School Spotlight: St. Alphonsus Early Childhood Program
Brooklyn Center-based St. Alphonsus Catholic School’s early childhood program has extensive specialization with young age groups. There are three levels of preschool before you even get to kindergarten. If you’re two years old, you begin with Toddlers.
“At first we start with praying and then we talk about, its a new day. We see what friends are here. We like to read books. And then we have table time where they do a math activity,” said Toddler teacher Kelly Jacobson.
After Toddlers you graduate to Explorers.
“The explorers, they are 3-4 year olds,” said Explorer teacher Molly Broadbent-Mader.
In these early years, children are learning at an exponential rate. At each level, little minds are challenged. This year’s school theme is applied across all grades.
“Grateful, thankful, blessed. Yeah we all feel grateful to be working with these kids and blessed and thankful that we get to be with all of them everyday,” said Broadbent-Mader.
Four year olds are in Kinderstart.
Small class sizes enable each teacher and their helper to give a lot of specialized attention. When you finally reach the ripe old age of five you get to be in Kindergarten class with Miss Twohy.
“I get to meet with a small group every single day. It can be as big as four people, or four children, and as small as one. And I get to really meet them on their individual levels,” said Kindergarten teacher Annie Twohy.
At St. Alphonsus every one of the instructors echoed a sincere passion that drives them to teach these young ones.
“I love how they have no box. They have no limits. They create so much in their minds,” said Jacobson.
“I just absolutely love how enthusiastic they are about learning,” said Broadbent-Mader.
“It makes me happy. Truly, truly happy. It’s my biggest passion in the whole world,” added Twohy.
