AIMS OF A NURSERY SCHOOL PROGRAM
We provide fun and stimulating experiences in a child's life. These experiences in Nursery School and Kindergarten should satisfy a child socially, emotionally, physically, and intellectually, and prepare him/her for the more structured program in school.
We have listed some objectives in three broad areas. We gear each expectation to the capacities of the child.
A. SOCIAL EMOTIONAL AIMS
1. To become responsible for himself, his behaviour, and possessions; to dress and undress himself, and put clothing away in an appropriate place; to avoid losing or leaving articles of clothing.
2. To become aware of and respect the rights of others, to take turns, to share.
3. To become cooperative and learn the value of contributing to a group.
4. To become self-reliant in terms of using his own initiative in play activities.
5. To become aware of his own self and how that relates to his functioning in a group.
6. To become competent in expressing his thoughts and feelings in a group -- to express his emotions in an appropriate manner.
7. To adjust to being away from home -- to cope with change.
8. To learn to recognize inappropriate fears for what they are (darkness, thunder).
9. To become aware of real physical dangers such as fire, falling objects, crossing streets, etc.
10. To learn to accept sharing attention and affection.
11. To develop a strong, positive self-concept.
B. PHYSICAL AIMS
1. To provide for the development of large muscle control through games, rhythmics, action songs, dramatics, and free movement.
2. To provide for the development of small muscle control through finger play, block building, using scissors, crayons, clay, plaster and other modelling materials.
3. To establish desirable health habits -- cleanliness, good toilet habits, washing and drying hands, brushing teeth, standing and sitting with good posture, ability to relax, good nutritional habits.
4. To help a child make correct speech sounds.
5. To improve coordination.
C. INTELLECTUAL AIMS
1. To increase a child's fund of ideas about the world and the people in it. To recognize colours, animals, flowers, furnishings. To understand basic concepts such as space, size, time, distance, relationships, social concepts, animals, the community.
2. To initiate an interest in reading, music, dramatic play, art.
3. To develop his language, both in using it and understanding it.
4. To develop skill in rudimentary abstraction, reasoning, and problem solving -- "This does not fit. I will get a bigger one." "Only six children can play at the play rice table at once. There are twenty children here. What will we do?"
5. To teach the child to think for himself and contribute his ideas to the group.
The pre-school child's abilities cannot be put in one category. We make allowances within the program for an extreme developmental range.