Infant – Toddler Curriculum. Caregivers work in close partnership with parents to enhance the social-emotional, cognitive, and physical development of infants and toddlers. In the infant-toddler program, curriculum is embedded in responsive individualized care-giving routines and in play as infants and toddlers explore and make discoveries about themselves in their physical environment. Teachers closely observe children and read cues to determine when feeding, play, sleeping, and individual adaptations are appropriate. Teachers facilitate self-regulation, independence, and problem-solving skills by allowing infant and toddlers time to work through problems. They work closely with families to ensure consistent care-giving between home and school. Secure attachments and relationships are created through daily interaction between families and caregivers.
Preschool Curriculum. The preschool curriculum is primarily a play-based, child-centered approach that supports children’s interests and emerging abilities. All domains of development; physical, social, emotional, and cognitive are addressed. In addition, children’s play is the vehicle for the curriculum content areas of literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, and the arts. Teachers carefully establish a developmentally appropriate environment in which children make a wide range of choices for play and engagement. Children choose to play daily in the following learning centers: dramatic play, blocks, table toys, art, sand/water, and literacy. Computers, woodworking, cooking, and other specific science centers are frequently available.
During free choice time, adults interact with individual children and small groups to make needed adaptations, facilitate problem-solving, learning, and development. They clearly communicate limits and expectations for behavior to children. In addition, children experience large group activity, snack and outdoor play daily. Field trips and classroom visitors enrich the curriculum as well.
Kindergarten Curriculum. Our kindergarten students are exposed to a variety of Curricula as we prepare them for first grade using the Illinois State Standards.
ABEKA is the curriculum of choice that is used for our kindergarten students. This curriculum offers math, writing, phonics, literature, science, and more… This curriculum is used in conjunction with Creative Curriculum which guides the teacher’s role in addressing the content of the core learning areas including the arts, and technology. The curriculum is based on early childhood theories and research to serve each child individually including those who have special needs or are English language learners.
Family and Community Connections. The open-ended emergent quality of the curriculum framework enables staff to consider community and family perspectives and home language when it is other than English. Community events, ongoing conversations with families, and information provided by families at enrollment are among sources of information for this endeavor.
Our program staff encourages continuity of services for children by communicating with other agencies and programs to achieve mutually desired outcomes for children and to guide collaborative work.