Little Pioneers & Children's Center
The foundation for learning begins at the Kehoe-France Children’s Center, where Little Pioneers (infants) through three-year-old children thrive and learn in an environment that is always safe and an atmosphere that is forever welcoming.
Our Approach to Early Childhood Education
We believe that the best way to help children succeed is to teach them to be creative, confident thinkers. That means offering them opportunities for hands-on exploration and discovery that help build lifelong critical thinking skills and fosters confidence.
Both indoors and outdoors, every child has the opportunity to show growth. We strive to:
- Teach children how to socialize and show respect to others
- Expand the child’s awareness of the world around them and aid in them in understanding it
- Acknowledge and encourage every effort and mastery of a skill
- Build confidence and independence in every child
Our approach provides children with social-emotional strategies for building relationships and increases their comfort and confidence at school. The instructional strategies we employ facilitate receptive and expressive language acquisition and understanding, and promotes comprehension during read-aloud time.
The Learning Environment
The Children’s Center prides itself on providing an aesthetically pleasing, safe and sanitary, indoor and outdoor learning environment for children.
Indoors: Classroom spaces are divided into well-defined interest areas that encourage distinctive types of play and promote development in all areas. These areas are flexible to accommodate practical considerations and children’s changing interests. Each interest area is saturated with materials and manipulatives that
promote fun, hands-on learning all day long.
Outdoors: Children have the opportunity to run and play on large, grassy fields, and climb and interact on developmentally appropriate playground equipment.
Our Staff
In every classroom, there is a lead teacher and an assistant. Our teachers are highly qualified professionals with specialized training and degrees. They build a strong, positive relationship with each child, helping them learn to work and play with others, and aid children in developing positive peer relationships and friendships
Teachers guide children’s behavior using positive guidance strategies and support learning during every part of the day. They are intentional and responsive to the needs of the children, providing them with a consistent, respectful learning environment at all times.
The Daily Children's Center Curriculum
Children receive a consistent daily routine that supports active learning through play and builds on children’s interests. The school day is divided into:
- Both small and large group meetings
- “Choice time” when the children interact in play-based centers
- Snack and lunch times
- Read-aloud times
- Outdoor play
- Music and movement
- Rest time
During all of these learning periods, children are engaging in activities that help them to develop and build a strong foundation in language, physical and social-emotional skills, literacy and mathematics.
Beginning at age two, the children may choose to participate in a Soccer Shots program where they are taught the basics of soccer, character-building skills, and the importance of being a team.
