Curriculum
Our program provides learning experiences that are developmentally appropriate, acknowledge diverse learning needs and encourage children’s natural curiosity and enthusiasm. Children will have the opportunity to construct their own knowledge and ‘learn how to learn’ through meaningful activities. The focus for our program is to provide high-quality play with a strong foundation in emergent literacy, numeracy and science skills that engage and promote learning. We believe in and teach methods of inquiry to encourage questioning skills, data collection, prediction and observations with opportunities to share. Children are encouraged to develop their own learning strategies, to solve problems, experiment, plan, revise and reflect on their learning. Students will have many opportunities to build from existing ideas and concepts and to express themselves through stories, music, plays and art.
Active Explores partners with I’m For Kids to provide screening, assessment and support for children which may include Program Unit Funding (PUF), Mild/Moderate Funding (M/M), English as a Second Language (ESL), and family support. Funding is provided through the Government of Alberta. Please visit www.humanservices.alberta.ca/disabilities-services for more information
Early Literacy Skills
In the preschool setting, literacy serves as the cornerstone of comprehensive learning, intricately woven into every facet of a child’s educational journey. Foundational skills in listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, and representing shape their developmental experiences.
Through a diverse array of activities, kids develop communication, language, and literacy skills, including print and alphabet awareness, phonological skills, print convention, book comprehension, storytelling, emergent writing, language comprehension, vocabulary growth, and expressive language.
This comprehensive approach forms a strong base for lifelong learning and effective communication, creating rich preschool experiences where young minds acquire essential skills and share their understanding with others, fostering a lifelong love of learning.
Early Numeracy Skills
- classifying objects – from sorting to comparing and matching, cultivating an understanding of relationships and attributes
- Seriating – Exploring relationships such as smaller than and bigger than, enhancing the grasp of comparative concepts.
- Counting – build a fundamental skill with numbers, promoting numerical literacy. Using counters for one-to-one correspondence, understanding more than/less than.
- Quantity – developing a sense of magnitude and the ability to compare quantities
- representing numbers in different ways – utilizing various methods like tallies, graphs, and numerals to reinforce numerical comprehension.
- Ordinal numbers and positions – understanding order and spatial relationships in a sequential context.
- 2-D and 3-D shapes – exploring geometry concepts through both flat and solid shapes.
- Patterns – recognizing and creating patterns, fostering critical thinking skills.
Science & Inquiry
At Active Explorers, we harness the power of the environment as the third teacher, recognizing nature’s role in inspiring curiosity and creativity through thoughtfully designed curricular experiences. Drawing inspiration from the children’s big ideas and inquiries, we use these as springboards for activities that enrich vocabulary but also ignite interest in the social sciences.
Nature becomes a profound catalyst for exploring and encouraging children to engage in observations, predictions, data collection and logical reasoning. By embracing the environment as a dynamic teacher, we create a canvas for creative learning opportunities.
Our approach prioritizes independence, discovery, and the use of the imagination, encouraging children to see the beauty of our world and ask questions that fuel their curiosity.
Social Development
We provide a nurturing and secure space where each child is cherished and respected. We firmly believe that relationships are fundamental to a child’s holistic learning experience. Our classroom structure is designed to foster independence, self-confidence, instilling a powerful mindset of “I can do it!” and “I know how!”. At Active Explorers, children actively develop intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, laying the foundation for healthy relationships. Our focus includes:
• Feelings – nurturing the ability to recognize, express and regulate emotions for emotional well-being
• conflict resolution – providing the tools to navigate and resolve conflicts positively
• responsibility – fostering a sense of accountability in daily tasks and interactions
• self-confidence – building a strong belief in their ability
• cooperation – fostering the ability to work harmoniously with their peers
• positive attitude toward learning – cultivating traits such as persistence, engagement, curiosity and a sense of mastery for a lifelong love of learning.
Physical Development
Physical activity is woven into our daily learning environment, ensuring that children engage in a variety of games and activities to enhance their body and spatial awareness, movement skills, eye-hand coordination, balance, strength, flexibility, cooperation, and sportsmanship. Our mission is to provide a safe and enjoyable setting where children can build skills and learn about sports and physical fitness, with a special focus on gymnastics. In our gymnastics program, children explore various movements and equipment, gaining insights into body position and spatial awareness. This specialized focus offers opportunities for them to practice movement control, patterning, sequencing of skills. At AE, while we prioritize overall physical well-being, our unique emphasis on gymnastics amplifies the benefits of sports and gross motor activities, creating an enriching and dynamic experience for every child.