The Boca Grande Preschool is a program of Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice, Inc. that provides “Early Education for Island Kids”! Located on the campus of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, the Boca Grande Preschool educates 30 children whose parents work or live on Gasparilla Island in the Boca Grande community.

Funding and Licensing

The preschool offers high-quality early childhood education and child care services through the generous support of Island residents and family foundations. The Boca Grande Preschool is a nonprofit program of Catholic Charities. and is a nondiscriminatory facility that is open to children of all faiths. The preschool is licensed by the Florida Department of Children and Families.

Program & Curriculum

The children enrolled in the Boca Grande Preschool experience opportunities to explore, learn, and grow in a nurturing and supportive environment. The program focuses on promoting the physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and language development of each child. The children learn values and responsibility as well as how to communicate, interact, and resolve conflict effectively through play.

American Sign Language

Boca Grande Preschool integrates American Sign Language into the curriculum which helps nonverbal children participate and communicate basic needs and allows teachers to communicate without interrupting activities.

Comprehensive Early Education

Creativity is encouraged through art experiences and craft projects, and movement to music. The children learn problem-solving skills, early math, and science concepts, along with color, shape, and number recognition. Pre-reading concepts, such as letter recognition and phonological awareness, are introduced utilizing the Fundations pre-kindergarten program by Wilson Language.

Fundamental Skills Development

Boca Grande Preschool uses Speed Centers, a set of activities that provides 55 to 65 different opportunities for the children to learn, practice, and master skills essential to the achievement of developmental milestones which are assessed using PreschoolFirst, a web-based curriculum resource that is aligned with Florida standards.

STEM Activities

The preschool offers many activities to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math components to encourage the children’s natural curiosity. The children of the Boca Grande Preschool begin their educational adventure as early as one year old and graduate to kindergarten prepared to succeed!