ABC’s With Tiny Tots

Our little boy was in Mrs. M’s Tiny Tots class in Irvine for about a year. Now he’s in transitional kindergarten and we just had our first parent-​teacher conference. I just want to say «Thank You Mrs. M!»
A little over a year ago we were pretty concerned about this boy. He was in a different preschool program and we got a call from the teacher to tell us he had been disrupting the class. We enrolled him in Mrs. M’s class and I saw rapid improvement. The methods she and her aids use to capture and keep the kids’ attention are just what he needed. He became a much better listener, began participating actively and developed all the skills he needed to prepare for kindergarten. And he had a lot of fun too!
Now he is one of the best behaved kids in his class – receiving frequent recognition for his good citizenship – and the feeling of pride and trust we have in him is priceless.

We struggled with the search for an affordable preschool option for our three year old daughter, and had sort of resigned to the fact that we weren’t going to find something we could afford. Many preschools wanted $ 300 per month for 3 hrs, twice a week! That’s just not in our family’s tight, single-​income budget right now, unfortunately.
Luckily, while bored one day I was thumbing through the City of Orange’s community program mailer and noticed that there were preschool-​like programs. That’s how I found ABC’s With Tiny Tots, taught by Arlene Mottershead. She has been running the same session-​based preschool program in Irvine for many years, and recently expanded it to Orange.
The programs are not year round, but are instead session based. For $ 160 we entered our daughter in a T/​Th, 9 – 12 program for 10 weeks. That’s like 75% cheaper than a year round preschool, and definitely more in line with our financial capabilities. In addition to the very reasonable fee, 2 days of parent participation per session are required, which we were actually very happy with. It’s fun to be the teacher’s assistant, and we love the level of parent involvement encouraged in this class. My husband is a sort of unconvential SAHD, and despite being both a guy and covered in tattoos, Mrs. M has always made him feel very welcome and that she was happy to have him involved. He had a great time as the teacher’s helper.
We were concerned that she’d be getting a sub-​par preschool experience (thinking maybe you get what you pay for), but those fears proved unfounded. Really, the only thing the program lacks is a dedicated facility. Right now the program meets at a community room at Steve Ambriz Memorial Park, so it can’t be permanently decorated for the kids. Really, though, that’s the only disappointment and the kids don’t seem to mind. They do have kid sized tables, chairs, etc., and the teacher brings toys, carpets, etc. for every class session, and the kids have access to the great, shaded playground. The facility is brand new, so everything is safe and in excellent condition.
My daughter loves going to preschool. She comes home with craft projects after every class. She learns songs, gets playground time, has made new friends, and is starting to lay the foundation for kindergarten (following directions, working according to a schedule, responding to an authority figure other than her parents, conflict resolution, etc.). She also is a very big fan of «Mrs. M,» her teacher (as are we!). There was a class field trip with parents to Irvine Park and the OC Zoo, as well. He class even had a Halloween party with a costume parade!
As I said, the program is brand new, and for the first session, the MWF class ended up being cancelled due to lack of registration. I am confident that once more people know about this wonderful program, though, that it will flourish. The City of Orange and families like mine with limited financial resources have a really wonderful thing going with Tiny Tots. We’re ready to sign up for the 3 day program in January once this session ends!
I hope more people discover Tiny Tots. We consider ourselves Tiny Tots ambassadors so feel free to message me with any questions and I can put you in touch with Mrs. M or answer them from a parent’s perspective!