Our goal is to foster confidence in children, preparing them for their next adventure.
New! We are now offering wraparound care for John Muir Elementary 4K students from dismissal until 5:30 PM, Tuesday through Friday, for the 2025-26 school year. We are on the Muir bus route – the school bus will drive 4K students to Wildflowers Learning Center after dismissal times!
We implement play, movement and exploration-based learning that meets both the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards (WMELS) and fits our mission to create a healthy, nurturing environment that inspires.
Our curriculum combines the values of world-renowned educational theorists Maria Montessori and Sir Ken Robinson with a homeschooling approach to teaching and learning. We focus on both social-emotional development and the academic building blocks that prepare your child for Kindergarten.
Our learning activities are designed to get young scholars moving. Movement is vital to the intellectual and creative development of children; through movement they learn to strategize (what’s my next move?), think critically (how can I solve this problem?) and express themselves. Our mantra is “We don’t teach at tables.”
Lessons are interactive, encouraging the children to learn early literacy, math, social studies and science skills through play. Each day is a mixture of child-led learning and teacher-guided activities. We love to invite guests and local experts into the school to enhance learning, introduce the children to interesting concepts and give them chances to try real-world concepts out! We are so lucky to have a world class school like University of Wisconsin-Madison in our backyard to partner with too! Some of the guests we’ve welcomed include:
- UW-Madison’s Wonders of Physics Traveling Outreach Program
- UW Madison’s Entomology Departments Insect Ambassador Outreach Program
- Dane County Humane Society’s Humane Educator Program
- Heartland Farm Sanctuary’s Humane Education Program
- Madison Fire Department Community Education
What sets us apart from other 4K programs?
- Our 4K program is run throughout the entire day, not in a condensed 3-hour period. Children are able to receive a broad-based education, get many chances for the vital “brain breaks’ they need, and our teachers have the time to teach creatively with purpose.
- We operate 5 days a week (instead of the typical 4-day-a-week 4K program) on a full-year rolling calendar, so students can begin their experience with us at any time.
- We offer wraparound care on-site. No need for transportation to another destination!
- Our center space has areas for quiet reading, creative and dramatic play, community building activities, and exploring our indoor gym. We even have an Imagination Playground play system!
- Our “backyard” features a mud kitchen, hills and tree stumps for climbing, gardens tended by our students, an outdoor classroom, a giant sandbox and a log cabin!
Our 4K teachers prepare developmentally appropriate activities that stimulate the interests of our students, building their skills and knowledge. Each month follows a broad theme designed to build awareness of the world around us. Within that theme, teachers facilitate activities that expand students’ curiosities, from learning how dairy farms not too far down the road from us work, to how children celebrate holiday traditions in countries far, far away. We frequently venture out on walking field trips to practice skills like mailing letters and picking out healthy ingredients at the local market to make smoothies. We also invite local experts and community programs into the school for “onsite” field trips to build even more enrichment into our days.
