Early Childhood

Harnessing children’s natural curiosity

Our youngest students love coming to a school where they can begin collaborating with others, expressing original ideas, solving problems, understanding themselves and discovering their abilities.

We strive to ensure the first formal learning experience for these three- and four-year-olds is meaningful, relevant, and joyful in a supportive and high achieving environment.

Our Early Childhood teachers apply their expertise to intermingle learning and play in the right balance. Lessons focused on learning the alphabet, numbers, plants and animals, days of the week are blended with Spanish lessons, art, music forays, and thoughtful library visits.

“I have an open relationship with the teachers, so I know how my kids are doing and they are able to tell me.”

- Current EA Parent

"We take a hands-on approach to learning. We also incorporate activities for our children to build self-esteem, learn to problem solve and get along with others, and engage in rich discussions. We key into their natural curiosity and associate it to scientific practices. Our ultimate goal is for our students to develop an excitement for learning."

- Amy Maly, Early Childhood Instructor

Academic Excellence

In addition to focusing on the educational building blocks of reading, writing and arithmetic, we begin hands-on and in-depth learning at a very young age.

World Languages

All Early Childhood students participate in Spanish instruction during the course of the school week. Spanish classes at each grade level meet 3 times per 7-Day cycle for 15 minutes.

Library

All Early Childhood students attend Library class once per 7-Day cycle. Students are introduced to different literature genres and encouraged to find books to borrow and bring home to share with their families.

Fine Arts

At a young age, we are already striving to help our students discover the joy of the arts as a lifelong pursuit.

Music

Early Childhood music classes encourage students to explore music through play, song, and dance. Students actively create, improvise, perform, and learn about the world around them through music. These young students develop a sense of steady beat, rhythm, melodic direction and pitch.

Visual Arts

The Early Childhood visual arts classes meet for 30 minutes. The classes have a creative learning environment that involves working together, moving around, discussion and having the freedom to try a new approach to their work. The students focus on basic art skills including drawing lines and basic shapes, color, cutting, pasting, and general art awareness.

Beginning in the Early Childhood program, students are offered visual art classes and general music classes.

Program Options

Early Childhood offers flexible programing options.

We strive to ensure the first formal learning experience for our early childhood students is meaningful, relevant, and joyful. We offer a variety of program options for Early Childhood to ensure our youngest students have a positive student experience that is consistent with their development level.

Program options include:

Half Day - 8:15 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Full Day - 8:15 a.m. - 2:45 p.m.
Three Days - Monday/Wednesday/Friday
Five Days - Monday - Friday

After School Options

Early Childhood students are welcome to stay on campus after school as a part of our Extended Day programs.

Extended Day

Early Childhood students can stay on campus each day until 6:00 pm in the Rider Center Library. Families may sign their students out of EA Extended Day by entering the Library in the Rider Center. Families are billed $10 per hour/per student for EA Extended Day through the Business Office.

Meet Our Early Childhood Faculty & Staff

“We found some wonderful teachers who were caring, engaging, and personalized. You know those once-in-a-lifetime teachers you get? At EA, we got them multiple times.”

Parent of an EA Graduate

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Katherine (Katie) Schiyer

Lower School Library, Battle of the Books Instructor

MA, National College of Education
BS, Purdue University
SLMS, Northern Illinois University

It is my sincere pleasure to be the guardian of our beautiful Elgin Academy Library. I believe that good literature opens up so much to our students. Books can be mirrors to reflect upon ourselves, windows to see things from other points of view, or portals to worlds unknown. Matching each student with a good fit book is my goal every day. You will also find our students coding, creating, researching, and imagining in our beautiful space!
- Katie Schiyer

Brian Wrightson

Lower, Middle, & Upper School Music

MM Ed, VanderCook College of Music
BS, Elmhurst College

Music students should learn how to become independent musicians, and lifelong music lovers. My personal goal is to impart my knowledge and enthusiasm for music in the students I have been given the privilege to teach.
-Brian Wrightson