschool since January 2017.
