CIS Lakeside primary school principal, Dr Colleen Drisner, shares how the right kindergarten programme sets the foundation for learning. A child’s early development is undoubtedly one of the most important stages of their learning journey. It not only sets the foundation for honing their cognitive skills but also supports them in learning key competencies such as critical thinking and creative problem-solving.
What makes a great kindergarten?
Learning becomes a social endeavour. The foundation for success lies in the development of a student’s personal, social and emotional wellbeing. To foster a child’s academic abilities, you have to be able to “see” the whole child.
Helping children ‘learn how to learn’. We go about this by guiding students to develop their own voice and interest in learning. This helps to support the development of positive attitudes, habits and learning styles, which in turn develops strong foundational skills such as numeracy and literacy.
Purposeful play and the inquiry-based learning approach engages children and triggers their curiosity. This allows them to hone their critical thinking skills, excel at collaborative work and be able to solve problems creatively. For example, exploring concepts through interactive activities such as water play means you really can learn all about volume and capacity through the hands-on process.
Learning is fun and stimulating. The one thing that you should not see in a supportive kindergarten programme is a worksheet-heavy curriculum. It discourages group work, curiosity and exploration while emphasising only one correct way of completing or answering a task or question.
The physical setup of a kindergarten will have a huge impact on how children learn and communicate with the world around them. At CIS, we have a dedicated kindergarten wing where classrooms spill out into large and open learning pods. These are spaces where students can participate in hands-on activities or interact with their peers at exhibitions and celebrations. Some of our kindergarten classrooms also connect directly to the school’s Outdoor Discovery Centre, a layout that allows our students to easily engage and learn from the environment around them.
Join a Kindergarten open house at CIS on 24 & 25 February to see their learning approach in action and meet their teachers.
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