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Ages 3 – 4

Preschool in Aledo (Ages 3–4)

where curiosity becomes confidence

Two-year-olds are scientists in tiny bodies. We meet them with structured curriculum, hands-on play, and the kind of patient teachers who can explain why the sky is blue four times before lunch — and mean it every time.

Tour the Preschool room
Preschool classroom at Grace Learning Tree
Grace Learning Tree’s preschool program in Aledo, Texas serves children ages three and four. Classrooms are built on the Frog Street curriculum in a warm Christian environment (mealtime prayer, Bible Wednesday), and taught by named teachers who stay for years. The program develops early literacy, number sense, self-regulation, and social-emotional skills — the foundations Aledo ISD kindergarten teachers expect from incoming students. Along the way, children begin their first Spanish numbers and colors, start writing with Handwriting Without Tears, and explore hands-on art and science.
2–3
Years old
Low
Teacher : child ratio
6+
Years tenured teachers
5
Curricula layered in
a day in our room

What Tuesday looks like

Predictable rhythm, full of variety. Two-year-olds thrive on knowing what comes next — and on being surprised by what fills the slots.

7:00–9:00

Drop-off & soft start

Breakfast for early arrivals, free play, table activities. We greet each child by name.

9:00–9:30

Frog Street circle

Songs, calendar, weather, theme intro. The kids love this part more than you'd think.

9:30–10:30

Learning centers

Small-group rotations: literacy, math manipulatives, art, sensory bin, dramatic play.

10:30–11:00

Handwriting Without Tears

Pre-writing strokes, letter formation play, fine motor strengthening. The national gold standard, delivered by teachers trained in it.

11:00–11:30

Outdoor play

Preschool playground (separate from the toddlers and infants) — bikes, sandbox, gardening, sprinklers in summer.

11:30–12:15

Lunch together

Hot meals served at child-sized tables. Teachers eat with them. We practice manners, conversation, and using utensils.

12:15–2:30

Rest

Full nap on individual cots. Soft music, dim lights. We protect this fiercely.

2:30–3:00

Snack & quiet read-aloud

Wake-up snack, then a chapter book or themed story to bridge into afternoon.

3:00–3:30

Weekly Science

Hands-on experiments — mixing colors, growing seeds, sink/float, magnets. Two-year-olds asking "why" 40 times a day deserve real answers.

3:30–4:30

Extras & outdoor play

Soccer Shots, Birdie Buddies golf, music, or back outside. Schedule rotates.

4:30–6:00

Wind-down & pickup

Free-choice play, daily reports sent home via Brightwheel, the slow build to "see you tomorrow."

curriculum

What your two-year-old is actually learning

Not "babysitting with crafts." Five curricula layered in, each chosen for what it does best at this age.

🐸

Frog Street

Our anchor curriculum. Research-based, joy-forward, and built around weekly themes.

  • Early literacy and phonemic awareness
  • Math: counting, sorting, patterns
  • Social-emotional learning
  • Movement and music daily
✏️

Handwriting Without Tears

The pre-writing program elementary schools wish every kindergartner arrived knowing.

  • Fine motor strengthening
  • Pre-writing stroke practice
  • Letter recognition through play
  • Pencil grip development
🔬

Weekly Science

Real experiments. Real "why does that work?" moments. Real scientists in the making.

  • Hands-on observation
  • Predictions and outcomes
  • Nature, seasons, weather
  • Plants, animals, the body
🎨

Art & creative expression

Process over product. The painting is rarely the point — the painting of it is.

  • Daily open-ended art time
  • Mixed media exploration
  • Music and movement
  • Dramatic play and storytelling
🌳

Outdoor & nature

Texas weather permits. Texas kids thrive. Our outdoor classroom runs nearly year-round.

  • Garden tending
  • Weather observation
  • Sensory play (sand, water, mud)
  • Gross motor development
❤️

Faith & character

Optional, opt-in. Honest, joyful, age-appropriate stories about kindness, gratitude, and being part of something bigger.

  • Weekly faith story
  • Kindness and sharing focus
  • Family-driven, never forced
  • Aledo community values
growth markers

By the end of Preschool, most children can…

Not a checklist for them. A north-star for us. Every child gets there at their own pace, but these are the markers we celebrate together.

Recognize their nameIn print, in a group, on their cubby
Count to 10 (and beyond)With one-to-one correspondence
Use the bathroom independentlyMost kids potty-train during this year
Identify colors and shapesPrimary and secondary colors, basic shapes
Hold a crayon correctlyPincer grip, intentional marks on paper
Take turns and shareMost of the time, with coaching
Express needs verbally"I need help" instead of meltdown
Follow 2-step directions"Pick up the block and put it on the shelf"
Make friendsReal ones. Best friends. Lifelong, sometimes.
Love coming to schoolThe most important milestone there is
our guiding principle
Low ratios

Texas allows up to 1:15 for three-year-olds, and looser as children get older. Low student-to-teacher ratios are the principle we build every room around — we enroll below the state maximum and keep it there whenever we can, because focused attention is where children grow fastest. Never a guaranteed number — always a philosophy of not maxing out.

what's next

When they're ready, they move to Pre-K

Our Pre-K room is where they get kindergarten-ready. Phonics, sight words, journaling, full kindergarten-level math. Most Grace kids walk into kindergarten ahead of grade level.

Around age three, a child stops needing new — and starts needing steady

By preschool, the fastest of the neurological wiring is done. What builds a child now isn't more novelty. It's stability. So around age three, our approach shifts on purpose: from Preschool through Kinder Bridge, your child has one consistent teacher for the entire year. One person who knows their quirks, their comfort object, the look on their face right before the tears come.

That's not marketing. It's the most authoritative voice in early childhood research. Harvard's National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, chaired by pediatrician Dr. Jack Shonkoff:

“There is no scientific evidence to support the belief that frequently rotating relationships with large numbers of adult caregivers provide valuable learning opportunities in the early years of life.”

— Harvard National Scientific Council on the Developing Child

Some programs solve their teacher-turnover problem by rebranding the churn as a "next step" or "enrichment." We don't. Life happens — a teacher gets sick, someone moves — but a good program flexes those moments honestly, not permanently.

Read the fuller thinking on our Parks of Aledo page.

Want to see the Preschool room?

Drop in any morning. Watch a circle time. Meet the teachers. We'd love to show you around.

Schedule a Tour