The National Institute for Early Education did a study on full vs. half-day preschools. What they found was that students in full-day programs did better in literacy and mathematics tests than students in half-day preschool programs. They also concluded that the achievement gains continued at least until the end of first grade. Our goal at Franklin Academy is to be giving our students the best educational preparation available even at an early age.

Images of 3-year-olds in front of textbooks pop into many parent’s minds. I hear them saying, “But I want my child to play and be allowed to be a kid for as long as possible.” To them, I say, “We want this also.” Luckily, our new full-day program from 8:30am-3pm can provide a fun, playful environment while giving them an academic advantage.

Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers says that it takes ten thousand hours to achieve mastery in any area. This applies to academic exposure in the early years. It is apparent when students enter kindergarten who has a strong literacy and math foundation and who has not.

Our preschool is different because while daycare teachers are there to entertain children as their parents work, our program uses certified preschool teachers that are trained to sneak learning into play. For example, a student may make a letter with play dough, then chalk, pinecones, and in a sand table and pretty soon a child identifies and knows that letter.  We also are one of the only preschools in Bellingham to offer certified music and Spanish teachers that incorporate learning into these fields as well. There are no students who are being forced to learn but only students having fun while learning.

If you would like to sign up for Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. to give your child the educational jump-start they need, please email 

We sure do have amazing teachers and our students benefit from our small class sizes! Our preschool has rich, age-appropriate experiences and versatile materials to satisfy a child’s curious nature and support his or her development and growth, too!

New! Full Day, Extended Year (7 a.m. – 6 p.m.)

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