PELC's young childcare program exists to provide the highest quality childcare experience to families in the Parchment area. Our staff is committed to unconditionally love and support the families that entrust their children to us. Please read our updated childcare policies here.

Parchment Early Learning Center has 3 childcare classrooms:

Explorers (12 mo-29 mo)
Adult-Child Ratio 1:4

Early Learners (2 1/2-3 1/2)
Adult-Child Ratio 1:8

Discovery Kids (3 1/2-4 1/2)
Adult-Child Ratio 1:10

The center is open 6:00 AM-6:00 PM. We will work with families to personalize schedules as much as possible based on each families' need.

The center is CLOSED for the following holidays every year:

• Labor Day

• Thanksgiving and the following Friday

• Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

• New Year s Eve and New Year s Day

• Memorial Day

• July 4th

The center is also CLOSED for professional development for the full week before Labor Day

Routines depend on the developmental levels and individual personalities of the children in each classroom. The following is a basic outline taken from our curriculum:

• Choice Time: Children choose the interest area in which they would like to work, with whom they want to work, and what materials to use. This is a minimum of one hour. Teachers interact with children and engage in their play.

• Snack

• Large Group: Includes singing, dancing, finger plays, discussions, whole-class problem solving, reading books, etc. Group time provides an opportunity for children to experience a sense of belonging to a group. Teachers lead the children, but accept thoughts and suggestions to encourage children to feel that they are a part of the classroom.

• Small Groups: May involve 2-8 children working with 1 teacher, depending on the classroom. This is the time of day that the most teacher-directed, focused learning takes place. Small groups enable teachers to introduce a new concept or new materials to children, teach a specific skill to children, encourage conversations and the sharing of ideas, extend children s thinking by asking questions and posing new challenges, and focus observations on individual children and document what children know and can do.

• Outdoor Play: Teachers engage with children in the outdoor environment. Some days it will be choice time outdoors and some days teachers will have pre-planned activities available

• Lunch: Teachers establish a calm and pleasant atmosphere to engage in conversation over the course of the meal. Children are encouraged to help with set up and clean up as much as they are able.

• Read-Aloud: Teachers read children new stories and re-explore the children s favorites from Group time to transition to rest time.

• Quiet Time: For a minimum of 20-30 minutes, all children must lay quietly on their sleeping mats. Quiet activities will then be provided for children who are ready to be awake.

• Snack

• Choice Time

• Outdoor Play