A new Creative Arts Preschool (CAP) program for kids ages three to five will be starting in September created by Megan Epp and Hope Callan who run the House of Music.
The new program has some unique aspects to it including a specialty portion.
“So the specialty portion of what we will offer in CAP is going to be where professional teachers and outside instructors throughout the year come in to deliver music, yoga, tumbling and dance instruction which will happen 45 minutes a day,” director and music instructor Epp said.
Even with the specialty portions incorporated the CAP program will still be following a normal preschool education with the FLIGHT curriculum, director and music instructor Callan said.
“The FLIGHT curriculum which is a child-led curriculum will provide children with opportunities for socializing, physical development and a normal preschool experience.”
Having a space to use in the NexSource Centre for the program also comes with some perks, Callan said.
“We get to utilize the play space here a little bit and we get to also partner with the seniors centre so the children will get to have some interaction with the seniors where they will do some crafts. reading and part of our creative arts portion showcases the performance which will be combined with the seniors.”
The plan for the Tuesday/Thursday and Monday/Wednesday morning and afternoon classes is to have a six to one student-to-teacher ratio with a max of 24 students allowed in each of the four classes led by experienced lead educators Colleen Camac and Tracy Proulx.
“I think this is just an amazing program that the kids are going to be so fortunate to have the opportunity to be a part of,” Camac said.
“We do everything by watching what the kids do, we meet their interests. Also, the change from the beginning of the year to the end is always incredible to see, so this is going to be something we are really looking forward to,” Proulx said.
Parents who are interested in registering have had many questions including on subsidy, Epp said.
“We have submitted our application to be able to participate in the subsidizing program and as soon as we know we will be able to extend that down to our families.”
The price breakdown for the program includes a $100 registration fee, a $100 supply fee and then a fee of $262 per month for each child.
“The reasons for the pricing is because we have the rental of the facility here, we have our amazing educators who we will be paying as much as we can because they are worth every single penny and then we are also contracting the specialty teachers outside of that,” Callan said.
“The price is also comparable to other creative arts preschools in the province.”
Open classroom dates from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on June 20, July 12, July 26 and August 16 where if people register on those dates they will get $30 off their supply fee.
The team is super excited to start and get into the space, Epp said.
“We are absolutely thrilled to be in this space. We are just starting with the one classroom and I think it will be a nice easy introduction into the industry.”
Registration for the program is available now online on the Sylvan Lake House of music website until the classes fill.
More information on the program is also available to find on the CAP Facebook page.
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