The Kindergarten Student
THE KINDERGARTEN STUDENT Kindergartners are curious and eager to learn. Each specific task that absorbs them is part of a larger need to make sense of the world around them. They learn through acquiring information from adults and from observing what is happening around them, through observing and practicing skills of various kinds, through feelings and certain habits of mind (cooperation, curiosity, trust, etc.), and from being with others who exhibit these dispositions. The kindergarten classroom offers children an environment that nurtures their natural curiosity and love of learning, and that expands their perceptions of the world. It provides meaningful, concrete experiences, which are fundamental to the way young children learn. Learning is encouraged through active involvement: observing, comparing, investigating, manipulating, and problem solving. The kindergarten classroom provides experiences that allow children to make choices and decisions, to question, to take risks, to make mistakes and try again (it is often as a result of mistakes that learning takes place), and to enjoy many successes. Each child is unique, an individual with his or her own learning style and learning timetable. To accommodate individual differences, the kindergarten classroom makes a wide variety of materials and activities available. Teachers understand each child as an individual, and support and encourage each child in work and play. Parents/guardians are encouraged to be partners in their child’s educational process. They can provide information about their child, supplement the teaching and learning experiences at home, and provide assistance in the classroom as volunteers and resource people. GOALS OF THE KINDERGARTEN PROGRAM One of the main goals of the kindergarten program is to encourage the growth of positive and socially responsible attitudes in children.
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