Ready for kindergarten: Preschooler's social skills improve at Children's Learning Center

Ashleigh spent an hour in the car every day driving her 4-year-old son from their Bloomfield Hills home to the Children’s Learning Center in Walled Lake, but she said it was worth the daily trip.

“Preschool through Oakland Family Services was a wonderful experience for my son, Johnathan” she said. “The teachers and staff work hard to maintain a safe, clean and healthy environment for the children. They make sure that children’s activities at school and in the classroom promote social, physical, cultural and emotional development. Above all, they are extremely kind and loving towards children, and they care about them deeply.”

Ashleigh felt relieved when she learned her son qualified to attend preschool for free through the Great Start Readiness Program, a state-funded preschool program for 4-year-old children with factors which may place them at risk of educational failure. Ashleigh lost her job when her sales position was eliminated at Neiman Marcus and didn’t know how she was going to be able to pay for Johnathan to go to school.

“With my other kids, I was able to afford preschool but, with Johnathan, our circumstances changed,” she said. “Having the financial burden gone for preschool was huge for me.”

Once in school, it wasn’t long before Ashleigh began to notice her son’s social skills improve. As the youngest of three children, he often got his way at home and learned at school that he had to take turns and be fair.

“He learned how to be a little more independent and a problem solver,” Ashleigh said. “If something was not right he would say, ‘Wait, this isn’t right’ and vocalize it as well as how he was feeling.”

And when the Children’s Learning Center had to close its doors in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Johnathan was still able to work on his socialization and other skills through classroom Zoom meetings. He saw his friends online for story time, dance parties and other activities.

“Nothing beats school, but having that Zoom made it feel somewhat normal since he was able to see his friends and connect with them,” Ashleigh said.

Ashleigh feels her son is ready for kindergarten in the fall, thanks to Oakland Family Services.

“It wasn’t like they were just teaching academically; it was like they were teaching everything socially and loving on the kids,” she said. “A teacher may say, ‘Oh you’re not feeling good, let me give you a hug.’ They nurture the kids. I felt Johnathan was getting at school what he was getting at home.”

To enroll or learn more about the Children’s Learning Center in Walled Lake or Pontiac, contact Oakland Family Services at http://bit.ly/ofsfreepreschool.