Preschool & Kindergarten - Summer Session 2026
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The 2025-2026 regular school year for Morning Song and Day Song preschool & kindergarten ends on May 29. From June 8-Aug. 20, Prairie Flower will again offer a summer session of preschool & kindergarten programming. Programming will be the same as the current Morning Song and Day Song preschool & kindergarten program, which uses an emergent curriculum, emphasizes spending as much of the day as possible outdoors (in all weather, including rain!), unhurried daily rhythms and unstructured, child-led play time. During the summer, we will also make time for typical summer fun like running through sprinklers and splashing in the creek, occasional trips to Furman Aquatic Center, and occasional field trips to parks across town via CyRide. Summer Preschool Details
*Childcare assistance funding is available through Iowa DHS for families meeting DHS requirements. This requires a separate application through DHS. Daily Schedule
Note: The main outdoor spaces used will include Brookside Park, Ames High Prairie and Prairie Flower's nature playscape, as well as occasional field trips to parks along CyRide routes. Weeks Offered: Sign-up is on a week-by-week basis, for the weeks listed below. Sign up is for Monday-Friday of that week; if you wish for your child to attend only part of a week, the full weekly tuition is still due. Sign up for either full days, or half days (8 a.m.-12 p.m.) each week.
Behavior policy and payment/refund policy Click here to read. What to Bring (for Backpacks)
Note: Morning snack is part of the cooperative model and is provided by families on a rotating basis. Children won't bring their own snack each day. Gear Your Child Will Need:
Income-Based Summer Tuition Sliding Fee Scale:
Find your household size and income level to determine what tier your family is in. Annual income is “adjusted gross income” using your most recent federal income tax return. 
To qualify for Tier A-D:
Upon enrolling you must confirm eligibility by sharing either a free/reduced price lunch eligibility letter (for Tier A or B), or most recent federal tax return for the household (Tier A-Tier D). If sharing your tax return is not possible, you can instead share pay stubs for all working adults in the household, or proof of unemployment or non-income. Your information is kept confidential. The number of spots at Tiers A-D are limited. You must be a Story County resident to qualify. We thank the Story County ASSET grant funders (United Way, Story County, and City of Ames) for making this sliding fee scale possible! We also accept childcare assistance funding through Iowa DHS for families meeting DHS requirements (the current income requirement is an annual household income of $51,440 or less, for a family of four). This requires a separate application through DHS. We also accept tuition reimbursement from the Federal Childcare Subsidy Program for federal workers who qualify (e.g. USDA employees in Ames). |
Sign Up Today!
Prairie Flower uses Brightwheel for forms and for communication with families. You will be prompted to create a Brightwheel account if you do not have one already.
Note: Enrollment is capped at 15 students per week. Once you apply, a member of Prairie Flower's enrollment team will contact you if space is available for your desired week(s). Families currently enrolled in preschool receive priority, and families requesting to enroll in full days will have priority.
Registration will be open for each week until the Monday of the week prior, or until the enrollment cap is reached.
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