Early Childhood Program
St. Peter Lutheran Preschool and Kindergarten offers Christian education which accepts every child as a unique individual created by God. We recognize God in the world He created around us and the love of His Son, Jesus, our Savior and Friend.
Recognizing the importance of play to a young child, we allow time for discovery, purpose to minister to the whole child by balancing the spiritual, social, emotional, intellectual and physical aspects of the child in our daily plans. We offer a full developmentally appropriate curriculum and emphasize social learning skills of sharing, cooperating and working out our learning and exploration through play.
Registration for the 2025/2026 school year begins in January 2025!
Meet Our St. Peter Teachers
Teacher Degrees
We know that St. Peter families seek the very best for their children, so we strive to make Preschool and Kindergarten a foundational experience for our students' social, emotional, academic, and spiritual growth. Our Early Childhood program is play-based. Play-based learning embraces the innate curiosity and creativity of students to foster their development. By engaging in purposeful play, students acquire essential academic skills and develop crucial social, emotional, and cognitive abilities. All our Early Childhood Teachers are licensed in Illinois and hold a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood or Elementary Education.
Donaldson
Mrs. Amy Donaldson
Hello! I am Amy Donaldson. I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from Concordia University in River Forest, IL. in November 1994. I have been teaching for 28 years. I have taught in Illinois and Florida. I have taught first grade, third grade, Kindergarten, and preschool. I LOVE teaching preschool!
I am 52 years old, and got married this summer. I adopted my son Troy from Guatemala when he was nine months. He is currently 20 years old. I also have three dogs now with my husband. They are all blessings in my life!
I love starting my day with Jesus, drinking coffee, and spending time with my dogs. I enjoy going to the movies and concerts, being outdoors, and talking and spending time with friends and family.
I went to St. Peter when I was in grade school, and I'm blessed to be at St. Peter to teach these children of God. I love teaching the little ones so many things and most importantly, about Jesus every day. I pray that they will spread the news of Jesus, to know that Jesus loves everyone, and that Jesus is always with them.
Kalal
Mrs. Kalal
Hello! My name is Mrs. Ruth Kalal. I received my BA from Concordia University in Chicago, IL. I have been involved with teaching since graduating, taking time off to raise our children. I am married to my husband, Tom, who is the Principal at St. John's Lutheran School in Lombard, IL. We have two grown children, Ben, who is married to Collette and Elizabeth who is married to Joe. Ben and Collette have have 3 children-Grace, Ellie and Will. Liz and Joe have a son-JT and another one due in March. I enjoy crafting, sewing and spending time with my family. God has blessed me with a wonderful job and a loving family!
Moglia
Mrs. Cheryl Moglia
My name is Mrs. Moglia. I graduated from National College of Education, Evanston, with degrees in Education and Mathematics. I am a certified teacher in the state of Illinois. I have taught seventh and eighth grade, taught preschool, and have been a preschool aide for nine years at St. Peter. My husband, Alex, and I chose to send our three children to St. Peter from three-year-old preschool through eighth grade. Our daughter and son have graduated from Northwestern University and our youngest son currently attends Lewis University. I am excited to be leading my classroom here at St. Peter. We are all looking forward to creating a wonderful preschool experience for the students of St. Peter.
Relaz
Mrs. Kristen Relaz
I grew up in a long line of Pastors and Teachers! I earned my BA in Early Childhood Education at Concordia University in Chicago and was lucky enough to student teach here at St. Peter in Kindergarten and Second Grade. After graduation I started my official teaching career as the Half-Day Kindergarten teacher. After four years I switched gears to become the Full-Day Kindergarten teacher. Four more years later I took some time off to become a full time mom, while substituting at local schools. When it was time for me to return to the work force I was welcomed back to St. Peter as a Half-Day Preschool teacher for one year before I moved to Second grade for five years. I now have returned to my Early Childhood roots and moved to Full Day Preschool. I have loved every grade I have taught and enjoy the unique gifts each age level presents! My goal is to make sure every child feels safe and loved in my classroom. I stress to my kids every day that Jesus loves them, and it is so important to laugh every day!
Spero
Mrs. Gail Spero
Gail Spero has a BA in Early Childhood Education and MA in School Administration from Concordia University, Chicago. She has 25 years experience in the classroom. Her professional experiences include teaching preschool, kindergarten and the subject areas of religion, music and science. When she's not busy with classroom activities, she enjoys spending time with her family, reading and gardening.
Blinn
Miss Kristen Blinn - Kindergarten
Kristen Blinn attended St. Peter Lutheran from preschool through 8th grade. She received her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Early Childhood Education from Concordia University in River Forest, IL. Kristen has been a member of the teaching staff since 1999 and currently teaches kindergarten. In addition to her classroom responsibilities, she directs one of our children's choirs, and is a member of the congregation. In her free time, Kristen enjoys reading, spending time with family and friends, traveling and all things Disney!
Curriculum
Preschool Curriculum
Religion
The Concordia Publishing House "Voyages" curriculum forms the framework of our preschool religious instruction. Through study of Bible stories in the Old and New Testament, Preschoolers learn how God touched the lives of people long ago and how He is a vital part of our lives today! Each lesson embodies the concepts of forgiveness and grace. The teachers have coordinated the bible lessons with each weeks’ theme.
Math
Our Math curriculum uses concepts that include number recognition, counting and one to one correspondence. The child will recognize geometric shapes and structures in the environment, as well as identify and name basic shapes. The child will also recognize, describe, translate, duplicate, create and extend patterns in various formats. The children will attempt to write numbers one-twenty.
Reading
The Preschool Curriculum for Reading is to understand that pictures and symbols have meaning. The child will be able to identify labels and signs in their environment. Letters are introduced as well as letter recognition and sounds. Story time is included every day. Upper and lower case letters are introduced using the correct formation. We currently use the Jolly Phonics program with our preschool children.
Handwriting
The child will write upper and lower case letters using the correct form. The child will write words based on how they sound using initial consonants and some ending sounds. The child will represent stories through pictures, dictation, written words and play. The child will hold a pencil correctly. The child will use spaces between words. The child will write their first name correctly using upper and lowercase letters and will attempt to write their last name correctly. The child will write all numbers 1-20 correctly.
Science
The Preschool Science program incorporates hands on and group activities. This includes weather and seasons and its vocabulary. We also include the use of scientific tools such as: thermometers, magnets, magnifying glasses, and balance scales for investigating. Also included are simple cooking projects.
Physical Education
The Physical Education for Preschool Children consists of the following: The child will regard his body as a home for the Holy Spirit. The child will move skillfully and effectively during exercise and games. The child will understand the concepts of space, time, and force related to movement. The child will appreciate and respect good physical condition. The child will develop an interest and desire to participate in lifelong recreational sports. The child will acquire socially desirable traits, cooperate successfully with others. The child will learn safety skills.
Art
The child will develop skills and strategies for enhancing creativity, and imaginations and self- expressions. The child will identify the primary colors. The child will recognize various media (paint, crayons, clay). The child will experiment with different media and techniques to produce works of art. The child will discover and identify simple shapes and art work (circle, square, triangle, rectangle).
Special Activities
The child will participate in story time at the school library. The child will participate in the Advent Service and several church services. The child will also participate in the end of the year program.
Kindergarten Curriculum
Religion
The Kindergarten Religion curriculum focuses on having the children know that God loves us and forgives our sins. God does not like our disobedience but He continues to love us and gives us free and total forgiveness through Jesus Christ. The children will listen and learn a different Bible story each week during their classroom "Jesus Time". Once a week the Kindergarten children will come together with other children in the school for a weekly Chapel Service. The Concordia Publishing House Voyages curriculum forms the framework of the Kindergarten religious instruction.
Math
The Kindergarten Math curriculum is hands –on using Houghton Mifflin’s Go Math. The children are immersed in math daily through calendar time with patterns, rote counting, place value, graphing, and numeral recognition. As a part of our Common Core math curriculum, the children are exposed to comparing and contrasting, counting & comparing numbers, simple addition, subtraction, measurement, two and three dimensional shapes, estimation and classifying and sorting data.
Reading
The Houghton Mifflin Journey’s series is used to support our Common Core Curriculum in Kindergarten. The goal of the reading curriculum is to teach the skills upon which all other reading instruction will build upon. We focus on letter names and sounds, phonemic awareness, and word attack skills. The children learn the short vowel sounds and how to use those sounds to read words. Children are taught to decode words using the phonemes and context. Word recognition and comprehension are emphasized. The children are introduced to various types of literature such as folk tales, fables, nonfiction, fiction, poems, etc.... Skills are developed through listening, acting, writing, and discussing.
Language
In Kindergarten we focus on oral language, learning to write a sentence, counting the words in sentences, and syllables in words. We discuss different types of words like action words, describing words, color words, and number words & punctuation. We also work on nouns, verbs, plural nouns, question words & spelling simple words phonetically.
Handwriting
Our handwriting curriculum emphasizes proper letter formation and uses the D'Nealian form of letter writing.
Social Studies
Kindergarteners learn the necessary traits in living a healthy life. Topics discussed through stories and activities in other curricular areas, include responsibility, caring, citizenship, fairness, respect, and honesty.
Physical Education
The child will understand that their body is a gift from God. They will demonstrate control when performing combinations and sequences in locomotor, non-locomotor, and manipulative motor patterns. The child will understand the concepts of space, time, and force related to movement. They will demonstrate knowledge of rules, safety and strategies during physical activity. The child will demonstrate competency in fundamental ball skills. The students will acquire socially desirable traits and cooperate successfully with others. The child will develop an interest and desire to participate in lifelong fitness.
Technology
The primary focus of technology classes at St. Peter is to equip the student with the necessary skills to succeed in an increasingly complex technological society. Young students are exposed to various educational games in order to build basic computer skills as well as providing support for regular classroom instruction.
Music
The Music curriculum is supported through a series entitled “God Made Music”, which is published by Praise Hymn, Inc. In this series, students explore various musical elements as they strengthen their knowledge of our loving God and Savior. Students deepen their understanding of the role music plays in their lives.
Spanish
The focus of the elementary Spanish program is on oral communication. Students repeat words after the teacher, follow simple commands, ask and answer questions, and write in the target language. Students also sing songs and play review games to reinforce vocabulary. Throughout the lower grades students practice their numbers, colors, greetings, and actions. As much as is possible the Spanish lessons incorporate content knowledge and vocabulary from what is currently being studied in the core curriculum classes.
Art
Children are encouraged to create their own works of art. The children have opportunities to work with a variety of medium including pencils, crayons, markers, chalks, paints, clay, and other elements of nature. The focus of art is on the process rather than the product. In Kindergarten Art projects are theme related.