New Creation Academy Springfield - Springfield MA Large Group and School Age Child Care (Group Child Care)

This program has had a complete structure make over including its name. NEW CREATION ACADEMY CONCEPTS OF FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCES: LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT Language development is generally divided into two separate areas- speaking and listening Goals for young children in the area of speaking development include: 1. communicate nonverbally through gestures, movements and expressions 2. use words to express needs, ideas, and feelings 3. participate in informal conversations about experiences 4. dictate ideas, stories, and messages 5. tell a familiar story 6. speak clearly 7. recite finger plays and nursery rhymes 8. use oral language as an effective means of communication 9. use terms related to direction (up, down, top, bottom) 10. use terms related to position (on, off, over, under) Goals for young children in the area of listening development include: 1. respond appropriately to simple questions and directions 2. identify familiar sounds (animals, machines, family members) 3. compare sounds 4. listen attentively to stories, poems, and other literary selections 5. become aware of repetitive patterns in rhymes, chants, and poetry 6. recall facts, details, and sequence of events in stories 7. focus attention on a speaker COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT Cognitive development includes the internal structures and processes that are involved in the acquisition and use of knowledge, including sensation, perception, attention, learning, memory, language, thinking, and reasoning. Goals for young children in the development of these skills include: 1. match objects in a one-to-one correspondence 2. identify numbers of objects in a group (such as 0-10) 3. use senses as a way to gain information 4. identify ways people can help each other 5. identify needs and roles of family members 6. demonstrate awareness of self (name, age, gender) 7. demonstrate awareness of safety rules 8. demonstrate awareness of social skills 9. describe events and objects in the environment 10. sort objects according to various characteristics (color, shape, size) 11. identify ownership of property (mine, his, hers, ours) 12. classify acceptable and unacceptable actions 13. form groups by matching objects 14. use vocabulary to compare quantity (more, less) 15. use vocabulary to compare size (bigger, smaller) 16. demonstrate awareness of part-whole relationships through puzzles 17. compare objects by using the senses 18. repeat a simple pattern with beads, blocks, or other objects 19. order a limited number of objects by size 20. count objects 21. recall the sequence of events in a familiar story 22. recall the sequence of events in a classroom activity 23. recall the sequence of events in daily routines 24. predict the results of various science experiences MORAL AND ETHIC VALUES DEVELOPMENT Moral and ethic values are a vital part of early childhood education. Moral and ethic values work hand in hand and they are things held to be right or wrong or desirable or undesirable. 1. develop ability to discern between right and wrong 2. develop to choose between right and wrong 3. develop an appreciation for what is desirable 4. demonstrate examples through staff behavior 5. role play what good morals and ethics is and is not 6. use society basic examples and patterns that are available 7. collectively working together to achieve a common norm for the children 8. distinction between good and evil or right and wrong; right or good conduct PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT Physical development is a vital part of early childhood education which is characterized by bodily activity. Goals for young children in physical development include: 1. develop basic movement skills 2. develop body awareness 3. demonstrate good posture 4. practice self-help skills (buttoning, zipping) 5. develop eye-hand coordination 6. develop coordination and balance 7. participate in active play 8. gain skills to control movements (stopping, turning) 9. develop ability to use playground equipment safely and successfully AESTHETIC DEVELOPMENT It is important to expose young children to beauty and to help them develop an appreciation for fine art and philosophical theory as to what is beautiful. Goals for young children in this area include: 1. explore line, color, shape, and texture through art activities 2. experiment with various art materials and tools 3. express ideas and feelings through art 4. develop awareness and appreciation of art culture 5. sing songs 6. listen to music 7. respond to music through body movements 8. explore various rhythm and melody instruments 9. listen to music that tells a story 10. develop awareness and appreciation of music culture 11. dramatize stories 12. imitate sounds 13. use body movements to express feelings and ideas 14. use puppets SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT It is important to teach young children how living together, enjoying life in communities, promote sociability, communal values and to demonstrate their feelings at an early age. Social and emotional development goals for young children include: 1. care for personal hygiene (washing hands, toileting) 2. develop ability to eat independently and appropriately 3. develop skills in managing dressing and undressing 4. recognizes healthy habits and routines 5. develop a healthy self-concept 6. demonstrate willingness to try new activities 7. show pride in work 8. express emotions appropriately 9. acquire skills needed to prevent accidents and injuries 10. demonstrate ability to discuss needs, wants, and problems 11. show respect for property and rights of others' 12. recognize and appreciate own uniqueness 13. and demonstrate acceptance of others' differences