Methodist Preschool of Pacific Palisades

The Methodist Preschool, established in 1945, is a non-profit private preschool serving children ages 2.5 – 5 years. We welcome all families to our program, regardless of race, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin or disabilities, and we strive to provide a diverse community where every child and family is respected and accepted. Though the preschool is an extension of the United Methodist Community Church of Pacific Palisades, families and staff of all faiths and beliefs attend our school and our program reflects this.

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We know that for many families, this will be the first time your young child leaves home to enter a school environment. Methodist Preschool understands and holds dear the privilege of being that first school, and cherish all of the ‘firsts’ that will undoubtedly happen as your family walks through our doors. Relationships are the cornerstone of our program, and our passionate, responsive and eclectic group of teachers and staff are invested in helping to foster connections and learning, all in a supportive environment that encourages self-expression, thoughtful risk-taking, and making contributions to the larger community.

We believe that children learn best when they are empowered to take charge of their own learning. Our highly trained teachers capitalize on children’s interests to plan developmentally-appropriate curriculum while differentiating instruction based on multiple learning modalities and intelligences. Teachers are co-researchers with the children, and journey together to construct meaning and knowledge about the world around us. We emphasize the importance of holistic development so that every child can grow in the social-emotional, cognitive, gross/fine motor, language, and self-help domains in the most natural vehicle for early learning – play. We approach academic foundations through inquiry into a myriad of subject matters, to make the most of children’s natural curiosity and to build critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

We welcome families’ participation in many aspects of school life. School experiences are richer and more meaningful because parents, grandparents, and other family members and caregivers act as partners for the children. We value diversity and know that with the support of many, our children learn about love, trust, interconnection and collaboration, and come to understand that there is great value in understanding different perspectives.

Our environment reflects our commitment to inspire wonder, provoke curiosity, and promote thinking and communication. Our children have access to a wonderful array of quality supplies, tools and resources, because we see every child as capable, creative, and deserving of working with complex and intelligent materials. We are inspired by the philosophies of Reggio Emilia, Maria Montessori, Lev Vygotksy, Richard Louv, and Howard Gardner, to name a few.

Our ultimate goal is to create for our families a home away from home and to instill a lifelong love of learning in all of the children. Welcome to Methodist Preschool.

The Methodist Preschool staff is the heart of our program. Our highly motivated staff is dedicated to professional growth and regularly attend workshops, conferences, and take classes to add to their breadth of knowledge in the field of early childhood education. Our program is staffed by co-teachers, in addition to a Studio Teacher/Curriculum Coordinator, an Outdoor Classroom Coordinator, and a consulting Occupational Therapist resulting in a ratio of 7:1 often 5:1.