St. Thomas Aquinas Church

Classes

Children are placed in classes based on their age as of September 1st of the school year they will attend. All of our classes will bring a lunch and a water bottle to preschool each day.

Our Preschool program serves children who are 18 months (Toddlers) by September 1st of the current school year, 2’s, 3’s, and Pre-K 4’s. Our Faith Formation program is based on the Archdiocese of Atlanta guidelines for preschool children. The Office of Catholic Schools oversees all parish preschools and provides us with support throughout the school year. We incorporate the latest set of high-quality, research-based early learning standards for children birth to age five from the Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS). Children’s individual development is supported through these standards providing an approach that respects children’s individual rates of development and approaches to learning.

Preschool Teachers

Our teachers are trained in First Aid, CPR, AED, and VIRTUS, and also attend the Archdiocese of Atlanta Summer Education Institute for professional development. They are here to nurture and teach your little one while you have some time for yourself.

Faith Formation

Our Preschool Faith Formation program teaches our children about God’s love for us. Our Faith Formation program uses Bible stories, songs and prayers to teach the children about our Catholic Faith. These activities are integrated throughout the child’s day in preschool Faith Formation learning boxes and prayers tables reinforce the Bible lessons the children learn.

Bible Buddies teaches our children about God’s love for us. Our Bible Buddies program utilizes Bible stories, songs and prayers to teach the children about our Catholic faith. These activities are integrated throughout the child’s day in preschool. Bible Buddies Boxes are shared with the classes for a week at a time with special activities and supplies to reinforce the Bible lessons the children are learning.

Children will learn:

• How to make the Sign of the Cross
• The “Our Father” prayer
• The “Guardian Angel” prayer
• Saints
• Old Testament stories during the Fall months
• Advent and preparations for Christmas
• New Testament stories during the months before Lent
• Lenten Season is taught with special regard for the age of the children
• Easter
• Jesus and Our Blessed Mother, Mary

Activity Room

Each class has a scheduled time to have fun in the Activity Room. The children exercise, dance and use their imagination while often matching their movements to music. Activities include the parachute, balance beams, hula hoops, balls or scarves that encourage the children to have fun while developing their gross motor muscles.

Musical Movement is a fun time held once a week in our large activity room. The children exercise, dance and use their imagination while often matching their movements to music. Activities include the parachute, balance beams, hula hoops, balls or scarves that encourage the children to have fun while developing their gross motor muscles.

In-House Guests

These are some guests who have visited us in the past. We encourage anyone with a special interest or talent to contact the preschool office to arrange a visit.Some In-House guests present their programs to the whole school and some visit the classroom where they have a child enrolled.

• Firefighters and a fire truck
• Policeman and a K-9 officer
• Music Shows
• Puppet Shows
• Nature Shows
• Dentist
• Canine Assistants and their handlers
• Storytellers
• Weatherman from a local TV station
• Grandparents
• Aunts and Uncles

Our Preschool Day

• Circle Time – The children gather as a group with the teacher, usually on the educational rug. The teacher leads the children as they pray, sing songs or do fingerplays, discuss the calendar and the weather, or read a story.
• Center Time -Center Time is a favorite activity with our preschoolers. Each center reinforces skills and concepts the children are learning throughout the year. Every child has an opportunity to participate in each center.
• Small Group Time -The teacher and the assistant teacher work with small groups of children on a skill or concept. This can include playing a game, making a craft, talking about a topic, or working with crayons, markers and paint.
• Art -Messy art activities occur most days in our preschool. Although the children wear a smock while painting, sometimes paint will get on clothing. We purchase only washable paints and recommend you pretreat the stain as soon as the child gets home.
• Handwriting – Our preschoolers learn correct letter formation using Handwriting Without Tears.  This developmentally appropriate program includes music, multisensory products and child-friendly books to teach handwriting.
• Literacy – Our preschool staff has been trained in the five areas of literacy development (phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension and fluency) by Brenda Fitzgerald, Executive Director of the Georgia Educational Training Agency. Literacy development is woven throughout your preschooler’s day as we develop the skills they need for reading.
• Mathematics -Your preschooler will use mathematics throughout the day as they learn concepts of one-to-one correspondence, more-less-equal to, measurement, quantity, numeral recognition and number-set relationships. Mathematic concepts are integrated into the activities your child will participate in during the day.
• Social Studies – Preschool children learn about themselves, their families and their community. Dramatic play is often a favorite activity using clothing and props for a grocery store, doctor’s office, post office, shoe store, fire station, chef’s kitchen and many others.
• Science – Science activities and experiments are amazing when viewed through the eyes of a preschooler. Your child will learn that air can move objects, that living plants need soil, water, and air and many other science concepts. The Discovery Area in a classroom will encourage your child to ask questions.
• Show and Tell – We encourage your child to bring items to share in the classroom during Show and Tell. The teachers will notify you when it is your child’s day to share.
• Computers – Pre-K children will work on computer programs that supplement the curriculum. They usually work in groups of two or three.
• Playground – This is usually the children’s most anticipated time of the day. Children will play on the playground every day, weather permitting.

Our curriculum is a blend of purchased materials and teacher-made activities. Our teachers draw from many resources to provide the learning opportunities your child will experience. Each age level has goals and objectives to accomplish which are presented in a developmentally appropriate manner. Each classroom is well-stocked with manipulatives and art supplies. Library books from our resource room are circulated each month. Our resource room also provides literacy books for phonemic awareness and phonics, theme-specific materials, and additional art supplies.