Curriculum

Protecting the right to childhood

creating abilities for life

How are the children learning? It is now common knowledge that a child who is taught and acquires skills through play learns important social as well as academic lessons, which are positively reflected in later life. Given a warm and loving environment in which creative play is encouraged to take place, a real genius may develop out of it. As Einstein himself said: " I have come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than any talent for abstract, positive thinking"

Through the activities of our classroom routine, children learn in a natural and enjoyable way, the necessary skills to develop as full human beings. Children learn through imitation and in the home-like environment of the kindergarten and nursery, activities such as baking, cooking, cleaning, gardening and sewing encourage free imitation and develop a wide range of skills such as fine motor movement, concentration, and a sense of order. The children can make real things from real materials that have a useful application in the world that they know. This forms a basic understanding of purpose in life.

Through story telling, children acquire appreciation of sound, listening skills, a rich vocabulary, memory, social awareness, and sequencing skills. Through music and movement they develop physically and intellectually, they acquire language and numeric skills (counting rhymes and ring games), spatial and social awareness, and of course musical appreciation.

We acknowledge the importance of rhythm - Through the recognition and experience of the changing seasons and the effect they have on our lives, as well as the celebration of the festivals within each season, we follow the rhythms (routines) of the year, month, week and day and develop a strong sense of security, inner harmony and appreciation of culture. The classroom activities reflect life in the outside world and hold meaning for the child. Abstract themes, artificially imposed by a teacher as a learning tool, do not carry the same depth of meaning at this stage of development.


Can you explain your activities and outcomes?
When we make things, sort, sequence, and put in order We develop our fine motor skills, hand/eye co-ordination and develop concentration. This prepares us properly for later reading, writing and math. We gain awareness of difference, similarity and size. We also learn how to select and make decisions which frees our innate desire to learn.

When we paint, draw and model Our imaginations and creativity are stimulated. We learn to feel with the colors and experience our own dynamic life of feeling. We have a means to express our inner development.

When we prepare food and bake We use our skills of spooning, mixing, sorting and sequencing: we practice our co-ordination, our fine and gross motor skills, to make something real and delicious which can be shared with others.

With creative play We learn to cooperate, take turns, and negotiate with others. We also learn cognitive skills and spatial awareness. Play provides us with the opportunity to develop our social skills, to express our feelings and work though emotions in acceptable ways.

With practical, domestic activities We satisfy our innate and natural desire for order and develop a sense of independence and control over our environment. We learn to respect the needs of others and also have a chance to imitate the adults in our life by using our practical life skills to care for our rooms or help others in a real way.

When we care for and observe plants and animals We develop a love and respect for nature and a reverence for life and the world around us.

At snack time We learn social skills, listening, talking, sharing and helping others. We value this as a relaxed time to come together as a group.

At story time We learn to develop good listening skills, as well as language, concentration and memory capacities. We use our imaginations and enjoy gathering together in a cosy setting. Memories of well told stories help us develop a rich inner life and sense of right and wrong. A well chosen story can help our emotional development and also be very healing.

At circle time Through music and movement we practice gross motor skills and develop spatial awareness. We also learn sound discrimination to help with later reading and writing. Intellectual capacities are stimulated through the movement of the body. Seasonal ring games, poems and songs teach us about rules, social dynamics and joy.

Celebrating festivals and experiencing the culture of our environment. This brings light, colour and joy in to the classroom and provides us with a chance to express awe, wonder and gratitude for the earth, others and ourselves.

We endeavour to hold regular open days and evening talks on the school philosophy. Parental involvement is warmly invited. We work in partnership with you so that home and school lives compliment each other and the precious early childhood years are protected, respected and nurtured.