curriculumWhat

You probably have academic goals for your child: to be a good reader and writer,
to solve problems in math and science, to be a good citizen in the world, to
appreciate the arts, and to use technology. We share the same goals, but learning
in preschool looks different from learning in elementary school.

Literacy

The ability to communicate with others--through speaking and listening, reading and
writing--is essential for success in school and in life. In our program, we plan
experiences every day to help your child develop these important skills.

*Listening and speaking: Children who know lots of vocabulary words
usually have an easier time learning to read. They learn new words when adults
talk with them, describe what they see, name things, and explain what new word
mean. During these conversations children learn to listen to and understand what
others say and to express their ideas in words and sentences.

When you visit our program, you will hear a lot of talking. We talk with children as
they play to describe what they are doing ("You made a tall tower," or "You used
three colors in your picture: red, yellow, and blue.") We ask questions to
encourage children to express their ideas in words ("What do you see the
caterpillar doing?" or "What do you like best about this picture?"). We take time to
listen carefully to what children have to say. And we encourage children to talk with
each other as they play.

*Early reading: Reading is about getting meaning from print. Readers know that
written words convey messages. They understand how books work: you turn
pages from right to left; pictures show what the words say; stories have a
beginning, middle, and an end. Readers know that words are made up of letters
and letters stand for sounds.

In preschool, children begin to learn the names of the letters and their order. Of
course, the most important letters in the alphabet are those in each child's name.
So we start with those letters first. We post children's names on their cubbies, on
our job chart, on their work, and we encourage them to start writing their names.

Your child will also learn to explore the sounds in language: words that rhyme
(hop/pop, cat/mat), and words that start with the same sound (Peter, pet, pot).
This is called "phonological awareness." To teach this skill we sing songs, recite
poems, and read books that play with words.

Most importantly, we want children to want to read. The best way to encourage
children to become good readers is to read to them every day. We have lots of
wonderful books in our classroom, not just in the Library but in every interest area.

*Early writing: Reading and writing go together. When children scribble on paper
and tell us what it means, we know they are beginning to understand what writing
is all about. We encourage this beginning writing. We show children how we use
writing to convey messages--writing down their words, their names, making lists
and signs for the room. In our classroom you will see paper and writing tools in our
Library and in other places in the room. For example, we keep writing supplies in
the Block Area so children can make signs for their buildings and in the Dramatic
Play Area so children can take phone messages and write prescriptions.

Math

Bigger. Longer. Smaller. More. Less. The same. How many? Math is more than
just knowing numbers and counting. It's about organizing information, comparing
amounts, seeing relationships. Math involves logical thinking.

Just as the alphabet song helps children learn the names of 26 letters and their
order, counting songs and rhymes teach children to recite numbers in the correct
order. But they need lots of experiences with objects to really understand what a
number like "4" actually represents, and to be able to think logically--like a
mathematician.

As you can see, children develop math skills every day as they play with different
materials and have conversations about what they are doing.

Science

Young children are natural scientists. They notice and wonder about things, ask
questions, and come up with possible answers. Then they test their ideas, observe
what happens, and share their discoveries.

Some children love insects and pets and want to find out what they eat, how they
move and feel, and how they reproduce. Other children are more interested in how
things work. They want to take apart a flashlight, use a balance scale to weigh
objects, or test how fast a toy car can go down a ramp.

In our preschool, children can be scientists every day as they play. We have living
things and materials for them to care for, observe, and explore. We give children
tools to use in their science explorations--magnifying glasses, eyedroppers,
measuring cups, magnets, gears, and scales. We encourage children to wonder
and explain by asking:

*What do you see? Hear? Smell?

*What would happen if you tried it this way?

*What did you find out?

And we listen carefully who what children say to understand what they are thinking.

Social Studies

Children are naturally curious about the world they live in--where people live, what
jobs they do, how they use and take care of the environment. This is social studies.
Perhaps your child asks questions like:

*What do you do all day when I am in school?

*Who takes care of the animals at the zoo?

*Did those workers build this street?

*What happens to the bus when the driver eats lunch?

In our program, children learn about social studies by being in a group. They help
to make the rules for our classroom, make choices, learn to accept different points
of view, and treat others as they want to be treated. And we study different topics,
sometimes for weeks or even moths, so children get to be"experts" in investigating
why things are the way they are. We might study the grocery store--who works
there, how they do their jobs, how they display the food and keep it fresh, where
food comes from. We hope you will join us on one of our field trips and share what
you know about the topics we are studying.

The Arts

Young children love to draw, paint, cut and paste, and mold clay and dough. They
also enjoy moving to and making music, and pretending. They love these activities
because they are fun and satisfying. But the arts are important for another reason.
They give children different ways to express what they know and feel. This is why it
is so important for children to create their own works of art. If we gave children
coloring books, asked them to follow patterns, or told them that everything had to
be done the same way, they would just be copying another person's ideas.

In our program, we provide lots of creative art materials--paints, markers, crayons,
paper, clay dough, collage materials, scissors, and glue--and encourage children to
create their won pictures and structures. We take an interest in what they do and
we say: "Tell me about your picture." Because children's artwork shows their
learning, our walls are covered with children's work. You won't see art projects that
all look the same.

We involve children in all the arts. We encourage them to pretend about situations
or experiences they have had so they gain understanding. We sing songs every
day, and we invite children to move to music, all different kinds. Children play
instruments to make up their own songs or to keep time with a march or a song we
are singing.

Technology

Most of think of computers when we hear the word "technology." We show children
how to use computers to find information, write stories, solve problems, and play
games.

But technology is more than computers. It's about using tools to get a job done.
Children use tools at our workbench--hammers, saws drills. They use a tape
recorder to listen to stories and songs or to record on their own. They show their
understanding of how to use tools when they pretend to scan items in the grocery
store, open and close a cash register, use mouse and keyboard to navigate
through a computer program, or use binoculars to observe a mother bird feeding
her babies in a tree.