Preschool & Kindergarten Readiness
Early Learning Center
The preschool and kindergarten readiness program at the Tonto Apache School's Early Learning Center is curated to provide quality, early childhood education to the Tonto Apache Tribe.
In 2022, the Tribe welcomed Saundra Lopez to coordinate our early childhood program as the Birth to age 6 Youth Coordinator. Saundra has developed the early learning program to provide age-appropriate academic and extracurricular activities to our preschool aged students. This program helps prepare kids with the skills to succeed in Kindergarten and beyond.
Our early learning program utilizes research-based assessments and curriculum from Experence Early Learning to support each child's social/emotional, physical, cognitive and language development while also providing age-appropriate instruction in literacy, math & reasoning, science, social studies and creative arts.
Get to know the teacher
Saundra Lopez
Program Coordinator
Hi, I'm Saundra Lopez a mother to five and nine years of teaching experience. Parenting, child development and education have been my lifelong passion. I grew up watching my mother and grandmother who both spent most of their lives in elementary teaching and early Child Development which led me into learning and volunteering in daycares, Sunday School classrooms and peer tutoring in middle school and high school.
I became a mother in 2007 and alongside my dedication to parenting I continued volunteer work in Sunday School classrooms and at the Payson Christian School. From 2013 - 2020 I was committed to teaching and learning through countless hours of professional development classes and books dedicated to Child Development and teaching. While at PCS I went through the ACSI teacher certification process and was trained in the Spalding Literacy Method. I stood on various committees such as curriculum development and evaluation and served as an accreditation team member. I was also the chapel and Bible coordinator for 3 years while at Payson Christian School.
After spending two years homeschooling I was welcomed to the Tonto Apache Community in 2022 to help start an early childhood program. This year I'm excited to continue to serve the Tonto Apache Community as the birth to 6th coordinator and use my passion and previous training to serve the community with a program fit for our youngest tribal members
My Philosophy
My personal philosophy to teaching and parenting comes from my education and experience. I believe each child is beautifully created and is unique in the way they grow and learn. I strive to use my knowledge and passion to reach, teach, and guide the individual child according to their distinctive characteristics and learning styles.