Pee Wee Patch Child Development Center President Rhonda Myers knows what it’s like trying to manage your time as a busy parent, and she has designed the center to be a kind of “one-stop shop” for parents.
“We recently opened Grandma’s Coffee Kitchen, which offers snacks, coffee, milk and even diapers…so if the parents forget something they don’t have to worry,” says Myers, who herself is mom to four children.
Pee Wee Patch, celebrating their second anniversary on Lapeer Road in Lake Orion this coming June, provides early care and education to children from six weeks through 13 years old.
The 16,000 square-foot facility includes a playground custom-designed for school age children, with a water spray park. Myers is currently having the lower level of Pee Wee Patch remodeled to house a custom-designed school age program, which will include a new consignment shop.
“It will be for kindergarten through sixth grade,” she says. “We will have the same security (locked doors that require ID codes) as the upper level, and we’ll offer dance, piano, Tumble Bus, and even ball room dancing for the parents.”
The consignment shop, titled “Koala Kids” with a “Down Under” theme, is owned by Maria Sargent, and contains a variety of children’s clothing.
“It’s a great service when you’re a busy family,” Myers says.
The lower level will also have a library, with an enrichment program for babies and up. There will be a computer lab, with limited Internet access, a parent library and a video lending library.
“This will all be completed before summer,” Myers says. “Then we will be doing our camp, with themes for school age children.”
Pee Wee Patch will also offer private kindergarten and Young Fives, on a half day schedule.
“We will have school age art and science classes, and we have a game room that will be set up with air hockey, pin ball and video games…But time spent there will be managed,” says Myers.
Also included will be a snack room and Reading and Language Arts Center, offering tutoring for preschool and up.
During the summer, Pee Wee Patch includes all meals for school age children in the tuition, and take walking field trips that support the various camp themes.
“I had a vision of offering them more than a space to take up for a couple of hours,” says Myers. “Children have unique needs, and they need opportunities to develop their interests.”
Pee Wee Patch also offers a flexible schedule for infants/toddlers, and a traditional preschool program with a school age program.
“When you see kids having a quality experience, the teachers are sitting with them, having conversations, not just standing over them and giving orders,” says Myers.
The upper level includes a multi-purpose room, three infant classrooms (eight babies in each room with every four having their own attendant), and a kitchen where about 150 lunches are prepared daily.
There are also two young preschool classrooms, each with 16 children and two teachers; and three toddler classes, each with three teachers and 12 students. The Pee Wee Patch pre-kindergarten program runs four days a week, for children one year before kindergarten.
Pee Wee Patch Child Development Center is located at 1796 S. Lapeer Road, across the street from Stadium Drive. Hours are 6 a.m.-6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone number is (248) 814-1010.