Our Curriculum

What sets us apart is our curriculum.  Early childhood is such a precious time.  Not only are children up to the age of 5 growing physically at a faster rate than at any other time in their lives, but they are also changing cognitively almost from one day to the next.  The ideal curriculum for this age group, therefore, is one that tracks closely with each child's individual progress.

Creative Corner's teachers know this well and practice it daily.  Our curriculum is developed to fit your individual child's needs.  The program includes developmental skills building in:

●	Personal & Social Development
●	Language & Literacy
●	Mathematical Skills
●	Scientific Thinking
●	History & Nature
●	Creative Arts & Music
●	Physical Development & Health

At Creative Corner School, children learn to feel good about their gifts and talents, as well as respect for others.  Each day is filled with hands-on activities that encourage curiosity, creativity, discovery and problem solving.  Our teachers are trained in the development of cognitive and fine motor skills, and in fostering social and emotional growth.  And of course, a lot of time is devoted to playing in the fresh air, laughing and having fun.

---

Infant Curriculum

We offer a full day program of up to 11 hours per day.  Our goal is to partner with you to give your baby the best opportunity to grow and flourish in his or her own unique way.  Our program fosters exploration and problem-solving, self-expression through movement and coordination, building self-confidence, and to the establishment of trusting relationships.  Our individualized curriculum encourages children to learn and grow through play.

The Creative Corner environment is stimulating, but never stressful.  Nap times are based on individual schedules.  Each baby feels at home in a crib that you have set up and is comforted as needed.  Your infant's curriculum with include circle time, music and movement activities, art and sensory play, fine motor play, large motor play, neighborhood walks (generally at least twice per day) and much more.

---

Toddler Curriculum

Our goal is to partner with parents and give each toddler the best opportunity to develop as an individual.  Nurturing teachers design the curriculum to fit the individual needs of your toddler and provide daily learning opportunities.  We believe that children at all levels need to explore and discover the world around them.  Although a large part of our day involves playing in the fresh air, laughing and having fun, teachers are always looking for opportunities to develop your child's cognitive, fine motor, large motor, and social and emotional skills.

Creative Corner is a language-rich environment, every day our teachers are reading books, singing songs, encouraging children to name and point out objects around the classroom, and asking open-ended questions and seeking children's individual responses.

The toddler classroom is designed to encourage children to explore their surroundings.  Several learning centers are set up around the room, and during play times, toddlers venture freely from center to center.  At one learning station, your child can put together a puzzle, at the next, children are pretending to bake a cake.  These hands-on activities spur growth and learning skills.

Goals for your toddler include:

●	Building a positive self-image
●	Developing responsibility, such as cleaning up after play time
●	Respecting peers and building friendships
●	Using words to express feelings, such as asking a friend to share
●	Making choices and learning likes and dislikes

Teachers communicate daily through verbal and written reports; you will always feel part of your child’s school day.  We encourage you to talk to teachers regarding any questions or concerns you may have.  In addition to verbal communication and daily sheets, our toddler program uses a developmental assessment tool called the Ounce Scale.

The Ounce Scale was developed by Pearson Early Learning, a well known authority in early education. Developed from research and fieldwork, the Ounce Scale uses a variety of approaches to track the accomplishments of your toddler while including you in the process.

The Ounce Scale helps maintain and strengthen teamwork between parents, toddlers and teachers.  The tool's main focus is on what children can do, not what they can't do.  The Ounce Scale is organized around six major areas of development:

●	Personal Connections:  It's About Trust
●	Feelings About Self:  Learning About Me
●	Relationships With Other Children:  Infant Talk
●	Exploration and Problem Solving:  Toddler Discoveries
●	Movement and Coordination:  Toddlers in Motion

---

Preschool Curriculum

Preschool children are provided with activities that are challenging while achievable.  As recent studies have shown, early childhood education is an important foundation for future educational success. Creative Corner's program is based on the Massachusetts Department of Education's Preschool Learning Experiences.  Frameworks are designed to help your child progress in all developmental aspects.  Based on six strands of guided learning, the curriculum is multidimensional and all learning is highly interrelated:

●	English Language Arts:  Children develop literacy comprehension by reading or listening to books or creating their own journal entries and stories.  Teachers use a variety of activities to help expand vocabulary; based in English but incorporating other language sounds and words.  On any given day your child may greet you at pick-up in a variety of different languages, or wow you at the dinner table with another word for please!
●	Mathematics: Another academic goal in the program is to develop your child's number comprehension, and size and spatial awareness.  Children use fun hands-on resources such as puzzles, pattern blocks and scales.
●	History and Social Sciences:  Students are encouraged to ask questions and explore and discover! Children participate as community helpers which aids them in learning their roles and responsibilities in society.  Students learn that the world we live in is filled with many different cultures; children are provided with books so they can see people from different countries.
●	Science and Technology:  Science and technology are the building blocks for understanding how the world woks.  Children learn about seasons, nature and animals, during Sea Week your child will play in the tide pool sensory table and use magnifying glasses to examine the shells.  Children learn and explore nature's everyday wonders.  Some activities include sensory table play; students have a great time exploring floating vs. sinking, building sandcastles, and other fun activities.
●	Health Education:  Through outdoor play, physical movement and personal hygiene we learn about ourselves and how to live in a healthy manner.
●	Creative Arts:  Teachers emphasize the joy of creativity, not the perfection of the final product.  Art is a time to be expressive, and there is no emphasis on concrete rules.  Teachers often use the phrase, "Tell me about the picture", and encourage your child to express what he has created.  Dramatic play is a time where your child can act out her dreams - becoming a princess or a doctor with costumes, tools and toys.

Most importantly, we understand that children learn more when they are having fun!  Preschool is a time to expand your child's social skills and to build and strengthen relationships with peers.  A large part of the curriculum is spent interacting and laughing with fellow students.  The playground is a place for your child to play games and run around with peers.

In Preschool, parents will be provided with a weekly Curriculum.

---

Pre-K Curriculum

The Pre-K curriculum is designed to work with different developmental levels and different learning styles; teachers want your child to be successful and challenged.  The program is based on the Massachusetts Department of Education's Preschool Learning Experiences.  Frameworks are designed to help your child flourish on all levels. Based on six strands of guided learning, the curriculum is multi-dimensional and all learning is highly interrelated:

●	English Language Arts:  Pre-Kindergarten provides a language rich environment so your child will continue to expand his growing vocabulary.  Children develop literacy comprehension by listening to and reading books, and writing on their own.  During Bug Week, your child will listen to The Ladybird and write in her journal about her own experience with bugs.  She then might go on to write and illustrate her own story about that experience.  Children are encouraged to write and talk about books as they read them.  Class sing-alongs are great fun and help review lessons!
●	Mathematics:  In Pre-K, children develop a deeper comprehension of numbers, conception of size and spatial awareness.  For example, how many inches tall are we?  How long are our arms?  Children engage in fun art and learning activities such as body tracing and painting.
●	History and Social Sciences:  Students are encouraged to ask questions and explore the world around them.  The class covers topics such as the different landscapes, seasons, and plants and animals.  Students may be asked to discuss how humans and animals interact.  Students will brainstorm and learn about how seeing eye dogs help the blind or how we often feed wild birds because we enjoy their company and beauty.
●	Science and Technology:  How does the world around us work?  We learn through experimentation.  Your child will be exposed to many concepts such as floating vs. sinking, estimating and working with blocks and towers.
●	Health Education:  It is important to take care of ourselves!  This means eating right had having a blast running around and playing fun games.  Your child is beginning to learn about the importance of nutrition and we value a healthy lifestyle.
●	Creative Arts:  Teachers emphasize the joy of creativity; art is focused on process rather than product.  Your child's teacher will often use the phrase "Tell me about the painting" and encourage your child to express what he has created.  Maybe he wasn't trying to make anything at all, maybe he was practicing mixing colors or enjoying the process without a vision of an end product.

Most importantly, we understand that children learn more when they are having fun!  Pre-K is a time to expand your child's social skills and to build and strengthen relationships with peers.  A large part of the curriculum is spent interacting and laughing with fellow students.  The playground is a safe place for your child to play games and run around with peers.

Pre-Kindergarten teachers are in touch with parents daily - you will always be part of your child's school day!  Every week families are given a newsletter that informs parents of their child's weekly curriculum and all activities.  In addition, teachers use the Pearson Learning Assessment to keep track of your child's developmental progress and to give you an accurate account of your child's development.

---

Kindergarten Curriculum

Kindergarten is a very exciting transition in shaping you child's attitude toward future academics. The goal is to teach by promoting enthusiasm, curiosity, activity and interaction.  We focus on the development of the whole child and foster self-confidence, independence, and communication.  Creative Corner Kindergarten provides a rich variety of developmentally appropriate experiences that meet the interests and needs of each student.  The extended day program offers flexible schedules, with up to 11 hours per day.  Teachers promote self-confidence and encourage your child to become part of a community of active learners through discovery and exploration, creative activity planning, and problem solving activities.

Starting with self-esteem, the individualized program gives your child everything possible to ensure that they graduate from Kindergarten having achieved the following:

●	It is most important that your child feels good about him/herself
●	Your child is excited, enthusiastic, curious, and ready to take the next step in future academics
●	Your child can communicate with peers and teachers, and is not afraid to ask questions
●	Your child will feel empowered to grow and learn, having seen that practice helps them improve

In general, students graduate from Creative Corner Kindergarten reading, writing and doing math at a first grade level and often higher.

Whether it is learning about science through gardening, running a coin exchange at the shop, or running around in the fresh air, Kindergarteners are always busy!  The full day program has the privilege of devoting efficient instructional time in all curriculum areas, as well as incorporating enrichment activities into weekly themes.  Lesson plans and educational goals are built according to the Massachusetts State Frameworks.  Your child will build development of cognitive, fine and large motor skills, and social/emotional skills.  The comprehensive curriculum focuses on:

●	English Language Arts
●	Mathematics
●	Science & Technology
●	History & Social Sciences
●	Health
●	Creative Arts

We believe that children learn best by participating in their education:

●	A large part of learning takes place through hands-on activities; students read Green Eggs and Ham and then individually illustrate their contributions to the story for publication
●	We imitate real life experiences so children are actively involved in their learning - playing store helps children understand the concept of money
●	Students enhance understanding by making connections between concepts learned in the classroom and experiences outside the classroom
●	When children are encouraged to communicate their experiences through writing, they become directly meaningful

The development of personal and interpersonal skills is an important part of education, at all ages and especially in Kindergarten.  We aim to build self-confidence and develop a sense of self through sharing, resolving conflicts and tolerating others, decision-making, and cooperative learning.