About Us: St. Michael Early Childhood Center

Our Philosophy

​​Children thrive and learn best when given the opportunity to explore and discover in a friendly environment where they interact with friends, guardians, and teachers.​
"Learning only happens when you become a part of the process. Children have Aha moments when they learn without restrictions." ​ - Rita Poff, Director
We believe the importance in developing the whole child - not just education, but health and happiness. We encourage children to experience things with their whole body to get the true sense of it. Hop five times to get a good sense of the number and scrunch down low to show the size. Playing gives children the opportunity to develop meaning through physical play. We go outdoors each day!
Play is the Beginning
Play is learning. Young children do not learn beause they are taught; they learn by doing. They learn through play, and what is learned with passion they will never forget. When children play they are showing what they have learned and what they are trying to understand. Therefore, PLAY is at the center of our curriculum framework. We then consider the principles, practice, and learning outcomes determined to be at the core of our curriculum and become more intentional with our teaching.
Relationship-based Learning
We consider relationships to be the foundation of everything we do at St. Michael. Research tells us that children's brains develop when they are in nurturing relationships. We encourage development of social and emotional learning. We base these relationships on respect and belief that children are competent and capable.
Emergent Curriculum
We use the children's interests as building blocks for our curriculum and incorporate them into our lesson plans. By observing and listening to the children we are able to identify what they want to learn more about.

Our Curriculum

As required by the Indiana Department of Education, all standards and foundations and assessment tools are followed for accreditation purposes. The use of field trips, special guests, and parental participation provide each student with the best possible opportunity to learn the required content. Workbooks and activity sheets are a small portion of our program, so please do not look for dittos that have little substance. Ask your child lots of questions. Encourage a detailed answer opposed to yes or no questions. Ask who, what, when, where, and how questions. Learning through the Project Approach, the learning is documented and each child's materials are saved in the portfolio and cherished as a yearbook.
Project Approach LearningProjects are long enough to develop over time. Students’ interests determine the length of the project to discuss, negotiate new ideas, see progress, and revisit. Projects are concrete, personal from real interests, important to children, and “large” enough for diversity of ideas and rich in interpretive and representational expression.
Teacher Role To provoke ideas, problem solving, and collaborations with children for further exploration. The children’s projects are shown in a progressive format to foster the connections of learning. We would like to build strong connections between home, school, and community to support the children in learning to their full potential.
ArtThe art area provides children with multiple ways to express their knowledge of the learning process. Investigation is key for children to unleash an idea that becomes tangible for them to touch, admire, and inspire. The documentation of projects brings the representational work to life. This is where creative expression emerges from the child and the learning process grows.
Financial Assistance may be available through River Valley Resources: (812) 949-4381​