The Winter Park School
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Programs & Ages · Infants through Elementary

Preschool & early childhood programs in Winter ParkOne method. Increasing independence.

At The Winter Park School, curiosity leads the way—inside the classroom and throughout our community. Children learn by asking questions, exploring ideas, creating, and discovering the world around them. Through hands-on projects, STEAM experiences, caring relationships, and meaningful connections to the people and places of Winter Park, we help children become confident thinkers, capable problem-solvers, and enthusiastic learners with a growing sense of belonging to their community.

Schedule a Tour or call the Admissions Department: (407) 495-2780

Programs & ages

Learning for every age.

The same four steps in every room. Pick your child's age to see what "I can" means there — and what you will notice at home.

Infants · 6 weeks – 12 months

I can discover.

Warm, responsive care is the curriculum at this age — because a baby who feels safe explores more. Rich language, real textures, faces, songs, and time outdoors build the wiring everything else stands on.

what you may notice at home: reaching, babbling back, looking longer.

Small groups, capped by room.

Read more about Infants →

Toddlers · 1 – 2 years

I can try.

Toddlers are natural scientists: drop it, stack it, dump it, try again. We protect that instinct — safe risks, real materials, and teachers who narrate the experiment instead of interrupting it.

what you may hear at home: "again! again!"

Small groups, capped by room.

Read more about Toddlers →

Twos · 2 – 3 years

I can do it.

"Me do it" is a curriculum requirement here, not a phase to manage. Twos take on real jobs — pouring, planting, sorting, helping — and their first tiny investigations, held gently inside routines they can trust.

what you may hear at home: "I did it myself."

Small groups, capped by room.

Read more about Two-Year-Olds →

Early Preschool · Age 3 · The CAPE Method™ begins

I can solve it.

Threes meet the cycle in miniature: a problem they can see or touch, a few days of investigating, something to try or make, and one honest question — did that work? The teacher holds the structure; the child does the work.

what you may hear at home: "I'll try it a different way."

A lesson from this room: The Puddle Problem · Small groups, capped by room.

Read more about Preschool →

Preschool, Pre-K & Kindergarten · Ages 4 – 6

I can figure it out.

This is where the cycle starts to stick. Challenges stretch over weeks. Children choose their own approaches, explain their ideas, test them, and revise them. Teachers deliberately ask more questions than they answer.

Reading, writing, math, and science are woven in because the work gives children reasons to use them. Kindergarten readiness isn't a worksheet here — it's foundations plus the confidence to ask, investigate, and persist.

a recent challenge: the Bird Feeder Challenge

Read more about Pre-K & Kindergarten →

Elementary · currently through 1st grade

I can take it further.

Investigations unfold over weeks. Children plan, document, work in teams, present ideas, and revise. By now they run the cycle themselves — the teacher's job is to make the problems worthy of them.

what you may hear at home: "I have a theory about that."

A lesson from this room: The Water Question

Read more about Elementary →

Summer Camp ·

Same method. Fewer walls.

More time outdoors, longer builds, bigger messes, deeper investigations. The CAPE Method™ does not take the summer off — the walls do.

what you may hear at pickup: "can we finish it tomorrow?"

Session dates, eligibility and rates are published each spring.

Read more about Summer Camp →

Six weeks to six years

Every stage begins with the words I can.

The sentence a child can say about themselves is the clearest measure we know of what a year has done. Here is how it changes.

tap a stage to jump to it ↓

Come and see

The best way to understand our classrooms is to stand in one.

Tour the rooms, meet the teachers, and watch the method at work — bring your child and your questions.

Schedule a tour → (407) 495-2780

Every room, one method

My child is…

Under 1 6 weeks – 12 months 1 or 2 Toddlers Two Twos Three Preschool · CAPE begins Four or five Pre-K & Kindergarten Six or older Kindergarten & elementary Summer Summer camp

Family testimonials

Parents want peace of mind. Children deserve a place they love.

Choosing preschool is about trust. Parents want to know their child is safe, cared for, learning, and happy while they're away. These families share what their experience has been like at The Winter Park School.

Ready when you are

Start the conversation. We’ll take it from there.

Tell us a little about your family and we’ll reach out with openings, tuition and next steps — or come see the school for yourself on a personal tour.

Enrollment inquiry

Tell us about your family and we’ll reply with availability, tuition and next steps — usually within one school day.

Or come see it for yourself.

A personal tour, just your family

Walk the classrooms, meet the teachers and watch a morning unfold. Tours are one family at a time, so there’s space for every question — and time for your child to explore.

Schedule a tour →

Prefer to talk first? Call (407) 495-2780.