Our School

Mini Steps Mission Statement

Mini Steps’ mission is to encourage, develop, and strengthen the skills that each child requires in order to have success in school and in life through high quality education, dedicated teachers, consistent rules, and positive socialization with adults and peers.

Our Philosophy of Education

A solid foundation in early learning and education sets the stage for future success in school and in life. In order for a child to learn he/she needs to be in a safe and trusting environment. At Mini Steps we provide that environment so that each and every child that passes thru the door has the same opportunity for success. Our educational preschool programs are aligned with the Illinois Early Learning Standards. The Illinois State Board of Education developed these standards with educators across the country. These standards are categorized in the same way that the K-12 standards are. They include goals and objectives for learning in the following subject areas: Social/Emotional Development, Foreign Language, Fine Arts, Physical Development and Health, Social Science, Science, Mathematics, and Language Arts. “Standards are an essential first step for designing effective preschool curricula since they represent an agreed upon agenda for teaching and learning. The Illinois Early Learning Standards are excellent because they recognize the interconnectedness of emotional, social, cognitive, and physical development and learning-the whole child. Like all good standards, they should be used as the base for reflective teachers as they create learning experiences that build on what children already know and capture their interest in learning.”

Barbara Bowman, Erikson Institute