Now Enrolling in Parkville – Infant to Pre‑K Programs
Exploring Minds Academy – Creekside in Parkville, MO is proud to serve families with a program structure that reflects Missouri’s early childhood education expectations. We offer full-day care and learning experiences for children 6 weeks to 5 years old, including before/after school care and seasonal camps.
Our setting includes
We are able to facilitate a wide variety of activities, including yoga, music, art, gardening, and the learning of a second language.
6 Weeks to 12 Months
We offer a warm, cozy "home away from home" for your baby, with a passionate and highly qualified team dedicated to your child's well-being. Our caregivers use responsive play and introduce basic sign language to support your baby’s early communication skills—empowering them to express needs before they can speak, while fostering a deep sense of connection and security.
Our eco-healthy facility ensures a safe, clean environment, adhering to strict environmental best practices. We incorporate engaging learning themes and enrichment activities like music, yoga, art, and dance, encouraging your baby to explore and interact with the world using all their senses. With ample outdoor play areas, your child can enjoy fresh air and build both cognitive and gross motor skills.
We also provide a user-friendly parent communication app to keep you informed, and introduce your baby to fresh, nut-free foods prepared with care.
Toddlers (1 – 2 Years)
Our toddler classroom is where curiosity blooms. As your child transitions out of infancy, they begin to explore the world with increased independence and confidence. We support their budding sense of self through hands-on learning, parallel play, and social interaction.
Teachers gently guide toddlers through structured routines while encouraging choice and autonomy. Language development is a key focus, with daily songs, storytelling, and peer interactions. Outdoor play, sensory exploration, and age-appropriate fine and gross motor activities build physical strength and coordination.
Our goal is to help toddlers develop empathy, express their needs, and feel confident in a group setting—all while having fun and forming trusting relationships.
Two-Year-Old Program (2 – 3 Years)
This classroom, exclusive to our Parkville location, is designed specifically for the unique developmental needs of 2-year-olds—a stage full of big emotions, rapid language growth, and new challenges.
We’ve developed a stand-alone curriculum that bridges the gap between toddlerhood and preschool. Through thematic units and learning centers, children build early literacy and math skills, learn to follow multi-step directions, and strengthen their self-regulation and problem-solving abilities.
Teachers help children navigate transitions, toilet training, and cooperative play, creating a safe space to practice independence while still receiving plenty of emotional support. This age-specific focus ensures your child isn’t rushed into preschool expectations before they’re ready, and it honors their unique rhythm of growth.
Preschool (3 – 5 Years)
Our preschool program is designed to prepare children for kindergarten and life beyond. We focus on whole-child development—academics, social-emotional growth, and executive functioning skills are all equally emphasized.
Children explore weekly themes such as seasons, weather, world cultures, science, and storytelling through projects, circle time, guided lessons, and child-led inquiry. We use research-backed methods from Montessori, High Scope, and Conscious Discipline to help children build resilience, empathy, and a love for learning.
Outdoor exploration, Spanish language exposure, yoga, music, and gardening enrich the experience, and our experienced preschool teachers act as coaches and mentors, helping each child grow at their own pace while preparing them for a successful transition to elementary school.
Merging Teaching and Child Care
We offer a variety of programs for stages, including infants and toddlers, preschool, and pre-kindergarten.
We believe that it is never too early to start learning, and that it is vital to always present opportunities for children to learn and grow as soon as they start at our center. There are always chances to encourage growth within a child's mind, and it is our job as caregivers and teachers to nourish that potential.
By developing our programs with curriculum experts and childcare specialists, we have been able to hone in on what makes early education a success and create a learning program that allows our children to enter school seamlessly. It is our aim to equip every child in our care with the knowledge and skills to thrive in the next stage of their educational journeys and beyond.
What to Expect from EXPLORING MINDS ACADEMY
Our mission is to provide the highest-quality childcare!
As part of our commitment, we provide all of our kids with:
Children’s joy and happiness are a big part of their learning. At EXPLORING MINDS ACADEMY, we encourage them to have fun as a part of their education with child-led activities which are adapted to their abilities and interests.
As a retired teacher, Pamela has brought together the knowledge of her worldly travels into Exploring Mind's unique curriculum. She has taken the best elements of her experience in Montessori, High Scope, and Conscious Discipline, as well as including Public School ECE State Standards.
We empower our children to think independently and solve problems in their own way. We also encourage our young learners to practice daily gratitude and be thankful for all the positive aspects of their lives.
