Our Two’s class provides a warm and welcoming introduction to group learning, fostering a love for discovery through play. In a nurturing environment, children engage in activities that support essential developmental milestones, including social interaction, fine motor skills, and early cognitive growth. Through hands-on exploration, they build confidence, curiosity, and a sense of belonging.
What is taught in a Two’s program?
Developmental milestones for a two-year-old include using words to express themselves, playing with other children, sharing, taking turns, beginning to recognize and name colors, shapes, numbers, and letters, following instructions, and developing independence.
Our Three’s program continues to nurture a love of learning while supporting children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. Through imaginative play, role-playing, and meaningful interactions, children learn to engage in conversations, express emotions, solve problems, and take on leadership roles. Our curriculum features hands-on, purposeful activities designed to build foundational skills and prepare students for Pre-Kindergarten.
What is taught in a Three’s program?
Our Three’s students continue to build a solid foundation for concepts like colors, shapes, letters, and numbers. In addition, children begin to recognize and write their names, practice cutting, copy shapes and patterns, retell stories, understand basic science and nature concepts, compare and contrast objects, and categorize. Social development remains key, and an emphasis is placed on the development of fine motor skills in order to prepare children for writing.
Our Pre-K Four’s program introduces more academic exposure designed to help children with the transition to kindergarten. Through a play-based curriculum, children are presented with a balanced mix of academic learning and creative exploration. Our Four’s program aims to build a strong foundation for reading and writing, and number skills.
What is taught in a Four’s program?
Academic goals for our Pre-K Four’s students are largely determined by Virginia’s Foundation Blocks for Early Learning, which includes comprehensive standards developed by the Department of Education.
In Math…children will work towards developing number sense, which includes counting with understanding, using numbers to tell how many, describe order, and compare. Children will also explore measurement, describe simple geometric shapes, collect data to answer questions of interest, and learn to identify simple patterns.
In Language Arts…children will build a strong foundation for reading and writing, which includes vocabulary expansion, phonological awareness, letter knowledge (identifying letters and their sounds), and handwriting. Two key components of the Pre-K curriculum are the Heggerty phonemic awareness program, and Handwriting Without Tears, which combines instructional methods with interactive tools to help students achieve handwriting success with relative ease.
Junior Kindergarten is an early education class that gives 4 and 5-year-olds an extra year to learn key skills and develop essential social/emotional and self-regulation abilities before kindergarten. Junior Kindergarten paves the way for a happy, successful Kindergarten year for many young students. While lessons remain playful and hands-on, using games, songs, stories, and movements, the program adds more structure than preschool and includes a curriculum intended to provide strong math and literacy skills.
The Beach Day School Kindergarten program meets each child at their individual stage of social, emotional, and academic growth, equipping them with the tools for success. Our language arts curriculum emphasizes phonics, reading comprehension, and writing, guiding students toward confident, lifelong reading. Math lessons are hands-on and engaging, encouraging active learning through fun, interactive activities. While we maintain high academic standards, we also prioritize play—an essential component that fosters creativity, problem-solving, and meaningful social connections.
What is taught in Junior Kindergarten and Kindergarten?
In Math…children will identify and work with numbers through 100, identify and create patterns, count and compare sets, understand and create graphs, analyze data, and add and subtract within ten.
In Language Arts…children will ask and answer questions about key details in a text, actively engage in group reading activities, and build stories and nonfiction texts by using a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing
In Phonics…children will build deep and meaningful connections with letters and letter sounds, use consonant and vowel patterns to decode, and strengthen their foundation for literacy through daily phonemic awareness and phonics lessons.
Social/Emotional Learning…children will develop a healthy sense of self and positive peer relations (taking turns, cooperating with peers), learn to express emotions appropriately (regulating emotions, attention span, and behavior), and learn to accept responsibility and respect for others.
In Science…children will learn the importance of asking questions about the world around them, they will conduct simple investigations and experiments, and observe, classify, and communicate information about the natural world.
Our Programs
At Beach Day School, children grow with us from their first steps in group play through a joyful transition into elementary learning. Our programs nurture curiosity, confidence, and social skills while building strong foundations in early literacy, math, science, and creativity. From the playful discovery of the Two’s and Three’s programs, to the school readiness of Pre-K and Junior Kindergarten, and into the engaging academics of Kindergarten, each stage is designed to support the whole child—balancing learning, play, and social-emotional growth every step of the way.
(Classes unavailable this fall, and will be offered again spring, 2026)
Soccer Shots has partnered with Beach Day School for the last six years, and is immensely popular with students and parents. Beach Day Soccer Shots classes are held on Tuesdays after school and are offered to children 3 and up. THE “THREE CS” – COACHING, COMMUNICATION AND CURRICULUMThe foundation of Soccer Shots is our relentless commitment to providing best-in-class coaching, communication, and curriculum. Our developmentally appropriate curriculum places an emphasis on character development and skill building. Our program is created under the guidance of childhood education specialists, professional soccer players, and experienced and licensed soccer coaches.
Children love creating and exploring, and they love working with their hands. Pottery crafts are a way for kids to literally wrap their hands around a 3-dimensional project, and pottery classes help them to both have more fun and learn something in the process. Beach Day has partnered with Potter Angie Tripp for many years, and she offers an amazing class for BDS students ages 3 and up. VB Pottery classes will be held on Wednesdays after school.
STEM stands for ‘Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.” Beach Day School will offer 5-week sessions of after-school STEM classes for students throughout the school year. Led by Beach Day’s Curriculum Coordinator (and former BDS teacher) Elizabeth Zak, the 45-minute-long enrichment classes will help foster critical thinking, increase science literacy, and provide children with the skills necessary for the next generation of innovators.
Stay tuned for sign-up details!
The Starz Program will be offers exciting 8-10 weeks sessions in the fall and spring. Throughout the session, students will build confidence, strengthen teamwork skills, and learn the importance of good sportsmanship — all while having a blast! Our fall session will focus on football, basketball and team building. With fun drills, creative games, and positive coaching, students will stay active, learn new skills, and develop a lifelong love of movement and play.
After School
Enrichment Oppurtunities
Before and After School Care (Creative Kids, or CK)
Dance-Makers offers positive training so children can discover the joy of dancing! They offer high-quality instruction and place an emphasis on working with students at their own unique skill level in a supportive, noncompetitive environment. Owner Jennifer Pappas has been dancing and studying the art of dance for over 40 years! She founded the first VA Dance-Makers studio in 2007, and first partnered with Beach Day School in 2022. Classes are offered for ages 3 and 4 on Friday afternoons.
The Starz Program will be offers exciting 8-10 weeks sessions in the fall and spring. Throughout the session, students will build confidence, strengthen teamwork skills, and learn the importance of good sportsmanship — all while having a blast! Our fall session will focus on football, basketball and team building. With fun drills, creative games, and positive coaching, students will stay active, learn new skills, and develop a lifelong love of movement and play.
Fun for students, convenient for you!
Early Birds (EB) is Beach Day School’s early-morning drop-off option, designed to make mornings easier for busy families. Open Monday through Friday from 8:00–8:40 AM in Room 214, EB gives children a safe, caring place to start their day. Students are welcomed by our EB teachers, guided through bathroom and handwashing routines, and escorted to their classrooms by 9:00 AM—ready for a great day of learning.
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Space is limited to 20 students each day, accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
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Drop-off ends at 8:40 AM so teachers can transition children smoothly into their day.
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Cost Options:
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Annual Package: $750 (unlimited use, invoiced Sept. 1—averages $4/day if used daily).
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Occasional Use: $10/day (no sign-up required, invoiced monthly).
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Engaging afternoons in a safe, nurturing space.
Creative Kids (CK) is Beach Day School’s after-school enrichment program, offering students a fun and structured way to spend the afternoon. Open Monday through Friday in Room 214, CK includes center play, snack time, and activities designed to help children unwind and enjoy their
day after class.-
Hours:
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2-year-olds: 12:00–1:00 PM
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3s, 4s, Junior Kindergarten, and Kindergarten:
12:00–4:00 PM
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Billing: Families are invoiced monthly for the previous month’s usage.
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Coordinator: Hannah Mason
Link for daily sign-up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508084CA9A829A6FA7-57667044-october
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