Updated Preschool Guide: What Are The Choices Locally

Editor's Note: After receiving feedback from some other local pre-schools, we are reposting the list for your use.

With school back in session, newer parents or parents-to-be may be wondering if it’s time to start looking for the perfect preschool for their child.

• See related story: How To Survive Sending Your Child to Preschool For The 1st Time

Whether your idea of perfect is all-organic snacks and Mozart during naptimes, or simply a safe place where your child can develop a love of learning, Lake Forest-Lake Bluff Patch has narrowed down the list for you.

• Address: 28457 North Ballard Drive, Suite A2

• Phone: (847) 367-0099

• Hours: Monday – Friday, 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

• Website: www.childrenscenteroflakeforest.com

• Age Range: Infant to 5 years old.

• Safety: Teachers are CPR / First Aid certified. Locked facility with keypad system at main entrance.

• Curriculum: “Our daycare has a curriculum for each age group and we pride ourselves in being able to individually work closely with your child to enhance your child’s self-esteem, self-awareness and self confidence,” according to the web site.

• Meals: Breakfast, lunch and snacks included.

• Cost: $230-280 per week depending on age group.

• Registration: Ongoing throughout the year. No waiting list.

• Philosophy: “We respect each child as an individual regardless of origin, color or race. We maintain open communication with parents so as to be able to positively contribute to each child’s optimum growth and development.”

Kinderhaven Preschool Academy

• Director: Penny Robbins

• Address: Parks and Recreation Department of Lake Forest. 400 Hasting Road

•  Phone: (847) 810-3947 

• Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

• Website: http://www.cityoflakeforest.com/cs/rec/cs_rec2d10.htm

• Age Range: 2.5 - 5.5 years old

• Safety: Teachers are CPR / First Aid certified.

• Curriculum: “It’s based around the children’s interests. The kids set the agenda for the curriculum,” Robbins said.

• Meals: Nut and allergy-free snacks are provided.

• Cost: Ranging from $2,000-5,000 per year depending on number of days attended per week.

• Registration: Begins in late January with a waiting list beginning after registration day – it fills up fast. Visit open houses in late October.

• Philosophy: “This is a compassion-based preschool. Kids with privilege have a responsibility to give back to the community,” said Robbins. Each art-heavy class at Kinderhaven does one or two compassion projects determined by the children’s interests.

• Who makes a good fit? “People who don’t want a traditional preschool – there are no photocopied sheets here. People who want to inspire their kids creatively and intellectually.”

Little Scouts Preschool Program

• Director: Shari Zander

• Address: Lake Forest High School’s West Campus. 300 S. Waukegan Road

• Phone: (847) 235-9670

• Hours: Monday – Friday, 6:45 a.m. – 5:15 p.m.

• Website: http://www.lfhs.org/communityeducation/little_scouts_preschool_program.html

• Age Range:  6 weeks old - 5 years old

• Safety: Teachers are CPR / First Aid certified. Locked facility; parents have key entry.

• Curriculum: “It’s a balance between play and academics – a little bit of everything,” Zander said. Kids do all of their own work – no pre-cut art projects here.

• Meals: Hot lunch and snacks are provided.

• Cost: Flexible depending on scheduling. Five-day rate for a three-year-old is $295 per week.

• Registration: Begins January 1 for upcoming September.

• Philosophy: “This is a child’s first experience with school. We want them to love school and have a positive, safe and healthy experience while learning by doing.”

• Who makes a good fit? “Parents who are open communicators and want to work as a team. Any child can come – there is music, movement, literacy, quiet kids, loud kids, movers, kids who sit still – we are open to the community.”

• Director: Randee Phillips

• Address: Lake Forest Friends Church. 101 West Old Elm Road.

• Phone: (847) 295-2208

• Hours: Mondays & Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

• Website: http://www.lakeforesttots.com/

• Age Range:  2 years old to 3.5 years old

• Safety: CPR / First Aid certified, locked facility. 

• Curriculum: Based on Phillips’ 20+ years of teaching experience. Curriculum is based on a theme each week. 

• Meals: No meals or snacks are provided.

• Cost: First semester is $700

• Registration: Applications accepted in January – it fills up fast. Rolling admissions.

• Philosophy: “Each child is an individual and learns at their own pace. We want them to have fun and develop self-esteem.”

• Who makes a good fit? “What I hear from parents is that we are a warm, understanding and experienced school. Kids will wake up each day and ask, ‘Is it a TOTS day?’ It’s a good fit if you want them to love school and have fun.”

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• Address: Lake Forest Friends Church. 101 West Old Elm Road.

• Phone: (847) 234-2350

• Hours: 8:15 a.m.–11:00 a.m., 12:30 p.m.– 3:15 pm

• Website: http://www.lfcds.org/program/lower/childhood.asp

• Age Range:  2 years old to 5 years old

• Curriculum: “Our research-based curriculum is designed to encourage exploration and provide a myriad of opportunities for language development. Even our youngest students enjoy a holistic integration of language arts, math, science, conversational Spanish, PE and music,” according to the web site. The Masters-level teachers provide students with a worldly education..

• Cost: $5,000 - $19,000 per year. Financial aid is available.

• Registration: Child must meet program age requirement by September 1 to be eligible. – it fills up fast. Rolling admissions.

• Philosophy: “Our inspired teachers create a safe, nurturing environment where students develop at their own pace. Individual attention to the whole child promotes discovery, emotional growth and love of learning.” This school focuses on future academic and social achievement.

First Presbyterian Church Preschool

• Director: Ruth Luke

• Address: 700 N. Sheridan Road, Lake Forest

• Phone: (847) 295-1214

• Hours: 9:00-11:30 and 12:15-2:45

• Website: http://firstchurchlf.org/preschool/index.html
   
• Age Range: 3 years old to 5 years old

• Safety: All teachers are CPR-certified, state-of-the-art security system enabled during all preschool hours

• Curriculum: Developmentally appropriate and project based-very interactive focusing on discovery.

• Meals: No meals or snacks are provided.

• Cost: $1090 for 2-day threes to $4800 for 5-day fives

• Registration: Accepting applications now for 2011/2012, 2012/2013 Information Session on Nov. 6, 2011

• Philosophy: "The First Presbyterian Church Preschool engages children in their own growth and learning by presenting age-appropriate materials and social opportunities in classrooms with low student/teacher ratios. We strive to provide a positive Christian early childhood experience that facilitates the development of happy, independent, confident children who are eager to embrace life’s adventures and challenges."

• Who makes a good fit? Families who value developmentally appropriate educational opportunities and want their children to be well-rounded emotionally, socially, physically, intellectually and spiritually. 
  
  

East Lake Academy

• Director:  Jennifer Patel (principal)

• Address: 13911 W. Laurel Drive, Lake Forest

• Phone: (847) 247-0035

• Hours: Pre-K Age 3 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM, 3 day or 5 day option; Pre-K Age 4 8:00 AM-11:30 AM, 5 day. Extended day offered for both Pre-K Age 3 and 4 from 11:30 AM to 3:00 PM. Beforecare offered beginning at 7:10 AM and Aftercare offered until 6:05 PM.

• Website:  www.eastlakeacademy.org

• Age Range: 3 years old to 4 years old. The school continues to the eighth grade.

• Safety:  Teachers are CPR/First Aid certified. Locked facility with supervised entrance.

• Curriculum: “Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten programs feature a developmentally appropriate curriculum in a nurturing environment. Committed teachers give personal, loving attention to each child helping to cultivate imagination and to teach basic skills and good habits. Creativity weaves its way through learning activities such as a phonics-based pre-reading program that leads children to begin reading as they enter kindergarten.”

• Meals: No meals or snacks provided.

• Cost: Ranging from $3,550 to $4,515 depending on age and days attended.

• Registration: Rolling Admissions. To begin the Admissions process, please call for a tour.

• Philosophy: “East Lake Academy strives to build the complete person in its students – developing their full potential by teaching the mind, educating the heart and forming the will. We aim to serve society by promoting in our students academic excellence, spiritual growth and personal development, thereby creating future leaders for the Catholic Church and society as a whole.”

• Who makes a good fit? Families who seek a school for their children that prioritizes, forming the whole child through academic excellence, character, Roman Catholic faith and apostolic formation.