Thank you to all who have supported our fundraiser and to those who have made donations!
1 day ago, Curious Kids
Please pay for or return the sample book from the Coupon Book Fundraiser.
This week's Early Childhood Spotlight is on our Mixed Age Preschool Classroom! This past week was surrounded by free choice play with peers, small group fine motor activites, dramatic play dress up opportunties and problem solving with fine motor manipulatives. It is always a great learning advenure in our Mixed Age Classroom! -Ms. French
1 day ago, Lindsay French
boy and girl playing with drums.
A little boy playing with blocks.
a girl and boy in dress up costumes.
A little boy running with music sticks
Three toddlers on the floor with a train track.
A teacher and a student working on gross motor skills together.
Four students sitting together working on a colorful puzzel.
Three students doing a snowman painting at a table.
A girl making a tower on the floor.
A boy and girl sharing a train track.

KCR4s Fun Day! Make sure to RSVP as space is limited.

6 days ago, Curious Kids
KCR4s Fun Day

Message from KCR4s:

We were so excited to launch the 2026–2027 Common Application this week! I know this time of year can feel busy and overwhelming for many, but no worries, I am happy to share that I will be supporting families with completing the application. I have created Zoom office hours for families to join if they need additional support. Office hours will begin next week and continue through the end of April.

Office Hours:

Mondays and Wednesdays: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Tuesdays: 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM

See attached flyer with a QR code that will take you directly to the Zoom link for the scheduled office hours.


Marta Mejia
KCR4s Family Advocate

7 days ago, Curious Kids
KCR4s Help in Enrolling in Preschool
Marta Mejia, KCR4s Family Advocate.
This week's early childhood spotlight is on our whole school celebrating School Resource Officer Day together. SRO Burleson has and continues to be part of our early childhood family and we wouldn't know what to do without him! We love SRO Burleson and how he has really made an imprint on our educational journey here at early childhood! -Ms. French
8 days ago, Lindsay French
Officer Burleson posing in a pretend police car.
Officer Burelson looking at a poster with two children.
Student looking at a poster with Officer Burleson.
A student handing a police officer a card.
A sign that says "We love our SRO"
A police officer reading a card.

Our next early childhood spotlight shines on our friends in the KRESA Head Start classroom! What an amazing place for fun and learning this is. Students are diving into a simple machines study, working together to build incline planes using flat boards and blocks, and discovering incline planes on the playground. They also went on an alphabet hunt, using their own clipboards and letter pages to search for letters throughout the classroom. It’s a great week to be in Head Start!

14 days ago, Lindsay French
A boy sitting on the floar trying to balance an object.
Preschool students on the slide outside on the playground.
A female student building legos.
A female student using a clipboard to draw on.
Two preschool students making a long train track on the carpet together.
Our SaveAround Coupon Book Fundraiser is ending soon...
14 days ago, Curious Kids
SaveAround Coupon Books Fundraiser ends February 12, 2026

Our next spotlight goes out to our ESCE Intervention friends here at Early Childhood! This week they have taken a dive into the Space Exploration Unit. Students are enjoying their practicing of sorting Alien’s by color into their space ships, coloring a solar system, finding stars and planets in the sensory bin and exploring the parts of a rocket. It is a great week to be here in our ECSE Intervnetion Program!-Ms. French

21 days ago, Lindsay French
A male student sitting at a table and playing with a rocket ship.
A female student sitting at the table playing with a felt board that has space objects.
A female student sorting space items and shapes into various bowls.
A female student coloring on a giant piece of paper and using lots of different colors.

This week’s spotlight is on one of our fabulous Four-Year-Old GSRP classrooms! There is so much learning taking place. Students enjoy their weekly visit from Ms. Annie from Marvelous Music as they explore music curriculum together. It is always fun when Ms. VanDussen joins us to support whole-group speech and learning, too! Free-choice play at the classroom centers helps to show off our creativity and encourages child-led play. It’s a great week to be in GSRP!

26 days ago, Lindsay French
Students dancing on the carpet together.
Student learning a speech lesson together on the carpet.
Two boys and a girl building blocks together.
A female student playing with playdough.
A little boy playing with legos.
Here is a reminder of February's closures so that you can plan ahead.
26 days ago, Curious Kids
February Closures
February 2026 Breakfast and Lunch Menus
Winter 2026 (January-May) Snack Menu
26 days ago, Curious Kids
February 2026 Breakfast Menu
February 2026 Lunch Menu
January - May Snack Menu
Thank you to all who have sold and bought SaveAround Coupon Books! It's been quite an interesting January so we are extending the fundraiser until February 13. Remember, if you sell five books you will earn a free one!
We appreciate your support!!
27 days ago, Curious Kids
SaveAround Coupon Books Fundraiser 50% profit.  Sale extended until February 13.
Please see the flier regarding "First Day Shoe Fund".
27 days ago, Curious Kids
First Day Shoe Fund for GSRP,  Head Start and ECSE Intervention Programs

Due to weather conditions and safety concerns Portage Public Schools are closed Tuesday, January 27, 2026.

29 days ago, Portage Public Schools
snow day

This week's Early Childhood Spotlight is for one of our Three Year Old Preschool Classrooms. Where do we begin on how to recap these past two weeks! Students are enjoying their outdoor time daily (when the weather permits) and showing their creativity with making snow angels with lots of giggles. The classroom small group and morning meetings inciprorate fine motor activites, engagement. Mama P is ready to support her fine motor, and students work to independentaly refine their fine motor skills! Its a great time to be in Three Year Old Preschool!

about 1 month ago, Lindsay French
Students sitting at a carpet together.
Students performing crab walks on the carpet together.
A boy and a girl using a straw to move a small ball.
Students playing a game of bucket toss.
Students practicing yoga together at the rug.
A little boy working on his handwritting.
A little girl working on handwritting and smiling to the camera.
Female students working on her handwriting.
A little girl writting on a worksheet.
Little boy showing his worksheet.

Due to inclement weather, Portage Public Schools will be closed on Tuesday, January 20th, Alll Early Childhood Programming will be closed. Stay safe and warm everyone!
Ms. French

about 1 month ago, Lindsay French

Our next Early Childhood Spotlight of the Week highlights another one of our wonderful GSRP 4-Year-Old classrooms! Since returning from winter break, there has been so much learning and many meaningful experiences taking place. Students always look forward to their weekly music education visit with Ms. Annie from the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra. The loads of snowpants, gloves, boots, hats and snow gear are always a good sign in the hallways as that means there is sledding to take place at outdoor time! Rest time was well utilized this past week as students adjusted to returning to school after the break. Lunchtime routines are also a highlight, as students enjoy family-style meals and engage in lively conversations with their peers. It’s a great week to be in GSRP!

about 1 month ago, Lindsay French
Two girls eating lunch together at a table.
A whiteboard with writting about exercize activities.
Hallway with coats and boots lined up.
A four year old boy holding music sticks together.
Students sitting at the carpet together listening to a music lesson.
A music teacher leading a group in a song.
A music teacher leading a group in a song.
A student sleeping on a cot.
A student sleeping on a cot.
So that you can plan ahead...
about 2 months ago, Curious Kids
Important January Dates

This week’s spotlight is on one of our GSRP/4-Year-Old Preschool classrooms. The students enjoyed spending time with their classmates through conversation and snack time. They also created winter crafts, including homemade snowflakes! After snack time and later during craft time, it was time to hang up their artwork in the hallways for friends to see. It’s a great day to be in GSRP!

about 2 months ago, Lindsay French
Children eating a snack together.
Four year olds eating snack together.
Three boys sitting together and eating.
Two preschool girls and two preschool boys eating popcorn.
Kids making snowflakes.
Snowman artwork hanging up.
Our SaveAround Coupon Book Fundraiser starts today! Last year we had great success with this!

Parents/Caregivers: Please check your child’s backpack for a large white envelope. In it is the information for our coupon book fundraiser as well as one book. It’s great to be able to show people when asking if they would like to buy one. We have extra books in the office. When you have collected the money, you can stop in and get the book(s) to give out. No need to wait until the end of the fundraiser! If you choose not to buy the book or sell to someone else, please return it by January 30. If you have any questions please contact Ms. Higa at lhiga@portageps.org.
about 2 months ago, Curious Kids
SaveAround Coupon Books Fundraiser 50% profit starting  January 5,  2026
Cover of Kalamazoo/Battle Creek SaveAround Coupon Book