Kindergarten Curriculum

Summary

The Kindergarten curriculum at Learning Circle Preschool grows out of the same goals and philosophy as the preschool curriculum. As in preschool, the Kindergarten curriculum with its enriching classroom environment, stimulating materials, the guidance and motivating strategies offered by experienced teachers, offers students the foundations for their optimum development. Underlying every aspect of the curriculum is the teacher’s appreciation and understanding of the way Kindergartners learn. That understanding forms the basis of a framework of expectations that are both reasonable and achievable.

Teachers observe each child and collect information about their strengths and weaknesses, so that each child’s individual interests and learning style are factored into the curriculum as it’s developed. Teachers also consider the skills, concepts, and knowledge children must become familiar with at the Kindergarten level in order to meet or exceed state standards and goals, and in order to make a smooth transition to First Grade.

As in preschool, Kindergartners continue to learn best through playful and active interactions with their environment, engaging in activities that are deeply meaningful to them. It is the teacher’s role to facilitate, plan, watch, listen, model, question, extend, observe, and help children make connections to both materials and the other children with whom experiences are shared. The Learning Circle Preschool curriculum provides children with the extended periods of time they need to play, to plan, to reflect on past experiences – time to practice and connect new experiences and knowledge to that which is familiar and known.

Each child follows a unique timetable as his or her development unfolds. At Learning Circle Preschool, we utilize a highly individualized approach. Teachers use the concept of “scaffolding learning” in their classroom approach. As children move towards mastery of a concept or skill, teachers gradually decrease the level of support offered, until children work independently. (“I do it and you watch; I do it and you help; you do it and I help; you do it and I watch”) We strive to offer each child the support, stimulation, and appropriate challenges necessary for a strong foundation for confident, life long learning.

We base specific curriculum choices on careful observations of children in the classroom environment, and on the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. The school uses Teaching Strategies Gold and the Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum for recording observations, planning, assessment, and communication with parents about development. In addition, our curriculum development is informed by the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) current standards reflecting best practices for the education of young children.

No short document can include all aspects of the curriculum. In Kindergarten as in preschool, curriculum is everything that happens – each interaction, conversation, and question posed offers engaging possibilities for learning. Since children learn in a holistic and integrated manner in early childhood, teachers plan experiences for children that offer opportunities across many domains (rather than as isolated subjects). The following areas of concentration have been outlined in this summary: