As preschoolers grow, an interest in building skills for future success arises. Generations is committed to preparing children for their school years by offering programming and curriculum in a way that young children learn best, through play. Generations incorporates the High Scope Philosophy into our curriculum. High Scope focuses on individual and small group skills. Teachers plan for the day based on what they know about the children in their care and build on what they know and need to know.
Children learn through planned and spontaneous activities. For example, experiences children have in the block center not only help build math skills, but physics and other science concepts. Dramatic play helps children learn problem solving and develop more complicated concepts they can apply to other areas. Manipulatives also build math and small motor skills. Pencils and scissors are explored more as children are better able to control these tools. Similar learning happens in all interest areas of the classroom.
Four year olds first attempts at forming shapes and letters are unforgettable and will be encouraged and guided by caring staff. Explorations of the physical world will be part of the routine as children learn that “the roots grow down and the leaves grow up.” Self-help and social skills will be a main focus to ensure children are successful in a group of peers.
The Daily Schedule
| Opening-8:30 | Drop off / Quiet Activities |
| 8:30 | Breakfast, Clean-up / Diapering / Toileting |
| 9:00-11:15 | Circle / Centers / Activity Time / 1/2 hour Outside / Large Motor |
| 11:15 | Clean-up / Toileting |
| 11:30 | Lunch / Clean-up / Story / Quiet Time |
| 12:30-2:30 | Nap / Rest Time |
| 2:30 | Wake-Up / Toileting / Snack |
| 3:30-5:30 | Circle / Centers / Activity Time / 1/2 hour Outside / Large Motor |
| 5:30 | Clean-up / Toileting |
Curriculum
Social Skills
- PreK children will learn to understand and show empathy for others.
- PreK children will learn to play cooperatively with other children for long periods of time.
- PreK children will learn to take turns and share without adult intervention.
- PreK children will learn to ask for help when having difficulty and learn to solve problems with words.
Motor Skills
- PreK children will learn to move their bodies in more intricate ways. They will learn to somersault, catch using just hands and throw overhead, for example.
- PreK children will learn to move creatively to music and stop on command.
- PreK children will further develop fine motor skills such as showing preference to write with one hand and beginning to write recognizable letters / words, copy familiar shapes, and draw a person with some clear features.
- PreK children will use scissors to cut straight and curved lines.
Cognitive Skills
- PreK children will be better able to pay attention and concentrate on tasks. They will also learn to predict the outcome of stories and interpret their main idea.
- PreK children will learn to recognize and match familiar words.
- PreK children will predict new ways to do things and represent their ideas in pictures.
- PreK children will better understand one to one correspondence, equivalent and non-equivalent sets and simple science concepts.
Language Skills
- PreK children will learn to speak in compound sentences and dictate stories of their own making.
- PreK children will learn to recognize and identify letters in their own name and many other letters.
- PreK children will learn to listen to and sequence more complicated stories.
- PreK children will begin to use prepositions (in, on, beside, over, etc.) and time related words (later, earlier, etc.).
