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This web site is the original Home on the Web of the the Saint Katherine PAIDEIA Bilingual Nursery and Preschool. The GoPaideia site is not affiliated with the Saint Katherine Church and has been created to support the effort of bringing more Nursery and Preschool programs to our Churches.
The PAIDEIA Bilingual Nursery and Preschool offers a unique and nurturing environment in which children, at a very early age, are immersed in the Greek language, culture, and the Greek Orthodox faith.
The addition of a full-day Bilingual Nursery and Preschool program provides an opportunity for the Church to provide a much-needed service to young families, increasing Church membership and stewardship revenue. The program utilizes classroom space that sits idle during weekdays, and has great potential to bring additional cash flow and greater revenue to the Church, and to afford to hire full-time trained Greek teachers that can teach at both the Preschool and Greek School.
To view up-to-date information on the Saint Katherine Program visit the Hellenic Education Center web site for up to date enrollment information and curriculum.
The Program was founded in 2008 by the parents of the Saint Katherine Greek Orthodox Community with the support of Father Costas and the Church Council to be a resource for all of the children in our community.
The Saint Katherine PAIDEIA Nursery and Preschool is currently accepting enrollment for the Nursery Program (ages 2-3) and the Preschool Program (ages 3-5).
Ask about enrollment for the NEW Kindergarten Program.
For more information on the application process, please contact the school Director or call the Church office.
The Saint Katherine's Council approved a strategic plan to create a Hellenic Education Center.
Read the full PDF version of the document here.HECStrategicPlan.pdf
According to the New York Times, there is now scientific evidence supporting the many benefits of a second language:
"There are two major reasons people should pass their heritage language onto children. First, it connects children to their ancestors. The second: Bilingualism is good for you. It makes brains stronger. It is brain exercise."
Excerpt from the New York Times article, The Bilingual Advantage, by Claudia Dreifus, May 30, 2011
Click here to read the full article.
Our Mission
The PAIDEIA Preschool of Saint Katherine Greek Orthodox Church will provide for our children a safe, healthy, tolerant and stimulating learning environment of outstanding educational quality. Our goals are to promote the Physical, Emotional, Cognitive and Spiritual development of our children. We will encourage the unique growth of each child using a Greek/English bilingual curriculum through fun and play.
How We Got Started
PAIDEIA as many of you know comes from 'Paidos' for 'child' and is the Greek word for 'education'. Modern PAIDEIA educational programs are based on Ancient Greek philosophical concepts and use the Socratic method to prepare students for life by focusing on the development of critical thinking skills. The Ancient Greeks knew something about life we are only beginning to understand today – while we humans owe our very existence, our 'psyche' to our God, the contents of consciousness and what a child learns about the world and their place in it is the responsibility of each parent. Critical thinking skills developed at an early age prepares students for life and serves as the basis for them to excel in all aspects of their life; so they can find personal fulfillment, make a good living, and be contributing citizens in a democratic society.
We celebrate the treasure that is our Hellenic heritage. We proudly believe that the Greek language, the Hellenic Cultural Heritage, and our Greek Orthodox religion is a part of who we are, and does not have to dissolve into the melting pot of
With this belief, the parents of Saint Katherine Greek Orthodox Church founded the School with the support of Father Costas and the Church Council to be a resource for all of the children in our community.
If you believe that a language immersion style Bilingual Preschool & Nursery with full-day or half-day participation is of benefit to your family and child, please contact the Saint Katherine Church.
GREEK EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES
Greek education in the United States dates all the way back to 1776, as that is the year the first Greek School was built in St. Augustine Florida. Today, one of the most popular and successful Greek-American schools, Archimedean Schools, founded in 2002, has recently been ranked 2 out of 799 schools in the state of Florida, with a waiting list of over 1000 students from all ethnic backgrounds.
At the Archimedean Schools, students are required to take classes 2.5 hours a day in Greek, not just language courses, but other subjects as well. This is a testament to the growing demand for these types of schools. read the full article.