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HOW CHILDREN LEARN AT CHILDREN'S CORNER
At Children’s Corner, our philosophy is that children develop at their own rate and in their own way, and learn best through play. We believe that it is critical to set up a classroom environment that is interesting and appealing so that each time a child comes to Children’s Corner, he or she finds an activity that is new, interesting and age appropriate. Our classroom environments are divided into developmentally appropriate learning areas. As children play in the environment, they have numerous opportunities to interact with materials, peers, and adults.
We believe children come to school with an immense amount of curiosity and it is our job as teachers to set up the classroom environment so it is exciting and engaging. Our teachers are caring and encouraging so each child feels safe and comfortable to explore, invent, think, imagine and try. Our teachers are educated in the field of child development and stay current by attending classes, workshops, and conferences. We believe that, with a stimulating classroom environment and nurturing and enthusiastic teachers, the children will leave at the end of the day having learned more about themselves and the world around them.
Listed below are some examples of what children are actually learning while they are at play.
During circle time your child develops:
- large group participation skills
- listening and attending skills
- music appreciation
- creative freedom for self-expression and movement
- language skills
- a positive self-concept
Circle time is a wonderful time for children to listen to each other, practicing their listening, focusing and direction following skills, and their ability to take turns. The length of circle time depends on the age of the children, the time of year, and the composition and interests of the group. The activities at circle time include reading, singing, playing musical instruments, flannel board stories, puppets, fingerplays, dancing, sharing, games and parachute play. The teachers usually choose stories and activities that support the current monthly curriculum theme or are relevant to children’s lives (new baby, moving, self-esteem, emotions, etc.) or interests.
In the art area your child develops:
- creativity
- self-expression
- eye/hand coordination skills
- small muscle skills
- imagination
- divergent thinking
- problem solving skills
- planning skills
At the art table, children are working on fine motor development. The goal is for the experience to be open ended and children are encouraged to have fun and experiment – each creating an individual piece. All artwork is not expected to look alike. The process is what is important, not the product. At the beginning of the school year, materials are introduced so children without previous experience will be comfortable using various mediums. Varieties of paints are offered: watercolor, tempera, glitter, foam, puffy, fluorescent, finger-paints, etc. The children are also offered a variety of tools to paint with: small and large brushes, toothbrushes, gadgets, sponges, yarn, feathers, combs, cars, etc. Children use glue and glue sticks and are given a variety of collage materials. We also use stamps, crayons, markers, chalk and stickers. In addition to the art table, easel painting is also available.
In the block area your child develops:
- an understanding of weight and balance through construction
- pre-math skills, concepts of big/little, more than/less than, equal to/same as, shapes, sizes, and one-to-one correspondence
- cooperative play skills
- small and large muscle skills
- divergent thinking
- problem solving skills
- planning skills
The block areas include many different types of blocks and building materials, animals, people, cars and trucks. Props and toys from one area may be moved and used to enhance imaginative play in other areas.
In the manipulatives area your child develops:
- visual problem solving skills
- visual memory skills
- eye/hand coordination and small muscle skills
- classification skills, organizational skills
On the manipulatives tables, activities are changed daily and throughout the day. The manipulatives are all age appropriate and include puzzles, Legos and other small building materials, alphabet blocks, mazes, lacing beads, hammer and pegs, matching games, etc.
At the playdough table your child develops:
- self-expression and creativity
- small muscle skills
- imagination and role playing
- social interaction
- cooperation skills
- language skills
In addition to playdough, the table is used for other sensory activities. We use gak, shaving cream, clay, gelatin, and bins of flour, corn meal, rice, baking soda, beans, water and ice. As well as providing different tactile sensations, our sensory tables provide beginning science awareness and math skills.
In the dramatic play area your child develops:
- self-expression of feelings, ideas, and experiences
- an understanding of the world through taking on another’s role (identity)
- social interaction, cooperation, and social conventions
- self-help skills (i.e. dressing and undressing)
- language skills
- problem skills
- adult roles
At the snack table your child develops:
- self-help skills
- small group participation skills
- turn taking skills
- independence
- social cooperation skills
During snack preparation (Big Kids) your child develops:
- pre-math skills (measurement, one-to-one correspondence, sequencing, and seriation)
- social cooperation skills
- health and hygiene concepts
- science concepts
- small muscle skills
Snack and lunch times are a wonderful forum for children to practice their social and language skills. The children enjoy a healthy snack together. They learn how to serve themselves and pass the snack dish to others. It is a great time to learn about food and also to learn to take turns. There are a lot of wonderful conversations that happen at this time. Teachers sit at the tables and ensure that everyone is included in the conversation.
While outdoors your child develops:
- large muscle skills through running, climbing, bike riding, balancing, jumping, and swinging
- independence
- social interaction skills
- problem solving skills
- understanding of physical laws
- science concepts
- physical coordination
In addition to all of the traditional outdoor activities, teachers often bring out traditional indoor activities (puzzles, manipulatives, art projects, etc,) to encourage those children who haven’t taken advantage of the activity while inside or for those children who rarely choose small motor development activities. Sometimes just having the materials in a different environment encourages children to try it.
During story time your child develops:
- language skills
- pre-reading, relationship between spoken and written word, sequencing memory skills
- listening and attending skills
- a love of books and reading
- thinking skills
- imagination
During science time your child develops:
- information about the environment and world
- respect for animals, their needs and care
- understanding of physical laws
- problem solving skills
- divergent thinking skills
In the office area of the classroom (3s, 4s, and 5s) your child develops:
- pre-writing skills, holding a pencil, inventive spelling, using scissors
- small muscle skills
- language skills
- eye/hand coordination
Social Skills – Children are working on language and social skills daily. Our program is set up so children have the opportunity to talk and play with each other and relate to each other. For children who need support with social problem solving, teachers are aware and help with solutions and use of appropriate language. Teachers spend a lot of time talking and listening to children and extending play and asking open-ended questions to promote language development and thinking skills for children.
Our Annual Curriculum Wheel provides the general guidelines for teaching and learning. However, the teachers in each classroom develop their own monthly curriculums based on the Annual Curriculum Wheel.
The Terrific Two and Three Year Old Program focuses throughout the year on language and communication skills, particularly as they relate to sharing, problem solving and making friends, and developing self-help skills.
The Year Round Curriculum includes:
- Learning to:
- Use my words
- Tell him/her you don’t like it
- Put my shoes in the cubby
- Pour my own drink
- Find a friend
- Remembering:
- My mom/dad will be back soon
- To go potty
- That I am special
- My teeth are for food, not friends
- To say, “I don’t like that”
- Not to push
- That sand belongs on the ground
- To help each other
- That paint belongs at the easel
- To love
- And… manipulatives at interest centers, dramatic play in the dress up area, creating in the block area, music, dancing and singing, story time, snack time, circle time indoor and outdoor choices every day.
The Thrilling Three and Four Year Old Program Curriculum / Theme for the School Year
September – Self, self-help
We will sing name songs and make introductions for children. We will help with separation anxiety. We talk about feelings and routines and help children get used to the new room. We take a lot of pictures. At the art table we do paint, glue, collage materials. We help children become acquainted with materials they may not have used. We sing each day at circle as well as read stories.
October – Safety, self, self-help
We still work on independence skills and managing tasks for oneself. We are working on awareness of others both physical and emotional. Our projects for this month include carving pumpkins and roasting the seeds. The art table will include leaves and things from nature. We will trick or treat as a group to the Senior Center and Recreation Office and children may wear a costume. This is a great opportunity to talk about pretend and real.
November – Fall, harvest, helping others, anti-bias
We will talk about family celebrations and kindness. Our books will include fall and harvest stories as well as books including helping. We practice singing songs that we will sing for parents at the Feast.
December – Winter festivals, helping others, family
Families are invited to come and share with us a favorite celebration or tradition. We will be making a special gift in class. Stories will include different kinds of families and winter. The art table will have snowflakes and lots of glitters.
January – Winter, animals, shapes, neighborhood
We will talk about different kinds of homes, where people live and where animals live. Art activities will include animal prints. Children will work hands on with shapes at the play dough table and with blocks and Legos.
February – Winter, friends, shapes, neighborhood
A great month for talking about different kinds of love and what we love about special people in our lives. We will be making valentines at the art table. Our stories will include books about love, friends, and compassion. We will talk about what you see on your street, and we will look for shapes everywhere.
March – Spring, community helpers, colors, community
We will have our silkworm eggs hatch and watch them grow from tiny to cocoon to moth. We will talk about community helpers that children see. The art table will have flower and bug art. We have many wonderful stories about spring and flowers and the changing season.
April – Spring, transportation, colors, community
We will expose children to colors at the art table and with books and songs at circle time. We will continue to look for spring and talk about the changes children see as well as the colors spring shows us.
May – Summer, farm cycles, sizes environment
We will make a Mother’s Day gift. We will do a planting project and talk about farms. We will look at sizes and do hands on projects measuring and comparing materials.
June – Summer, planting, measurement, environment.
We will make a Father’s Day gift. We will talk about vacations because summer is the time many people take them. We have circus/carnival theme, we do art projects, and read stories related to the circus/carnival. We visit the “carnival” in Room C, play games, and win prizes.
July – Outer space adventure, curtain call
We read space stories and use flashlights. We talk about the sun, stars, and the moon. We will read stories about space. At the art table, we will make stars and suns. For curtain call, we will dress up and put on puppet shows.
August – Down by the Shore
We will have lots of water play. We have some great books about the ocean and fish and all the wonderful things under the sea. At the art table, we will make pictures with sand and colored rocks.
The Fabulous Four and Five Year Old Program Curriculum / Theme for the School Year
September
Themes: Self, Self-Help, Self-Safety, Getting to know each other, getting to know the room routines
Activities: Handprints, friendship quilts, togetherness, music, self-portraits, books about school and friendship, and cooking playdough
October
Themes: Self, Self-Help, Self-Safety, Changing Seasons, Halloween, Imagination
Activities: Field trip to Pumpkin Patch (if the children are ready), decorating cars and trucks, making a giant pumpkin, dancing with leaves and scarves, chalk drawing, moving like animals, Halloween Trick-Or-Treating, learning about the colors of autumn, and real vs. pretend
November
Themes: Begin Table Time, Families, Harvest and Winter Festivals, Helping others, Anti-Bias Curriculum, Thankfulness
Activities: Cooking with pumpkins, leaf prints, sponge printing, wood collage, leaf sorting, reading stone soup and having soup for snack, learning about being thankful
Table Time: Hold and use pencils, scissors, make simple cuts, trace lines, Aa, Bb, Cc, and 1, 2, 3
December
Themes: Winter, Winter Holidays, Family Traditions, Helping Others, Anti-Bias Curriculum
Activities: Making white playdough, talking about our families, glitter art, and counting the days of vacation
Table Time: Cut zigzags, cut lines and shapes, Dd, Ee, Ff, 4, 5, 6
January
Themes: Animals, friendships, shapes, winter, our neighborhood, Anti-Bias Curriculum
Activities: Remember our vacations, color blending, shape guessing game, shape collages, friendship songs, cooperative spider web game, and encouragement circle
Table Time: Writing names, tracing and naming shapes, drawing and cutting shapes, Gg, Hh, Ii, 7, 8, 9
February
Themes: Friends, sharing, shapes, our neighborhood, love, and music
Activities: Valentine’s, shape games, creating a neighborhood, letter collage, decorating houses, reading books on love and friendship, counting shapes, and making peppermint playdough
Table Time: Trace, draw sort shapes, cut shapes, write name, Jj, Kk, Ll, 10
March
Themes: Spring, community helpers, transportation, colors, community
Activities: Visit from Fire Fighters, sorting colors, light and darks, color blending, gadget painting, and transportation songs.
Table Time: Write name, trace, draw and cut shapes, Mm, Nn, Oo, Pp, 1-10
April
Themes: Baby animals, spring, colors, community helpers, and nature
Activities: Songs about colors, melting colors, planting, flower necklaces, color absorbency, nature prints, feather finger puppets, shape and color memory game, and primary color painting
Table Time: Sorting and matching colors, primary colors, mixing colors, Rr, Ss, Tt, 1-10
May
Themes: Seasonal changes and weather, recreation, farm cycles and planting, sizes and measurement, environment, talking about kindergarten, discussing vacations, saying goodbye, and lots of waterplay
Activities: Watching plants grow, measuring plants, painting with fruits, mother’s day gifts, number collage, color collages, Redwood Grove Field Trip, making paper, and talking about animals
Table Time: Blending colors, primary and secondary colors, Uu, Vv, Ww, Xx, Yy, Zz, 1-10
June
Themes: Circus Carnival/Outdoor Adventure
Activities: Clown parade, juggling, face painting, silly dress-up, finger-painting, clown faces for snack, nature walks, campus clean-up, camping stories, and rock painting
Table Time: Alphabet, Numbers and Skills Review using Circus and Outdoor Themes
July
Themes: Outerspace Adventure, Curtain Call
Activities: Learning about planets, sunprints, night sky pictures, moon rock hunting, foil painting, plotting constellations, make-believe, making props/scenery/costumes for our performance, books on feelings, and cooperation
Table Time: Alphabet, Numbers, and Skills Review using Outerspace and drama themes
August
Themes: Down by the Shore
Activities: Lots of waterplay, playing with water and ice, learning about fish and other marine life, making aquariums, and singing fish songs
Table Time: Alphabet, Numbers, and Skills using Seashore Themes
( Children’s Corner is a not-for-profit corporation licensed by the State of California. )
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