Our Story
Five years ago, Belton Early Childhood School followed a traditional classroom learning model in our Pre-K classrooms, with students primarily engaged in teacher-directed learning activities.
As rigorous academic expectations have shifted downward over time, our classrooms began to look more like elementary classrooms, with students seated on the floor or at tables for the majority of the school day. While teachers tried their best to design engaging lessons, our students' four- and five-year-old bodies were not ready to sit for long periods of time.
First day of school, August 2018
With attendance and engagement declining and student behaviors increasing, BECS staff knew there had to be a better, more developmentally-appropriate way to engage students in meaningful and effective learning. Under the guidance of the newly-named principal Sheila Surovik, a committee was formed to explore options.
Through a collaborative process that included visits to other innovative programs, the BECS experience learning model was born.
Our campus has been transformed to provide students with rich, immersive, student-centered, and play-based learning environments that capture imagination, cultivate curiosity, build background knowledge, foster critical thinking skills, and motivate students to learn and grow.
Much like a children's museum, each of our classrooms is designed to provide students with opportunities to practice academic and social-emotional skills they've learned while playing in stations that correlate with one of eight social studies and science themes.
You can learn more on our Experiences page.
This astronaut mural is on the wall of an experience classroom with the theme "In the Sky". While in this experience room, students learn about space and weather while pretending to be astronauts, meteorologists, and more.
Our BECS Mission:
At Belton Early Childhood School, we design innovative spaces where Belton ISD’s youngest learners are exposed to career readiness skills through active and explorative experiences. Spaces where each and every student feels empowered to dive into learning, make mistakes, and thrive in who they are and what they need. Students emerge with a strong development of background knowledge and achieve flow; where curiosity turns into new learning.
These students are on safari in the "Animal Habitats" experience classroom.
Contact Info
Belton Early Childhood School 501 E. 4th Avenue Belton, TX 76513
Phone: 254-215-3700 Fax: 254-215-3701
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