3's / 4's CURRICULUM SUMMARY

3’s /4’s Curriculum Summary

Social and Emotional Development:

The development of social relationships is a primary focus in early childhood. Early childhood education gives children the opportunity to develop relationships with peers and adults.  During their early years, children learn to trust adults who are not family members, to become friends with other children, to experience and work out conflicts, to ask for assistance and to help themselves with many everyday tasks.

Language and Literacy Development:

Young children learn through their senses while engaging in hands-on experiences, enjoying ample time for independent exploration, contemplation and group sharing and listening experiences.  Class meetings provide opportunities to develop listening and speaking skills as children discuss literature, share research homework, make plans for the day, and participate in sharing.  The children are intentionally surrounded by words: books of fiction, factual material, poetry, experience charts and their own creative writing, both in the classroom and in the library.  Children write names, create lists, label objects in the classroom, write notes to others, illustrate and author individual books, dictate stories and “kid write” in journals.  Class books are made from studies, special interests and group experiences.  Learners listen to stories for pleasure and to gain information.  The children regularly share their work and gain appreciation for the work of their peers.

Cognitive Development:

In the beginning of the year, children are exploring all aspects of their environment, and actively processing what they experience. While young children are mastering many facts, they are primarily experimenting with ideas and learning how to think about problems.  They explore their world by physically interacting with concrete materials, taking in information with all of their senses. Through their investigations, they learn about properties, patterns, relationships and mathematical concepts.  Learners explore and discover in direct connection with play, in conversations with peers and teachers, through independent activities and in small group guided experiences.  

Physical Development:

Young children are constantly learning with their whole bodies. On the nature playground and in the classroom, they are developing strength, stamina and coordination. In large motor activities, they strengthen their running, climbing and balance skills, building up muscles that allow them to move and hold themselves in increasingly complex ways. Through myriad activities like manipulating play dough, playing in the sandbox, doing puzzles, building, drawing, writing, painting, cutting and crafting, they are developing the fine motor coordination.