More About Ardent
More About Ardent Preschool & Daycare
At Ardent Preschool & Daycare, we create a nurturing, faith-based environment where learning is both engaging and impactful. Our dedicated team supports the development of well-rounded children through strong academics, character formation, and playful experiences that prepare them for lifelong success.
Our program integrates God’s love into daily interactions, helping children grow in their faith while building confidence and compassion. We strive to inspire a lifelong love of learning—and to exceed parent expectations every step of the way. We invite you to experience the Ardent difference for yourself.
Licensed Daycare Facility
Ardent Preschool & Daycare is a licensed daycare facility in Alabama, fully compliant with the regulations set by the State Department of Human Resources to ensure the highest standards of care and safety.
Impressionable Character Training
Consider this quote from Frederick Douglass, “It is easier to raise strong children than to repair broken men” and at Ardent we want to come alongside our families to do just that… raise strong children.
What we get really excited about is that character training doesn’t have to end with the school day! As parents, you get the awesome opportunity to carry on the conversation at home! This is what we like to call “purposeful conversations” and they are sure to make every moment count.
Here's how parents can make the most of these teachable moments to improve character!
Define Your Terms
We’ve simplified each character trait into easy-to-understand terms for children, helping them grasp the boundaries between right and wrong in a way that makes sense to them.
Use Those Terms
God designed our children to be like sponges—they absorb and retain information! Purposeful conversations are key.
Seize the Moment
Consider the current circumstances. Look for opportunities in everyday situations to engage in purposeful conversations. Use these moments to reinforce your child’s understanding and help them internalize important values.
Memorize Scripture
While memorizing Scripture can be challenging for adults, it can be a fun and rewarding activity for children. Learning verses together as a family can strengthen both your child’s character and your family’s bond.
Christian Education
Our preschool program is designed to nurture young children in a faith-based environment that fosters spiritual, emotional, and social growth. Grounded in Christian values, we provide a well-rounded curriculum that introduces children to the love of God while preparing them for future academic success.
Ardent’s program integrates Bible stories, prayers, and Christian teachings into daily activities, helping children develop a strong foundation in faith.
Through our Christian preschool program, we aim to plant seeds of faith and knowledge that will flourish as children grow, helping them to develop a lifelong love for God and learning.
A Beka Curriculum
Ardent uses A Beka for phonics, numbers and language development. A Beka preschool curriculum is a faith-based, comprehensive program designed to foster early learning and language development in young children. The curriculum provides a strong foundation for academic skills and ensures children are prepared for the next stages of learning.
Phonics-Based Reading
Early introduction to phonetic awareness, letter recognition, and blending sounds to build reading readiness.
Writing Skills
Introduction to letter formation, prewriting exercises, and handwriting practice.
Number Recognition
Learning to identify, count, and understand numbers.
Basic Math Concepts
Introduction to shapes, patterns, simple addition, subtraction and measurement through games and activities.
FAQ's
What age groups does Ardent Preschool & Daycare serve?
Ardent Preschool & Daycare serves children ages 6 weeks to 6 years old.
Do you offer part-time, full-time, or extended-hour care options?
We offer full-time care at all locations and part-time care at our Valleydale (Birmingham, AL) and Clift Farms (Madison, AL) locations. Our hours of operation are Monday-Friday from 7:00 am – 6:00 pm. We are open all year (we do not close for summer.) The campus is only closed for up to 10 days each year for the following holidays: New Years Day, MLK Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day (and the Friday after), Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We have additional ½ days scheduled for every quarter throughout the year to accommodate for in-service training days for our staff. We release our calendar for the new year every November so all holidays and in-service days will be available for parents for the entire year. Our campuses specialize in full-time care for children 6 weeks through kindergarten. We do not offer mother’s day out or after school programs.
What is your student-to-teacher ratio for each age group?
We follow the DHR required ratios listed below.
Staff-child ratio shall be:
Age | Staff to Child Ratio |
0 up to 18 months | 1 to 5 |
18 months up to 2½ years | 1 to 7 |
24 months up to 36 months | 1 to 8 |
2½ years up to 4 years | 1 to 11 |
4 years up to kindergarten | 1 to 18 |
Is Ardent Preschool & Daycare licensed and regularly inspected by the state?
Ardent Preschool & Daycare is a licensed daycare facility in Alabama, fully compliant with the regulations set by the State Department of Human Resources to ensure the highest standards of care and safety.
What type of curriculum and learning philosphy do you use?
Ardent uses the Abeka curriculum, a faith-based program developed by a leading Christian textbook publisher with over 50 years of experience. The Abeka preschool curriculum provides a strong foundation in phonics, numbers, and language development, helping children build early literacy, math, and social skills. This proven approach to early childhood learning prepares students academically and promotes kindergarten readiness.
Can you describe a typical day or weekly schedule for my child?
Each age group/classroom will have a specific daily schedule that is posted outside of their classroom. These will all incorporate a few essential routines.
INFANTS I, II and III: Each of our Infant classrooms will incorporate music & center time, playtime/carpet play, story time, bible and circle time, and sensory stimulation each day.
WOBBLERS and EXPLORERS: We begin using the Abeka curriculum in this class. Their routine each day will include music and center time, Bible and circle time, storytime, sensory stimulation, carpet play, morning meeting and classtime, outside play, skills development, and language development. Potty training can be introduced in the Explorers class if children are demonstrating an interest.
TODDLERS: A little more structure in this classroom allows our teachers to really focus on recognition of shapes, numbers, letters, and colors. Special focus is brought to letters and numbers each week while they learn to count objects, count to 30, learn to use words to communicate and recognize colors. Their routine each day will include music and center time, Bible and circle time, storytime, sensory stimulation, carpet play, morning meeting and classtime, outside play, skills development, and language development.
Potty training either begins or continues and in some instances, children leave this classroom completely potty trained.
BEGINNERS: Teachers continue phonetic lessons and begin reading circles (small groups which concentrate on mastering the sounds of letters). We also begin to focus on developing eye-hand coordination by spending more time on learning how to trace the letters of the alphabet and numbers. Potty training is usually completed successfully in this class and is a requirement before moving into the next room. Each day their routine will include: centers, storytime, morning meeting, outside play, crafts, phonics/numbers/letter formation, skills development, Bible, language development, and music.
INTERMEDIATE: Building on our core curriculum, children continue to master the vowel and consonant sounds, will learn how to read blends and are introduced to sounding out one-vowel words. Children also learn to trace their name, count to 50 and recognize numbers 1-20. The Intermediate daily routine includes centers, storytime, morning meeting, outside play, crafts, phonics/numbers, skills development, Bible, language development, activity time (music/poetry/drama), and handwriting.
ADVANCED: Children continue to master sounding out one-vowel words and are introduced to two-vowel words. They also learn how to write their names independently. Students continue to work on number recognition, counting to 100, and they begin basic addition. We expound upon our colors and numbers by completing “color by number” sheets, learning our number families, and object counting exercises. The Advanced class daily routine includes centers, storytime, morning meeting, outside play, crafts, phonics/numbers, skills development, Bible, language development, activity time (music/poetry/drama), and handwriting.
PRE-K and KINDERGARTEN: These classes far exceed your typical Pre-K and Kindergarten. Children accelerate their reading skills and most are able to read full sentences. States and capitals are memorized as well as the Presidents of the United States. Students develop their math skills by learning addition, subtraction and basic fraction problems using Abeka Arithmetic. Needless to say, children who complete our Pre-K and Kindergarten class are well prepared to prosper in elementary education either in the private or public-school setting. The Pre-K & Kindergarten classes daily routines include: centers, storytime, morning meeting, outside play, crafts, phonics/numbers, skills development, Bible, language development, activity time (music/poetry/drama), and handwriting.
In what way are you a Christian childcare center?
Ardent Preschool and Daycare is a faith-based company. Although we are nondenominational, we hold to a conservative set of beliefs about God and the Bible, His Word. At Ardent, we believe that faith is for all of life. This means that we endeavor to honor God in all of our activities from the curriculum to the way we handle discipline in our classrooms. Please feel free to see our Statement of Faith.
What steps have you taken to ensure the security and safety of the campus?
We place a very high value in the security of our campuses, and every effort is made to ensure that Ardent provides a safe and secure environment for all children and our staff. Every Ardent campus is equipped with high definition cameras located throughout our building as well as at campus entrances and exits. Video from these cameras can be monitored in the front office by campus administration where they can keep a watchful eye on all campus activities. In addition to establishing safety from outsiders this system also creates a level of accountability with teachers.
We use the Playground® Software, which enables us to securely keep track of all the important information we would need to provide exceptional care. It also provides for safe and secure drop off and pick up. Coded keypads are also used to allow secure access to classroom areas of the campus from visitor access areas.
Additionally, we use the Raptor data security system. This system assists our front office personnel by screening every visitor through data received from a submitted drivers’ license.
What is your sick-child policy and how do you prevent illness spread?
Students who become sick at school must be picked up as soon as possible, preferably within the hour of parent/guardian being notified. Parents/ Guardians will be contacted if school personnel determine a student is too ill to attend class or needs additional medical documentation supporting the student’s ability to remain at school. Children must be able to participate in all daily activities. If a sick child requires more care than the staff can provide while continuing to care for other children, the parent will be asked to pick them up. Children may not return to school after a communicable disease until the doctor has released the child or all symptoms have disappeared. Please note that our policy may differ from the suggestion offered by your pediatrician. We have found considerable variance among doctors about when children may return to school.
We aim to prevent the spread of illness by following strict cleaning and hand-washing policies and procedures.
What type of training is required for your teachers?
Although many of our teachers do have degrees, we do not require a degree to be a teacher at Ardent (with the exception of Kindergarten teachers). Upon starting teachers go through 12 hours of Childcare Training as well as 10 hours of Health and Safety training required for DHR licensing. All of our teachers must successfully complete an additional initial 80 hours of extensive training with the Classroom Coordinator and with a classroom mentor. Each campus offers the same training process to ensure consistency. During this time, we teach them how to successfully manage their classrooms according to our established standards. All teachers must pass an ABI/FBI background clearance, become CPR/First Aid certified as well as participate in 12 hours of required DHR Childcare Provider courses (within first 30 days of employment) as well as additional training throughout the year.
Do you provide meals and have a meal plan for students?
We provide nutritious meals for students twice a day (breakfast and lunch) along with 2 snacks. Our meal plan follows the USDA dietary and serving guidelines and is available to all students beginning in our Infant 3 class. The meal plan is included in the weekly tuition.
How do you communicate my child’s progress and behavior?
Children’s progress will be updated via the Playground app as well as communicated by the teacher. Beginning around age 2 we send home student assessments to parents each semester.
What communication tools do you use?
We use the Playground app as well as email communication. Each month parents will receive an email newsletter going over all the activities and events for that month as well as what your child will be learning.
How can you extend Character Training at home?
Character training doesn’t have to end when the school day does! As parents, you have a unique opportunity to continue these important lessons at home through what we call “purposeful conversations.” These discussions help make every moment with your child count.
Can parents visit the classroom or meet with teachers outside of scheduled conferences?
We kindly ask that parents schedule meetings in advance to help us maintain appropriate DHR ratios in our classrooms.
How do we start the enrollment process? What documents are required?
To begin the enrollment process we encourage you to schedule a tour. You may also fill out our waitlist application online. You will then be contacted by a member of our team to go over the online application process.
Do you offer tours before enrollment?
We offer tours Monday-Friday from 7am-5:30pm. You may schedule a tour here.
How do you choose teachers?
Applicants are phone-screened and invited for an in-person interview with the Director. Administration considers a candidate’s testimony, training and experience, and seeks to hire individuals whom they believe will add significant value to Ardent’s program.
What can you expect from us every week?
We pride ourselves in offering our families a beautiful, clean and spacious facility. Our building is designed to provide plenty of natural lighting. We want families to feel at home as soon as they walk in the building.
Are there discounts for multiple children?
We offer a family discount for families with 3 or more children.
Do you accept childcare assistance programs?
Ardent accepts Child Care Assistance (CMA) at our Valleydale and Clift Farms locations, which may help cover part of your child’s tuition. CMA determines the approved amount, and families are responsible for any remaining balance. Families must provide a pre-approval certificate from the program. Enrollment is always based on availability.
I plan on breastfeeding my baby. What can I do to ensure a seamless transition from home to care at Ardent Preschool & Daycare?
For the most seamless transition from home to care at Ardent Preschool & Daycare, we recommend introducing a bottle to your child at least two weeks prior to your child’s start date. By no means does this mean that you must strictly use a bottle when at home! We strongly support the decision a mom makes when she commits to breastfeeding. However, because we strive for the best possible care for your baby, we encourage as much consistency as possible between home and school. Parents may bring in labeled breastmilk or formula daily for their child.
Awards
Ardent Preschool and Daycare has been voted as the Best Daycare, Best Preschool and Best Childcare Program throughout Alabama, by numerous publications. We are so blessed to be able to provide care for the wonderful parents and precious children that come through our doors each day. Thank you, Ardent family, for consistently voting for us year after year! View all awards here!
Statement of Faith
The following are the foundational beliefs of Ardent Preschool and Daycare. They are also the key elements of Christianity that may be taught in various ways through all levels of instruction.
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We believe the Bible to be the only inerrant, authoritative Word of God.
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We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent.
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We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory.
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We believe that for the salvation of lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary.
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We believe that salvation is by grace through faith alone.
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We believe that faith without works is a dead faith.
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We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by Whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
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We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost, they that are saved to the resurrection of life and they that are lost to the resurrection of damnation.
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We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.
