What people are saying
l like that my child is safe and well taken care of. Mrs. Sonny is also another highlight. She is well organized and always professional. Cactus Preschool is an all around five star school.
-- Kelli MarinoTempe Valley, AZ
Curriculum
At Cactus Preschool of Tempe, we’re dedicated to early childhood learning, and we designed our early education programs to foster children’s success. As with each of our centers, our Tempe early childhood learning center prepares your child for school and for life with a range of developmentally appropriate activities and instruction that are engaging, challenging and fun.
Infants
We know that healthy, positive infant development requires warm, responsive care. In our safe, nurturing setting, we enrich your baby's environment with appropriate soft toys, books and music that foster infant education.
Toddlers
In their toddler years, children are beginning to understand language. They’re also just starting to be able to think through their actions and solve problems. Thus, new experiences and challenges are key components of toddler care and education. With this in mind, we provide a secure and nurturing setting that allows each child to develop naturally in his or her own unique way. Cactus Preschool of Tempe provides parents of toddlers with daily reports and records of care routines like eating, diapering and napping.
Twos
As you’ve noticed, your two-year-old is eager to explore and discover his or her world! We support that natural drive by providing him or her with a wide variety of appropriate toys and activities. We offer self-directed learning activities that allow two-year-olds to enjoy their new-found independence, while preparing them for their transition into preschool. Two-year-olds are rapidly learning words and how to use words to express themselves, so we foster language development through reading aloud, reciting nursery rhymes and singing songs.
Preschool
At Cactus Preschool of Tempe, we know that you want your child to have the benefits of a strong preschool curriculum. When you choose us, your child will be in a program that focuses on preschool learning activities without forgetting the importance of making friends and having fun. We offer preschool math and language arts, engaging music activities for children and much more, all provided by caring, dedicated teachers who know how to make young children feel safe and loved while nurturing each one’s unique abilities.
Learning Centers
Preschool classrooms should be designed and organized in a way that actively promotes child education and development, and Cactus Preschool’s classrooms delight and inspire our young learners! Each of our state-of-the-art classrooms contains multiple Learning Centers such as Language and Circle Time, Blocks and Creativity and Art. These centers invite your child to explore the world in different ways, and each one contributes to the development of important skills. Our Learning Centers include:
- Circle Time
Children start the day here with activities such as storytelling, singing, show-and-tell and matching games. Circle time encourages children to express their ideas, connect the written word with spoken words and expand their world. - Art
For children, art is definitely a hands-on activity! Children experience art by touching, pulling, twisting, tearing, bending, scraping, cutting, pounding, shaping and more. Preschoolers are beginning to understand the concept of form, balance, line, color and shape. They are learning about relationships between objects, developing motor skills, sharpening their powers of observation, beginning the process of logical thinking and learning to solve problems. - Music
Music activities for children should involve their entire bodies, and Cactus Preschool of Tempe emphasizes the enjoyment of participation! Music lets young children build awareness by exposing them to many kinds of sounds, and encourages them to experience the release and freedom of body movement. Children will be invited to have fun as they experiment with both their vocal and kinesthetic abilities. - Blocks
In the Blocks center, children learn preschool math and problem-solving skills while having fun stacking, arranging and counting blocks. These activities teach concepts such as number, measurement, size and weight. Playing with blocks also builds hand-eye coordination and develops control of wrists, hands and fingers.
Dramatic Play
Our center’s collection of dress-up clothes, scaled-down furniture and interesting props invite young children to make believe. Dramatic play lets them try out various occupations and roles while they learn to share, make friends and express their emotions. Children also learn practical skills such as turning knobs, fastening buttons and using zippers. - Math
Children learn that math is a useful way to find things out and solve problems. Our preschool math activities build skills in sorting and counting, pattern recognition and putting things in proper order. Children are encouraged to manipulate materials in order to learn basic relational concepts such as big/little, large/small and same/different. - Science
At Cactus Preschool of Tempe, children get to discover the world through many real-life, hands-on activities. In our science center, children can interact with living things, use magnets and magnifiers and experiment at sand and water tables.
As your child goes between centers, his or her teacher will listen to thoughts and applaud progress while also acting as a caring guide who encourages new ideas and new ways of thinking.