core values
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CORE VALUES:
The following CORE VALUES were developed through a collaborative effort of the Kinderhaven Preschool Academy staff during the summer of 2003. These CORE VALUES best reflect the goals and objectives of the Preschool.
Core Value: Children have experiences that encourage healthy socialemotional development and a positive self-concept. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Children are encouraged to express themselves in positive ways.
• Children are treated with respect and openly welcomed each day.
• Children’s thoughts and ideas are listened to and discussed.
• Children’s efforts and accomplishments are recognized and reinforced.
• Children’s positive behavior is acknowledged and supported.
• Children’s dispositions to cooperative work and play are recognized and reinforced.
If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children:
• Children feel accepted and comfortable in the classroom.
• Children see school as a positive place to be and appropriately separate from their parents or caregivers.
• Children feel that they are a part of a community where they are accepted and valued.
• Children develop a respect for working hard and being persistent.
• Children develop a positive self-image and think of themselves as successful learners and successful in relating to friends and adults.
• Children develop age appropriate self-help skills (i.e., toileting, dressing, eating/table manners) leading toward independence.
CORE VALUE:
Children will develop a positive character, understanding the importance of compassion and respect for others and their environment throughout all aspects of their daily activities. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Children learn about social problem solving and conflict resolution through direct teaching, modeling, and coaching.
• Group meetings, discussions and activities occur to build a sense of community.
• Children are taught anger management, impulse control and empathy.
• Children are involved in project work and other activities that require cooperation and collaboration with peers and teachers.
• Compassion activities and group projects will be a natural part of the classroom
environment.
• Children participate in activities that promote care of the environment.
• Children have respect for diversity in people and their ideas. If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children:
• Children will be able to solve problems during social interactions with peers.
• Children will become comfortable interacting with other children during work and
play.
• Children will treat each other and adults with care, respect and compassion.
• Children will learn that their actions impact others, and through their positive
actions, they can make a difference in the world.
• Children will treat their environment with care and respect.
• Children will respect individual differences.
CORE VALUE: Learning experiences are holistic (involving the whole child) and nurturing, challenging and encouraging children to grow in every aspect of their lives. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Children investigate topics in depth and learn how to use resources such as adults,
written materials, and experimentation to learn.
• Play environments will be rich, and time for play will be provided.
• Children represent their ideas and thoughts in many ways: painting, drawing, sculpting, dancing, music, drama, conversation, play, etc.
• Dispositions to learn, work hard, investigate, hypothesize, and analyze are encouraged and nurtured. If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children:
• Children will participate in interesting and appropriately challenging activities
and experiences.
• Children will talk about and share what they are doing and learning.
• Children will exhibit constructive and cooperative play.
• Children will participate in a variety of art experiences.
• Children will think at higher levels, including hypothesizing, estimating, and analyzing.
• Children will become intellectually curious.
CORE VALUE: Children are provided with opportunities to develop fundamental skills that serve as a foundation for future school success and will enhance their desire to learn. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Children participate in developmentally appropriate yet challenging…
• Opportunities to use language in meaningful ways
• Shared reading activities
• Guided writing experiences
• Activities that encourage children to “play with language” using rhyme and rhythm to engage them in phonological experiences
• Children have access to many types of literature in the classrooms.
• Children participate in scientific and mathematical thinking, such as hypothesizing, analyzing, and predicting.
• Children’s acquisition of knowledge, skills, and learning dispositions is
monitored.
• Children are involved in the study of meaningful topics that relate to typical curriculum goals. If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children:
• Children will see the value of reading and writing.
• Children will develop fundamental pre-reading/reading and pre-writing/writing
skills.
• Children will develop fluency in the use of the English language.
• Children will show an interest in mathematical and scientific problems and
activities.
• Children will learn to formulate questions in academic areas.
• Children will be able to search for and find answers to their questions.
• Children will have positive dispositions (attitudes) towards reading, writing, mathematics, and science.
CORE VALUE: Parents are viewed as vital to their child’s development and partners in their child’s education. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Parents are in the classrooms volunteering and sharing their knowledge and skills with the children.
• Parents serve on committees.
• Parents attend open houses, family events, fund raisers and parent classes.
• Parents participate in and share their viewpoint of their child during conferences.
If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children:
• Parents will understand how to support children’s learning.
• Parents will feel that they are making a contribution to their child’s education.
• Parents and children will share quality experiences together as parents model
learning.
• Parents, children, and the school will develop a good working relationship.
• Children’s enthusiasm for learning will grow with parent’s involvement in their
child’s educational process.
CORE VALUE: Documentation is an integral part of the teaching and learning process. If this happens in our classrooms it will look like this:
• Teachers document children’s learning on a regular basis. This will be visible
through:
• Transcripts of the children’s words
• Descriptions of the learning processes
• Collections of the children’s work
• Photographs of the children working
• The teacher taking notes on her or his observations of the children
• Teachers review the children’s work and projects by reviewing documentation
with the children and one another.
• Teachers work from the documentation to develop projects with the children.
• Documentation is shared with the parents and children in the following ways:
• Bulletin boards and documentation panels
• Newsletters
• Dry erase boards
• Children’s portfolios
• Reports
If this happens, then logically these will be short-term outcomes for our children and
parents:
• Children will understand that what they are doing in school is important.
• Children will understand that their work is important to teachers and their parents.
• Children will reflect on their own learning.
• Parents will become more familiar with their children’s process of learning.