Center Mission Statement
The Teaching Learning Center of Lakeland Community College is a demonstration laboratory school sponsored by the Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Program at the college.
The mission of this laboratory program is to:
• Demonstrate and exemplify excellence in preschool/pre-kindergarten practices and to provide a high quality, developmentally appropriate educational setting for children 18 months – 5 years of age.
• Serve as a training facility and observational site for Lakeland Community College students preparing for careers in Early Childhood Education, Psychology, Nursing, Education, and other related fields.
• Function as a laboratory for development of curriculum and teaching strategies for early childhood centers.
• Provide an educational child care service of the highest quality to Lakeland Community College and community families.

The Program Goals
The Teaching Learning Center is the demonstration lab school for the Early Childhood Education Program. Its primary goal is to provide a quality program whose curriculum reflects the cognitive, emotional, physical, social, and creative development of the young child. The laboratory school provides children 18 months to 5 years with a developmentally appropriate educational experience, using a curriculum based on discovery, guided exploration, and play.
The Teaching Learning Center believes that positive relationships with the families of the children enrolled are of utmost importance. Therefore, the second goal of the TLC teaching staff is to establish good rapport with parents by being supportive of families’ goals and needs. Respect and support of families is critical to the TLC’s philosophy of communication with young children.

Philosophy Statement
The philosophy of the TLC is to inspire in young children the values, challenge and excitement for learning through teacher guidance and social interactions. Young children should have the opportunity to establish positive attitudes towards the learning process, teachers, and school through a variety of creative and meaningful school activities. Through information gathered from parents, observation, and interaction with the child, teachers plan curriculum that reflect the individual needs and interests of each child. The program and classroom environments are designed to meet the different learning styles and creative expressions of the children.

Student Teacher Training
The function of the Teaching Learning Center at Lakeland Community College is to train Early Childhood Education students preparing for teaching careers with young children. Student Teachers will be assigned to teach with the Teaching Learning Center staff in both the toddler and preschool rooms