General School FAQs

  • You may add days to your child’s schedule at any point throughout the year so long as the space is available to do so.  You may reduce days or dis-enroll from the program with a month’s advance notice so that we have a chance to fill the space.  You are not contracted for the school year; however, the registration fee and first month’s tuition required to secure your child’s space are non-refundable.

  • Please pack lunch including a beverage, plenty of diapers, and a change or two of clothes.  If your child is in the infant room, please send a sleep sack, as bedding is not allowed in the cribs per state licensing regulations.  If your child is older, you may send a blanket or lovey for naptime.  We provide nap mats in the older toddlers and twos classrooms.  Please do not send outside toys

  • Please sign-in your child each morning on the sheet at your child’s classroom door.  After 9:45, you will have to ring the doorbell to be let into the building.  We ask that you leave the lower half of the classroom door closed and hand your child over to his or her caregiver through the upper open door.  In this way, escape artists are kept at bay.  It is also for this reason that we ask you not enter the classroom once children are present.  Also, “drop and run” is the most effective method of minimizing separation anxiety – the longer you linger, the worse it is for you both!

  • The same procedures apply as drop-off, with one notable exception: Anyone picking up must be listed on your child’s release form.  A person picking up not recognized by the caregivers must have their ID checked at the office.

  • You will receive an info report with diaper changes, times napped, and overall demeanor.

  • We understand that life happens, and a distinguishing aspect of our PDO is that we do our best to allow your child to make-up for a missed day, or drop-in if you have an unexpected need for child care on a certain day.  That said, due to our state licensing requirements and ratios, we may not always be able to honor your request.  These requirements are there for the safety of all children in care.  We might ask that you wait until 9:45 on the day you would like to make-up or drop-in to see if a space is available.  For this reason, we ask that you also please let us know if your child will not be attending school on his or her regular day, so that we can best serve all of our families.

  • Absolutely not.  Children of all backgrounds and faiths are welcome.  Our objective is the academic, social, and emotional growth of young children.  The word Christian in our title is meant to convey that values pertaining to respect, compassion, and character development serve as the foundation to help in our mission to provide quality child care to the best of our ability.

  • Optional Stay & Play & Enrichment programs are offered each school day from 12:00-3:00 (optional 3:30 pick-up is available). Children enrolled in either program should bring a nutritious lunch.
    Stay & Play children will work on projects, enjoy indoor & outdoor play, have rest time (napping & non-napping rooms available), and have lots of fun. Certified teacher Tiffany Gill plans the curriculum for the Stay & Play program.

    Enrichment classes are offered to preschoolers ages 4-years or older. Enrichment programs have the goal taking of themes introduced during preschool and expanding on them through science, language arts, math, and art activities. Children are encouraged to do all activities by themselves. Certified teacher Leslie Janss plans the curriculum and teaches the enrichment classes.

  • CCDS is licensed by the state of Texas, and our caregiver / child ratio must not exceed those outlined in the licensing standards. Each class has a teacher and aide, and we have staff floaters that help out where needed. Each preschool class has the capacity for between 16-20 students.

 Tuition, Registration and Classes Related FAQs

  • Tuition is determined prior to enrollment for the school year and outlined on the registration page.  Tuition is averaged over the course of the school year calendar, meaning that every month from September through May is the same rate regardless of the number of school days in any given month.

  • Yes.  Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and AMEX are all accepted.  Most parents leave a card on file with us by filling out this form.  You may also receive a 5% tuition discount by paying for semesters in full with cash or check.

  • Yes!  We are one of a few Dallas area PDO & Preschool to offer a program spanning most of the Summer.  We offer PDO for children aged 6mos-3yrs, and enrichment classes for children aged 3.5-6yrs.  Programs are typically 9-10 weeks long, and the only day we do not operate in the Summer is Friday.  Just like in the Fall, you may pick and choose your days.   Summer tuition is prepaid before the program begins, and is a lump sum for the semester rather than a monthly fee. 

  • There are reasons we operate the hours we do.  For one, we retain a high quality staff, as our hours allow for family oriented employees to care for your children, and still be able to attend to their own families after school.  In addition, having more hours of care would result in shift changes, and we prefer your child remain with the same caregivers throughout the day.  Continuity is important in understanding a child’s demeanor, appetite, diaper changes, etc. over the course of the day.

    While the maximum hours of care for our program is 8:30 – 3:30, we understand that sometimes full-time care is the only option for a family.  We have had some of our employees in the past work something out with families who need a little extra time.  This is not something we can promise or officially offer, but we would be happy to introduce you to an employee who might be able to help, provided you understand that CCDS is no longer liability for care outside of the 8:30 – 3:30 window of time.

  • Actually, no, but close!  Many preschool programs have a firm September 1st cut-off date to enter their preschool program.  We find that children turning three years by November are ready for a bit more than PDO.  Our youngest preschool class is designed for children who would be on a three year preschool track before entering Kindergarten.

  • Yes. You must choose either 2-day (T/TH), 3-day (MWF), or 5-day preschool programs. Curriculums are designed so that a project may be started at the beginning of the week, and completed later in the week. In this manner, it is important that the same group of students attend specific programs, so that children may effectively learn together.
    However, afternoon programs have flexibility, in that you can choose as many or few days per week as you would like.

  • You will know immediately. We do not collect any fees unless the space is free to place your child in a class. There is not an application fee or waiting list fee. However, if a space is available and you want to reserve it, you must pay the registration fee and first month’s tuition, both of which are non-refundable. You would also complete the enrollment and registration forms and return.

  • CDS follows a school year calendar, with Fall classes beginning at the end of August and continuing through around the 3rd week of May. Your enrollment carries through the whole school year, so there is not a separate enrollment for the Spring semester. There is a separate enrollment for the Summer term

  • Each preschool class has a lead teacher and an aide. We require that the 3yr old teachers have an associates or BA degree. Pre-K classes for children eligible to enter kindergarten the following year are taught by certified early childhood teachers.

  • Each school day will include time segments that provide your child with physical activity, arts and crafts, lesson time, music, special activities, and story time. A sample preschool morning class schedule would be:

    • 8:30 – 9:15 Table activities and free play
    • 9:15 – 9:45 Lesson time
    • 9:45 – 10:15 Outdoor play (weather permitting)
    • 10:15 – 10:30 Bathroom break / wash hands
    • 10:30 – 10:45 Snack
    • 10:45 – 11:15 Arts and Crafts
    • 11:15 – 11:30 Specials
    • 11:30 – 11:50 Story time and lesson review
    • 11:50 – 12:00 Classroom cleanup / prepare to leave

  • Special classes taught by different teachers throughout the week include:

    • “Kid fit” – a physical fitness class the kids absolutely love

    • Spanish

    • Music

Health and Food Related FAQs

  • This is totally up to you, but we ask that it be nutritious, easy to prepare, and not too messy. Please pre-cut all meats, cheeses, and fruit.  We are not a peanut free school; however, if we have a severe allergy, we might make certain classes peanut free for the safety of that child.

  • We ask that you to discuss your child’s food allergy with us and your child’s caregivers.  Children are not permitted to share food with each other; however, depending on the severity of the allergy, we might ask that the food not be brought into your child’s classroom.  Your child’s pediatrician should fill out an appropriate plan of action if exposed on the health form.

  • Toys, nap mats, tables, etc. are cleaned several times a day with a product called Simple Green D Pro 5, a hospital grade non-toxic solution.  Caregivers must refill their spray bottles in the office so that we can effectively monitor that cleaning is properly conducted.  Caregivers must wash both their hands and your child’s hands at diaper changes, after going outside, and at meal / snack times.

  • Despite our best efforts, kids get sick.  If your child is running a fever over 100 degrees, we will ask that you come pick-up your child early.  Or, if he or she is not acting his or her usual cheery self for an extended period of time, has vomited or had diarrhea more than once, or doesn’t have much of an appetite throughout the day, we might contact you to pick-up early, as that can be an indication of illness developing.

    You may also be contacted if your child suffers an injury while at school.  If we determine any injury requires medical attention, we will contact you right away.  It is also our policy to contact you with any bump to the head.  With minor falls, bites, or scratches, we use our discretion and may not contact you right away, and inform you instead at pick-up.

  • Children must be fever free without the use of fever reducing medication for 24-hours before returning to school as listed in our policies.  We thank our parents for honoring this policy, as this is the best way to keep all children in class as healthy as possible.

  • This is again a requirement of many schools, and while we would like for your child to have grasp on going to the potty, it is not a requirement that he or she be completely there yet, as long as you are working on it.

Security & School Safety Related FAQs

  • Doors are locked the majority of the day, except for drop-off and pick-up.  You are welcome in the building at anytime, but must ring the bell to get in.  You can exit at anytime without assistance.

  • Yes.  As part of our state licensing, all of our staff are fingerprint background checked.