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Purpose-Built
Environment
We believe that the environment can be designed to communicate a message of welcome, of support, and of belonging. Each item in the classroom from home-like furnishings to photographs is placed there to support this image of the environment as a teacher that engenders a disposition for the child to explore, play, reflect, enjoy and to feel belong. It is also a message to parents to articulate a sense of welcome, an invitation to stop by, to linger, to enjoy and admire children’s creativity and be in awe with their thought processes reflected in their work. The observation booth is also a place for the student teachers to peer over, to observe, to ponder, reflect and learn from the teachers the approaches, skills and nuances of teaching; of relating with children, of resolving conflicts and of facilitating learning.
Demonstration
As a child study centre, The Caterpillar’s Cove is designed
to facilitate observation and research, as well as
to serve as a normal child development centre. Our
school was designated to be used by SEED Institute /Ngee
Ann Polytechnic faculty and students who observe and study
child development here. The programme is designed to
demonstrate and disseminate information about quality
child care and innovative practices related to the
early learning and development of young children. The
staff is actively involved in developing, implementing,
evaluating, and sharing with others new methods for
providing early education and care. As a result, many
different individuals and groups from the polytechnic,
and other countries visit the programme each year.
To facilitate parents to share or access information, one of The Caterpillar’s Cove uniqueness is the Family Resource Room. This room, fully equipped with resources such as parenting books, articles, video resource and visual aids materials.
Lending Library |
For parents to borrow
books and up-to-date resources on early childhood
education
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Home
Activity Corner
Parent’s Information
Counter |
Descriptions
of a take-home activity displayed every other week
to encourage parents to spend time learning together
with their children.
Distribute and disseminate vital
information about preschools
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Children's Resource-making
station |
For parents to create
teaching and learning resource for their children
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Parent-made resources
exhibition corner
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To showcase and
exhibit parent-made resources to encourage parents
to learn from one another. |
Meeting room |
To provide accessibility
between parents and centre and among parents for
focused discussion, feedback sessions or mini home-school
activities. |
Home School Partnerships
Active and negotiated partnerships are an integral
part of a quality preschool programme. At The Caterpillar’s
Cove, we believe that effective partnerships with parents
involve consultation, collaboration and negotiation.
To create workable partnerships, the centre acknowledges
the variety of parenting practices and values the social
and cultural diversity of families.
Partnerships between home and centre are strengthened
when partners focus on :
- Enhancing the well being of children,
- Actively listening to each other,
- Seeking knowledge,
- Sharing understandings of the children,
- Respecting and responding to each other’s
expertise and contribution,
- Communicating their expectations and achievements
with openness and honesty.
The centre seeks to communicate with parents through
both formal and informal channels. The formal and informal
strategies we use to communicate to parents may include
:
- Visuals - photographs, videos, samples of children’s
literacy, pictorial and art work;
- Oral - telephone, discussions and workshops and
- Written - newsletters, notes, messages and signs.
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