The Early Explorers
story begins here.
Woodlawn’s Early Childhood program is built around one belief: the questions a child asks in their earliest years are worth taking seriously. In PreK and Junior Kindergarten, curiosity is the curriculum.
Play is the work.
Wonder is the curriculum.
Woodlawn’s Early Explorers program is designed around how children ages three and four actually learn: through movement, nature, relationship, and joyful, unhurried play. The Early Explorers classroom is grounded in the Responsive Classroom approach, which nurtures mutual trust, self-regulation, and the habits of caring for one another from the very first day.
Every day in PreK looks different. But every day includes time outdoors, time in community, and time for the kind of open-ended exploration that builds the curiosity a ‘Blazer carries through every year ahead.
Nurturing the whole child
from the very beginning.
The Early Explorers program is built on a simple conviction: children at this developmental stage need time, space, and skilled, caring adults who understand where they are developmentally. At Woodlawn, that belief shapes every decision about how PreK is structured, what the classroom looks like, and what happens when a child steps outside.
Responsive Classroom
Every PreK day is anchored by Responsive Classroom routines: Morning Meeting, shared expectations, and consistent language that helps young children understand what it means to belong to a community. These practices build the self-regulation and trust that make learning possible.
Nature as Classroom
Woodlawn’s 61-acre campus is a primary learning environment for Early Explorers. Students spend extended time outdoors every day on the Nature Playground, along campus trails, and in the organic garden, developing physical confidence, environmental awareness, and the habit of curiosity about the living world.
Social-Emotional First
At this stage, knowing how to name a feeling, ask for help, and treat a classmate with kindness is the most important work there is. PreK students develop self-regulation, empathy, and the ability to cooperate through structured play, Morning Meeting, and teacher-facilitated moments throughout the day.
Active. Creative. Outside.
Always purposeful.
No two days in Early Explorers are identical, but every day is intentional. The curriculum balances structured activities with open exploration, guided learning with child-directed play, and indoor focus with extended time in nature.
Morning Meeting
Each day begins with Morning Meeting: greeting, sharing, group activity, and the daily message. This Responsive Classroom practice sets the tone for the day, builds vocabulary and listening skills, and gives every child a moment to be seen by their community.
Early Literacy
Daily read-alouds, songs, and language-rich activities develop vocabulary, listening comprehension, and a love of story. Letter recognition and early phonological awareness are introduced at each child’s developmental pace, with no pressure and plenty of play.
Math + Exploration
PreK students develop early number sense, sorting, and pattern recognition through hands-on materials, manipulatives, and real-world contexts. Counting happens outdoors. Sorting happens at the nature table. Math instruction at this age is facilitated through items that a child can touch.
Creative Arts
Art, music, and performing are woven through every day in Early Explorers. Students draw, build, paint, sing, and express themselves through movement, developing fine motor skills, self-expression, and the confidence that comes from making something special.
Outdoor Learning
Students spend significant time outdoors every day. The Nature Playground, campus trails, the organic garden, and the dedicated Outdoor Classroom among the trees are not recess destinations. They are learning environments where PreK students observe, investigate, and build a relationship with the natural world that anchors everything else.
Project-Based Foundations
Project-based learning begins in the Explorers classroom. Age-appropriate inquiry projects encourage students to use their Five Senses to discover the world around them. Whether they are studying animal tracks or the changes in seasons, students are actively pursuing learning. Every project begins with a question a child is genuinely curious about.
The Outdoor Classroom
Nestled among the trees and trails of Woodlawn’s 61-acre campus, the Early Explorers Outdoor Classroom is a dedicated space designed for our youngest ‘Blazers to discover the beauty of the natural world at their own pace. Here, learning looks like swinging in hammocks, riding bikes through the trees, and gathering for impromptu tea parties in the open air.
This is not a playground. It is a classroom without walls, where curiosity is the only lesson plan and the natural world is the teacher. Every visit builds the physical confidence, environmental wonder, and sense of belonging that follow Early Explorers through every year of their Woodlawn journey.
The right foundation
starts with who they are right now.
Junior Kindergarten at Woodlawn is designed around a deeply held belief: our youngest ‘Blazers need time, space, and the opportunity to be exactly who they are right now. The JK classroom is a child’s third teacher. Neutral in color and rich with natural materials, it is organized around what each child is ready to discover.
Every day, JK students read, create, sing, observe, move, discuss, and play. Junior Kindergartners also spend extended time on Woodlawn’s Nature Playground and along the trails of our 61-acre campus, building a relationship with the natural world that stays with them.
Inquiry, Immersion, Impact.
Even here.
The habits of the Woodlawn Arc take root in Junior Kindergarten, at a pace and scale that is right for ages four and five. Students begin to ask real questions, make real connections, and understand that how they treat others is itself a form of impact.
Our world is integrated, so our curriculum is too. JK students build connections between the classroom and the world outside it, so what they discover feels real and relevant from the very first project.
Junior Kindergartners work alongside older students through shared projects and cross-grade activities, building connection beyond their own classroom from day one. The whole school is their learning community.
At this age, impact begins with how a child treats the people around them. JK’s core value is courtesy: being polite, using good manners, and caring for classmates and shared spaces through the classroom promises students write together each year.
Building every skill
through exploration and play.
Junior Kindergarten introduces core academic concepts through discovery, hands-on materials, and teacher-facilitated exploration. Every learning area is designed to meet children where they are developmentally and prepare them for a smooth entry into Kindergarten.
Literacy + Phonological Awareness
Early literacy develops through daily read-alouds, letter identification, and phonological awareness activities at each child’s own pace. Our curriculum introduces letter sounds, preparing students for Kindergarten entry. Students are read to every day, building the most powerful foundation for becoming a reader.
Mathematics
Number sense and early mathematical concepts develop through indoor and outdoor exploration, guided discovery, and hands-on manipulatives. Early units from Woodlawn’s Kindergarten math curriculum introduce numerical fluency, counting, sorting, patterns, and measurement in concrete, playful contexts.
Handwriting + Fine Motor
Fine motor skills develop through loose parts, manipulatives, and purposeful hands-on activities that build grip and eye-hand coordination. Utilizing a program developed by OT specialists, students learn correct letter and number formation and begin writing their names/words with proper upper and lowercase letters, a Kindergarten admission benchmark.
Life Skills + Social-Emotional Learning
Junior Kindergartners build self-regulation, cooperation, communication, empathy, and responsibility through structured activities and Responsive Classroom practices. Topics include: Thoughts and Feelings and Whole Body Listening.
The Classroom
The JK classroom is neutral in color and rich with natural materials; it is an extension of home: a child’s third teacher. Designated areas for art, science, literacy, math, and practical life skills invite students to pursue their interests at their own pace and time.
Outdoor Learning + Nature
Play and time outdoors are essential to the Junior Kindergarten experience. Students spend extended time on Woodlawn’s Nature Playground and along campus trails daily, building physical confidence, environmental awareness, and a sense of stewardship for the 61-acre campus they share with older ‘Blazers.
Community begins with
a question.
Project-based learning begins in Junior Kindergarten the first week of school. JK students learn what it means to be part of a community; whether that’s a family, a classroom, or Woodlawn itself. Each trimester, students dig deeper and learn about belonging.
“Woodlawn is focused on creating a supportive environment that nurtures adaptive, respectful, and emotionally intelligent young students who are eager and ready to learn.”Holly Honeycutt, Head of School, Woodlawn School
The experiences that stay
with them forever.
These are the hallmarks of Early Childhood life at Woodlawn. The activities, skills, and experiences our children learn in their earliest years shapes who they become. Each of these hallmarks of Early Childhood at Woodlawn is here by design.
The Outdoor Classroom
Nestled among the trees and trails of our 61-acre campus, the Early Explorers Outdoor Classroom is a dedicated space where our youngest ‘Blazers discover the beauty of nature while swinging in hammocks, riding bikes, and gathering for impromptu tea parties. This is learning without walls.
Organic Garden
Woodlawn’s organic vegetable and flower garden is a working outdoor classroom across both fall and spring semesters. The garden builds science understanding, environmental awareness, and a genuine sense of pride in real work with real results.
Nature Playground + Trails
Play and time outdoors are essential at Woodlawn, not extras. Early Childhood students spend significant daily time on the Nature Playground and along the trails of our 61-acre campus, exploring, building, observing, and learning to steward the natural world they share with the rest of the school community.
61 acres designed for wonder.
Woodlawn’s campus in Mooresville, NC gives Early Childhood students room to explore, investigate, and discover every day. Nature trails, garden beds, the Nature Playground, and gardening all become part of the curriculum from day one.
Located in the Lake Norman region just north of Charlotte, Woodlawn serves families across Mooresville, Davidson, Cornelius, Huntersville, and the broader Lake Norman area. Early Childhood enrollment is open on a rolling basis, space permitting. The program runs Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 2:45 PM.
The earliest years
shape everything
that follows.
The best way to understand Early Childhood at Woodlawn is to come and see it. Tour our campus in Mooresville, NC and meet the educators who built this program around who your child is, right now. Serving families across Mooresville, Davidson, Cornelius, Huntersville, and Lake Norman.