Preschool Teachers

Oak Hall School provides an active learning environment for three-year-olds to develop through experiential learning.

Children participate in a variety of developmentally appropriate activities in the classroom. Active learning is a dynamic creative process, and our goal is to provide children with the materials, experiences and ideas to develop their curiosity about the world and therefore become life-long learners.
 

Program Goals

1. Promote emotional growth: 

• Provide a flexible and calm atmosphere where independence is encouraged and expectations are made clear
• Build self confidence and self-esteem by allowing choices and by building on successful experiences
• Provide a warm and accepting environment in which children work and play to encourage curiosity and a sense of wonder with an environment that is designed for exploratory play
   

2. Promote social growth:
 

• Instill a sense of caring for and sensitivity toward others
• Adult modeling of acceptable behavior is critical to learning cooperative and group play
   

3. Promote intellectual growth: 

• Instill a sense of curiosity
• Provide an atmosphere where children discover and explore—to provide open-ended learning experiences which highlight process over product
• Provide a wide variety of activities in all curriculum areas: art, language arts/literacy, nature/science, math manipulatives, cooking, music and movement, dramatic play, large muscle activities
   

4. Promote physical development (both fine and gross motor):
 

• Provide opportunities for children to use their bodies in active ways by participating in fine and large motor activities both indoors and outdoors to engage in simple games

5. Develop self-help skills in order to create independence and autonomy:

• This can be accomplished through development of hygiene routines, dressing independently, putting belongings away upon arrival at school, returning materials and toys to their proper place.

6. Establish respect for the environment (indoors and out) by learning to use equipment and materials appropriately and carefully.

These program goals are accomplished through the following curriculum areas and use of DLM Early Childhood Curriculum:

Art activities-both teacher directed and “free” art- are offered, with opportunities to cut and tear paper, paint with brushes and fingers, color with crayons, chalk, markers, glue with sticks, brushes and bottles, and create with play-doh.

Sensory experiences include pudding/jello play, water, bean, sand and rice tables, bubbles, shaving cream, sound cylinders and color mixing.

Language acquisition is developed through reading and re-telling stories, learning names of staff and peers, puppet play, fingerplays, nursery rhymes, counting and alphabet games, and memory games. Language is also encouraged through children’s active, expressive responses to open-ended questions, following directions, expressing emotions.

Nature and science curriculum includes developing an awareness of our natural world through use of observation skills.

Math activities at this stage are primarily presented through the use of manipulatives. Areas include sorting, sequencing, number recognition, greater/less than, heavier/lighter, longer/shorter, etc.

Cooking experiences are very basic and children learn to mix and pour.

Music and movement includes learning basic rhythm, seasonal songs, learning to move in a line, into a circle, singing together, fingerplays.

Art: The process and enjoyment of creation and visual awareness are the mainstay of the 3-year-old Art experience.

Library: Students develop an appreciation of literature and participate in stories and activities in the library. Students also learn beginning library skills through checking out books.

Music: The Preschool students meet with the music specialist once a week. They participate in movement and dance activities, sing, and play rhythm instruments.

Physical Education: Three year olds participate in a weekly physical education program. Emphasis is placed on fundamental skills, following directions, using PE equipment, learning locomotor skills and working on hand-eye coordination.

Spanish: Twice a week, the students are exposed to the Spanish language through group activities including age-appropriate reading, songs, and crafts, which reinforce vocabulary. The children will learn greetings, colors, numbers and a few adjectives.