Little Harbor Early Learning · Portland, Maine Request a tour
Portland, Maine · Infant care through pre-K Tours run on weekday mornings.
A sunlit windowsill with small boots, a paper cup of crayons and a jar of beach shells
Infant care through pre-K, one address.

Come in. Wipe your boots. Stay a while.

Little Harbor is a preschool and daycare in Portland, Maine. Infants, toddlers, half-day preschool, pre-K, a summer program and drop-in care. You are welcome to walk the rooms before you decide anything.

Request a tour See the rooms
In this building
  • Infant care
  • Toddler program
  • Half-day preschool
  • Pre-K
  • Summer camp
  • Drop-in care
A corner of a preschool classroom in morning light with a low shelf of baskets and a small chair by the window
The quiet corner, mid-morning.
Look inside

The part of the day you don't get to see.

Drop-off takes four minutes and then the day belongs to them. Here is its shape, told the way we'd tell a neighbor on the sidewalk.

  1. 01

    Drop-off

    Coats on the hooks, boots in the tray, and a grown-up at the door who knows which cubby is yours.

  2. 02

    The long morning

    Small tables, big paper, blocks on the rug, songs when the mood takes us, and outside if the weather is kind.

  3. 03

    Lunch

    Lunchboxes opened at the little tables, and teachers sitting down with them while they eat.

  4. 04

    Rest

    Lights low, cots out, books for the ones who don't sleep — and there are always a few.

  5. 05

    Pickup

    The day gets handed back to you, with the good parts told properly.

The rooms

Four rooms, one long day.

Each room has its own corner, its own noise level and its own teachers. You will see all four on the tour.

Infants

Infant care

Quiet rooms and soft light, kept close to the way you keep them at home. We note naps, bottles and moods through the day so you are not left guessing at pickup.

Toddlers

Toddler program

The years of wanting to carry your own boots. We let them try, and we let it take as long as it takes.

Mornings only

Half-day preschool

A morning with a shape to it, for families who keep the afternoons for themselves.

Before kindergarten

Pre-K

Longer projects, more words, more doing it themselves — the year that gets them ready for a bigger building.

A busy preschool room with small tables, paper and paint pots in daylight, children working at a distance
Pre-K, ten minutes before lunch.
The last year

Then they walk into the big building.

Pre-K is the year we spend getting them ready to walk into kindergarten and not look back. Come see the room while it is full of work.

Ask about pre-K
At the door

The questions parents ask us.

Every family arrives with a list. Here are the ones we hear most, answered the way we'd answer them in person.

How young do you take them?
Infant care is where most of our families start, and we stay with them through pre-K.
Can we see it before we decide?
That is what the tour is for. Weekday mornings, while the rooms are full and the day is happening.
What does a half day actually look like?
A full morning with the same teachers and the same routine, ending at midday.
Can we use drop-in care now and then?
Yes — call the front desk and we will tell you honestly what we have room for that day.
What happens here in the summer?
Summer camp keeps the days built around being outside, with shade for lunch and water when it is hot.
How do we start?
Request a tour or call. We will walk you through the rooms and tell you what is open.

Nobody has ever asked us a question we minded. Bring the awkward ones to the tour — that is what the tour is for.

Request a tour
A shaded preschool yard in summer with a dirt patch, watering cans, a low wooden fence and small boots by the door
The yard, after a long morning in it.
Summer & drop-in

Summer, and the odd Tuesday.

The warm months look different here — more outside, more water, more dirt under the fingernails, and a shady place to eat lunch.

Summer camp
A summer program with the days built around being outdoors.
Drop-in care
For the days that do not go to plan. Call and ask what is open.
Ask about summer & drop-in
A warm entryway with a boot tray of small rubber boots, hooks of little jackets and a wooden bench
The front entry. Boots go here.
Visit

Come stand in the doorway.

Tours run on weekday mornings. You will walk the rooms, meet the teachers on the floor, and see the day happening rather than hear about it.

Enrollment questions, or just a look around (207) 555-0142

Call the front desk, or send the form and we will get back to you.

  • Weekday mornings, while the rooms are in use
  • Infant care, toddler, half-day preschool, pre-K, summer and drop-in
  • A person at Little Harbor answers, whichever way you reach us

Prefer to talk it through? Call and we will answer what we can on the spot.