Starting Tori at preschool at age 2 was something I battled with in the beginning. MOST people start their child at 3 (if at all)... but there was my Tori, two years old and needing something more. So much more. Thankfully, we found that at Calvary Preschool.
I should start with saying yes this was preschool, but lets be real- her classmates were two and three years old. It was as structured as you could expect for that age range. Starting the morning off with some play time, a couple minutes dedicated to a story.. some outdoor play... a craft.. prayer and snacktime. It was 2.5 hours, two days a week and seemed to fly by.
There were ten students in Tori's class (including her) and two teachers. I loved that ratio. It seemed as though all of the kids got one on one attention and that was just enough hands to help the kids during crafts etc.
Toris main teacher, Ms. Brennan is a gem. So sweet. And seriously LOVES her kiddos. I have never in this past year thought one time that Tori wasnt on her top priorities list. And the woman is a saint, teaching preschool kids has got to be so hard. Sometimes I lose my mind trying to do a craft with Tori and Izzy let alone add 8 more kids to that. If she was stressed out, she never showed it. She also has a really sweet and calming voice. Very approachable.
The assistant teacher, Mrs. Davies, also- adorable. She is an older lady and always wearing a dress. Just seemed like a little grandma. She was the one who if Tori would get in trouble at home and put in time out, she would cry for Mrs. Davies. It was the sweetest. During story time, Tori and Jakin (one of her classmates) would usually have to sit with Mrs. Davies (they were two of the youngest in the class) for a little extra guidance and reminders to stay focused. Tori would sit there and I would peek in the window of the classroom and see her play with Mrs. Davies ID tag and see how sweetly Mrs. Davies would try to redirect her attention.
It was also really fun seeing Tori develop friendships. She espeically loved this group of girls in her class, "The 3 M's".. Mia, Molly and Maddy. They would play together so sweetly and Tori especially gravitated towards Mia which I think was because she always had on the best dresses and she always brought the coolest toys from home into class and shared with Tori. I was one of three moms who had a second baby while Tori was in her preschool year which was also a fun and cute bond to see Tori make with the other kids. They liked telling each other about their baby brothers/sisters. Whenever I would pick up Tori from school, her and the other girls would YELL "BYEEEEEE" to each other. Over and over again. The entire time they could see each other while walking out to the car.
This year, Tori has learned: her ABC.s (and can recognize about a third of them), how to count to 15 (the last 5 can get messy), colors, how to put on her coat, how to put on her bookbag, how to walk in a line and follow a person in front of her, shapes, she is coloring in the lines more often. I know a lot of this is developmental that she would have learned at home too but I think for sure she learned even better in class. I am not a teacher after all. I also really liked that she learned about how she needs to listen to authority/other adults when Mom and Dad are not around and she got the chance to practice patience and taking turns.
Overall, our year at Calvary was great. The only reason we will not be sending Tori there again next year is because the church by our house had an opening for their program next year so we will be sending Tori there. It will be so much more convenient. We do wish we could take Tori's teachers along with us on the move. I highly recommend this school to anyone looking for somewhere to send their child!
And as an end of the year gift, her teachers made us this little book including some pictures from Toris year :)
