Playful LearningThe cornerstone of our agency is to provide high-quality inclusive education for all MCDC Head Start and Early Head Start students. We do this by utilizing a highly respected and well research curriculum entitled HighScope and by providing a safe, supportive and nurturing learning environment. We offer both a center base and home base services.

The HighScope Curriculum is based on the belief that young children build or “construct” their knowledge of the world and are "active learners." This means learning is not simply a process of adults providing information to children. Rather, children discover things through direct experience with people, objects, events, and ideas. Young children learn best by being fully engaged in activities and from pursuing their own interests while being actively supported and challenged by adults. In preschool, the child's work is to explore, participate and experience.

In 2014, MCDC began to explore the Reggio Emilia Inspired Approach to Learning (REIA), as an enhancement to our curriculum to support our student’s development. The Reggio Emilia Inspired Approach to Learning recognizes the child as an active participant in their learning and environment. Children are encouraged to follow their own interests. In Reggio, classrooms provide an abundance of materials such as clay, paint, items from their environment and writing implements. Children use these materials to represent concepts that they are learning in a hands-on way. The Reggio Approach views the parent as an essential resource for the child's learning. In Reggio-inspired classrooms, teachers use a variety of documentation methods, such as cameras, tape recorders, and journals, to track children's thoughts and ideas as they play together or work with materials.

Together, HighScope and Reggio provide an educational continuum where children learn through active participation, exploration of personal interests, and engagement with peers and adults.

Meeting the Special Needs of Students

An integral part of our program is to provide for the needs of all children. As an agency, we work closely to support children with special needs and their families on identification, early intervention, and ongoing care. Additionally, we partner with our district partners and other agencies to ensure efficient delivery of supportive and developmental services.