Learning At Bronte Kids

At Bronte Kids, we have specifically designed and tailored programs to promote and extend the learning of children that attend our preschool. These programs include:

• Preschool Readiness Program– We build resilient, happy and active learners by providing stimulating learning environments, which encourage social engagement, concentration and problem solving skills. Learning occurs alongside secure and safe relationships with children and educators. We support children’s learning by providing a program based on the children’s interests. Both indoor and outdoor experiences are built around experiences where children can explore, use their creativity and imagination and use their gross and fine motor skills. At Bronte Kids Preschool, the children have an increased sense of autonomy and responsibility as they choose their own lockers, place their name tags with photos on their lockers, put their lunch boxes in the fridge and water bottle on the water tray.  The children are also encouraged to share their weekend news to develop their confidence and communication skills.

• School Readiness Program– Children’s learning of social and emotional development, scientific exploration, creative, fine motor and gross motor skills, literacy and numeracy program is facilitated through play. Our school readiness program helps children become confident and involved learners as they learn how to problem-solve independently, use various thinking strategies and gain basic knowledge of numbers, shapes and patterns. Children are encouraged to sign themselves in to preschool each morning by writing their names and choosing their name tag without a photo to easily identify their own name. From June, parents are encouraged to send lunches that do not require re-heating to prepare children for lunchtime at school. Children are allocated a day in which to share any news with their fellow classmates and educators to increase their confidence and communication skills and prepare them for school.

• School Transition Program– Children Bronte Kids Preschool have the opportunity of visiting their local school, Bronte Public School, on a number of occasions. This gives the children exposure to a school environment and the chance to be part of the local community and develop greater social and emotional skills. Children entering Primary school attend orientation days at their school and they are encouraged to speak about their visit and new school with the class.

Our programs prepare the children for what is a very important time in their life, as they transition to their primary schools.

We have two age specific rooms;

Joeys: 2 – 3.5 years old

Kangaroos: 3.5 – school age

Each room has different learning and developmental goals specific to the room’s age group.

Joeys:

Our Joeys Room provides a world where our children begin to explore the processes of learning more than just the result of learning. The focus of our Joeys room is:

• Developing awareness of self
• Developing curiosity about the wider community
• Developing social connections
• Providing children an opportunity to explore long-term investigation
• Instil a sense of curiosity and wonder

Our learning goals for this room include:

• To nurture friendships by providing emotional support to assist the children in developing the skills and understanding they need to interact positively with others.
• To provide a supportive play environment so children feel comfortable to ask questions, solve problems and engage in critical thinking
• To develop the children’s fine and gross motor skills through age appropriate activities and play such as water, sand, music, sensory and sports.
• Enhance children’s listening and speaking skills including by communicating and sharing ideas with educators and peers and developing their individual skill through language acquisition activities and storytelling.

Currently for Term 4, our Joeys are focusing on

• Increase children’s independence and self help skills
• Preparing children for their transition to the Kangaroo room
• How to be a good friend and being aware of how our actions and word can affect others around us
• Name recognition
• Fine motor skills and pencil grip through mark making
• Promoting individual thinking, creativity and design with a variety of materials

Kangaroos:

Our Kangaroos room provides an environment of inspired, child-directed investigation, explanation and actuation.

This room is the final preschool room before children graduate to school and is the room where we encourage children to refine their views of themselves and instil in them a sense of wonder and natural curiosity. The focus of our Kangaroos room is:

• Develop a world of investigation without barriers
• Encourage children to ask questions, to disagree, to discuss and be open to multiple perspectives.
• Introduce concepts, theories, processes and cycles.
• Developing deeper comprehension skills
• Developing and nurturing a sense of curiosity
• Establishing social confidence that they can take with them to school.

Our learning goals for this room include:

• Supporting children to become confident and involved learners and effective communicators.
• To help the children problem solve different social interactions to prepare them for the school environment.
• Build on the children’s strengths and interests through interactions with children and families and quality programming.

Currently for Term 4, our Kangaroos are focusing on literacy and numeracy skills as we sing the numbers and shapes song daily. The children have been using their own name tags for their lockers, strengthening their own name recognition literacy skills and singing in their own name daily. Each week we are focusing and strengthening the children’s skills in fine and gross motor, social and emotional skills, being effective communicators and problem-solvers, all through play.

Individual Learning

Our aim at Bronte Kids is to have an open relationship with our parents and communicate with them as much as possible. We do this through daily updates on Kinderloop, emails, newsletters and verbal updates upon pick up/drop off. In early 2019 we will be introducing Individual Learning Reports, which will be emailed to parents once a term. The learning reports will be a short overview of what each child’s strengths are and areas for growth.