Central Church Downtown Preschool

Welcome to the Downtown Preschool!

Through our partnership with the Hope Coalition, we’re excited to offer preschool opportunities to children in the Downtown Sioux Falls community.

Central Downtown Preschool is a Christ-based school located at Central Church Downtown in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

2022-23 Preschool Calendar

To see all of our upcoming holidays, special events, and more at the Downtown Preschool, click the button below.

Calendar

Preschool Programs

Preschool classes are categorized two ways:

By age
By time — morning or afternoon

Our preschool programs are taught by a certified head teacher (either Elementary or Early Childhood) and assistant teacher(s) with early childhood experience. Each member of our staff has been thoroughly screened before hiring, in order to provide a safe environment for your child.

Preschool Classes

Our preschool classes are for kids ages 3-5 years old, and they encourage children to develop a life-long enjoyment of learning by providing a positive early-childhood classroom experience.

All students in our classes will participate in extracurricular gym, music, and movement activities each month.

3-Year-Old Class

If your child is three by September 1.

Doodle Bugs

Tuesday | Thursday

9:00am – 11:30am

4- and 5-Year-Old Class

If your child is four by September 1.

Brave Bears

Monday | Wednesday | Friday

9:30am – 12:00pm

Fantastic Foxes

Monday | Wednesday | Friday

12:00pm – 3:00pm

Downtown Daycare

Daycare is provided through Central Church in partnership with Compassion childcare. We accept childcare assistance, or families can apply for a scholarship to help pay for childcare.

Full price is $190 a week for ages 2 and under and $165 for kids ages 3-5 years old. Scholarships start as low as $25 a week, but are based on income.

Details:

Hours: 7:15am – 5:30pm
Phone number: 605-408-0344
Location: Axtell Park School | 201 West Ave., Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Tuition & Fees

Central Church Downtown Preschool is partnering with the Sioux Falls Hope Coalition to provide educational opportunities for all children in the Sioux Falls community, regardless of their family’s financial situation.

For details on enrollment at our Downtown Preschool, call us at 605-900-6448 or email [email protected]. We still have a few openings for this fall semester. We also provide transportation in some areas and serve lunch to students.

About the Sioux Falls Hope Coalition:
The Sioux Falls Hope Coalition focuses on narrowing the achievement gap in our community through one simple strategy: Ensuring that every child gets a chance to attend preschool. Supported by business leaders, the United Way, and non-profits, the coalition is seeking to place children, currently on a waiting list for subsidized preschool, into existing high quality faith-based programs.

About Us

Mission Statement

Central Church Downtown Preschool is an outreach ministry of Central Church The mission of the school is to provide quality education in a caring Christian environment and to minister to our students and their families regardless of religious beliefs or church attendance patterns.

All staff members are to be role models of Christian living, to be witnesses to Jesus’ love, to be open to the Holy Spirit’s direction, and to maintain professional relationships with staff, students, and their families.

Philosophy of Education

We believe comprehensive preschool education should be age appropriate and based on solid child development principles. It should address the child’s development in the following areas:

Social
Emotional
Physical
Cognitive
Spiritual

In our setting, the preschooler will have a stable environment and the opportunity to:

Learn to work and play with others
Develop large and small muscle dexterity
Receive stimulation for creative mental development
Learn to deal acceptably with emotions
Develop an understanding of God, Christ, loving, sharing, and other Christian values

We believe play should be the primary medium for a preschooler’s learning. The preschool provides a group setting with which the child can feel secure and can separate easily from parents.

The teacher/child ratio should be set low so teachers have the opportunity to observe play and creative expression, and there should be a balance between child-selection and teacher-guided activities.

Our preschool provides an opportunity for one-to-one experiences between teacher and child, and fosters the development of strong peer group friendships.We believe each child develops at his or her own pace and should be treated as an individual.

Statement of Commitment

Adapted for Central Church Downtown Preschool from the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

As an individual who works with young children, I commit myself to furthering the values of early childhood education as they are reflected in the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct.

To the best of my ability I will:

Ensure that programs for young children are based on current knowledge of child development and early childhood education
Respect and support families in their task of nurturing children
Respect colleagues in early childhood education and support them in maintaining the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct
Serve as an advocate for children, their families, and their teachers in community and society
Maintain high standards of professional conduct
Recognize how personal values, opinions, and biases can affect professional judgment
Be open to new ideas and be willing to learn from the suggestions of others
Continues to learn, grow, and contribute as a professional
Honor the ideals and principles of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct as adapted for Central Church Downtown Preschool and the mission statement of Central Church’s Preschool and Kindergarten.