ABOUT OUR SCHOOL

Serving the communities of Lakewood, Steilacoom, and McChord, we are centrally located within the Clover Park and Steilacoom School Districts and near Pierce College.

Little Scholars cares for children 12 months to 5 years. We are a non-discrimination Center. We are open to all children regardless of race, nationality, or creed. No religious activities will be observed at our Center. We realize that all children have their own religion and since we are a multicultural center, we respect all beliefs and national origins. We provide a rich environment where children gain confidence and self esteem and cultivate a love of learning. Our program is based on purposeful play, and promotes learning in all developmental areas that are specific to a child's emergent ideas and interests. Small class sizes and low teacher-to-student ratios give each child the opportunity to learn at their own pace and in their own style.

We believe a child's knowledge of self and the world grows from pleasant and meaningful learning experiences as well as cohesive communities. Because of this, Little Scholars provides programs, curriculum, and people within the community that support children and empower them to succeed to their full potential academically and in all aspects of life.

We focus on developmentally appropriate education. Our curriculum integrates music, art, movement, math, science, botany, language, dance, cooking, early literacy, and social studies to provide enrichment to children.

Meet the Owner / Director

Dear Parents,

My educational background includes a Bachelors Degree in Education with State of Washington teaching certification in General Education: preschool to 8th grade and Special Education: preschool to 21 years. I also have Master's credit in Curriculum Development.

I had the opportunity to serve as a Special Education Preschool and Kindergarten Teacher in the Clover Park School District for the past 14 years in the following capacities:

• Grades 1-3 Teacher
• Itinerant Teacher Preschool Special Education
• Grades 1-10 Special Education Teacher
• Early Childhood Instructor Pierce College

Plus, I have worked in a broad range of settings with children for the last 25 years.

I retired 5 years ago from the school district and enjoy being a grandmother of two young children, Isabella and Charl. Their mother… my daughter, Kiersten Matteson, shares duties here at Little Scholars. Her educational background includes a Bachelor's Degree in Communication and Business, which provides a nice balance to Center operations.

We welcome you and your children and look forward to working with you!

Sincerely,
Joyce Livingston & Kiersten Matteson

Center Hours

Little Scholars Early Learning Center is open 5 days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We are closed on the following days:

• New Years Day
• Juneteenth
• Memorial Day
• Independence Day
• Labor Day
• Veterans Day
• Presidents Day
• Martin Luther King Day
• Thanksgiving Day & Day After
• Christmas Eve & Christmas Day

The Director reserves the right to close the Center if necessary for safety, maintenance, or administrative reasons. We will endeavor to give parents advanced notice if this should occur.

Philosophy

• We believe learning is a life long, challenging and enjoyable experience.
• We have high expectations for all children. Every child is unique and at individual learning levels. Therefore, we tailor our approach to each individual child's social, emotional, and intellectual needs.
• Children learn faster in a stimulating environment.
• We provide students with a variety of educational opportunities for an early start toward school success.
• Children learn by touching, seeing, hearing, modeling, and through play.
• We believe that play gives children opportunities to understand their environment, interact with others in social ways, express and control emotions, and develop their imagination and creativity.
• Children will participate in a learning environment in which they can solve problems and express their feelings through words, art, and other creative areas.
• We believe that family provides the child's most important learning environment. Parent involvement is encouraged and welcomed.
• Reading to young children is important for the development of pre-reading skills.
• Developing math skills is an important part of an early childhood program.
• Preschool should be the foundation for all future learning environments.

Meet our Teachers

Teacher Wyleen - Center Director

Teacher Jenice - Program Coordinator

Hi, let me introduce myself, my name is Ms Jenice; better known to my students as "Teacher"!! I am the Program Coordinator here at Little Scholars. My objective here is to prepare our 3 year olds for Pre-K so that they will have a better advantage in Kindergarten. We practice and learn the alphabet, phonics, word association, colors, shapes, and numbers (counting from 0 to 50). We practice letter writing and name recognition. We do art and we try to tie it in with the letter of the week. We practice letter association throughout the day for repetition. Fridays are show-n-tell days and I have been told by some of our parents that they have it marked on their calendar. The kids love it and look forward to it. Preschool has changed from just "playing". We play and learn, for as we play WE LEARN. - Teacher Jenice