|
||||||||||
|
Preschool Program “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” Socrates The Oakville Academy Preschool Program is a half day play-based program designed with the child’s developmental stages in mind. Each morning session focuses on creative self-expression, sensory awareness, problem solving, refining motor skills, honing emerging pro-social communication abilities, building a foundation for future academic skills and cultivating each child’s imagination and unique perspective of the world around him or her. This enriched program is designed for children who will be 3 years of age no later than November 30th of the opening school year. It provides a perfect learning introduction to our progressive and exciting JK/SK program offered to students meeting those age requirements. |
||||||||||
|
Our program is focused on integrating the arts with all other curriculum areas. Our arts specialists and early childhood classroom teachers are dedicated to providing a gentle and safe learning environment wherein the development of language, math, science, social emotional and arts skills are fostered in a developmentally appropriate, play-based fashion. |
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
Young
children naturally delight in the arts. Our program provides each child with
the opportunity to experiment with a variety of artistic media, participate
in exciting music experiences, learn age-appropriate dance techniques and
consistently find avenues for meaningful self-expression. Through these
opportunities, young children feel free to express their individual ideas
and feelings while mastering a sense of autonomy and initiative.
The early childhood years
are critical years for venturing, exploring, playing and creating
without fear of failure. These are also critical years for testing
ideas, learning to learn, problem solving, developing trust and building
positive relationships with peers. Our program provides the optimum
environment and curriculum in order to develop emerging skills during
these particularly sensitive and critical periods in a child’s life.
The Oakville Academy for
the Arts Preschool is accepting registrations for the 2007-2008 academic
years. We are pleased to offer an exclusive morning program available
for registrations either 2, 3, 4 or 5 mornings a week.
We would like to provide
both parents and students with an outline highlighting the dynamic Arts
experiences integrated into our daily preschool program.
Visual Arts
Classroom projects and areas of interest will be enhanced with visual
arts throughout the program. With the guidance of an arts specialist,
children will learn about colour, texture, form and technique while
being able to create their own unique works of art as part of their
process of learning. The program offers a lovely balance between
teacher guided art experiences and self-chosen, independent
opportunities to explore paint, paper, sculpting media, drawing tools
and found materials.
Creative Dance
The
imagination is an invaluable tool. Our dance specialist will bring each
child on a journey through dance using music, imagination and movement
to create a variety of age appropriate dance experiences. Children will
explore the possibilities of what their bodies can do and how it can
serve as a magical vehicle for self-expression! Students will be
introduced to proper posture, basic dance technique and a variety of fun
and exciting dance opportunities.
Music
Our
preschool music component features collaboration with on-site
professional and student musicians. Children will have access and
exposure to highly qualified musicians playing instruments ranging from
electric and acoustic guitar to drums and piano. Musical artists will
have opportunities to come into program to perform for the preschool as
well as accompany the children during singing, dancing and other class
activities. As well, our highly qualified early childhood teachers will
incorporate familiar and new songs, rhymes and musical finger plays into
the curriculum on a daily basis.
Dramatic Arts
Within the framework of the preschool program, students will have
abundant opportunity to explore drama. Exploration of dramatic role
playing is consistently available in our well equipped dramatic play
area within the classroom as well as within the form of group
storytelling. During co-operative games and dramatic exercises,
students will have ample opportunity to “act” dramatically, experiment
with speech arts and hone improvisational skills.
Preschool Sample Schedule
8:30 - 8:40 Arrival
8:40 - 9:00 Greeting circle
Calendar
Morning
program discussion
9:00 - 10:00 Art Enrichment
(divided
groups attend dance, music,
co-operative games, drama etc)
Washroom
routine
10:00 -10:20 Healthy snack
10:20 - 11:00 Visual arts
component
Free play
(opportunities for science
Dramatic
play. Reading, accessing
Learning
materials and toys etc)
11:00 -11:20 Group tidy
Songs
and story
Goodbye
11:20 - 11:30 Cloakroom
11:30 Dismissal in
front foyer
Junior
and Senior Kindergarten
Programs
The Oakville Academy Junior and Senior
Kindergarten Programs are half day programs offering an arts-enriched
learning environment for children turning 4 years of age and 5 years of
age, respectively, by the end of December. Each program, offered in a
combined, beautifully equipped, newly renovated classroom, will run 5
mornings per week. Following an enhanced Ontario Government junior
kindergarten and senior kindergarten curriculum, our highly skilled
early childhood teachers/arts specialists will provide your child with
the opportunity to master skills in all academic areas. The junior
kindergarten group and senior kindergarten group, while sharing a
classroom environment, will have their own teacher/arts specialist and
will undertake their own projects of study embodying the Ontario
Government kindergarten curricula. The Academy’s Junior Kindergarten and
Senior Kindergarten Programs are dedicated to a philosophy that sees
children as whole, capable human beings, having the right to
co-construct their educational experience. We will strive to create an
atmosphere where children feel like valued members of our learning
community and encourage all children to find and voice their unique
gifts in a supportive and respectful environment. Our goal is to nurture
independent and creative thinkers, enthusiastic life-long learners,
active explorers and compassionate and respectful human beings. Unlike
other junior and senior kindergarten programs, ours will maintain a
ratio of one teacher for 8 students, allowing for optimum support during
individual investigations, skill development and group project work. The
junior and senior Kindergarten curricula, while reflecting and meeting
the educational goals set out by the Ontario Government, will be
influenced and inspired by Italy’s famed, Reggio Emilia approach
to creating optimum learning environments for young children.
Within the context of this philosophical movement, young learners are
encouraged, along with their teachers, to decide upon and undertake
projects of study that allow for on-going investigation, in-depth study
and the ability to develop and internalize skills and concepts from the
entire range of curriculum components such as math, science, social
studies, music, dance/movement and technology.
Within our classroom, teachers will have
exciting and daily opportunities to integrate curriculum. Activities
that are meaningful and relevant to a child’s life experiences provide
intrinsic motivation and allow for teachers to teach across the
curriculum and assist their students in seeing the interrelationships of
the things they are learning. At the Oakville Academy for the Arts, we
are confident that the Junior and Senior Kindergarten programs will
offer your child the exclusive opportunity to marry an enriching and
absorbing classroom experience with dance, music and the visual arts.
The classroom itself will become a studio of sorts – offering an
abundant array of fine art media, recycled found objects and a host of
captivating natural materials. These resources, combined with
well-chosen learning toys and materials will offer children the
opportunity to make meaningful personal choices on a daily basis. Within
these very special kindergarten programs, the shift is from teaching to
that of learning, with an emphasis on finding personal and meaningful
ways to make curriculum areas come alive! We seek to develop in children
and ourselves valuable habits of mind and dispositions, such as critical
thinking, inquiry, research and problem solving; skills that will put
our young learners in good stead as they arrive upon the doorstep of
future academic experience. We would like to provide both parents and
students an outline highlighting the dynamic arts experiences integrated
into our daily kindergarten programs:
Sample Kindergarten
Schedule
8:30
– 8:40 Arrival
and welcome
8:40
– 9:00 Greeting
Circle
Calendar
9:00
– 10:00 Alternating
arts enrichment
One group in class (project/skill development)
One group out of class
*snack for in class group
10:00 – 11:00
Alternating arts enrichment
One group in class (project/skill
Development)
One group out of class
*snack for in class group
11:00 – 11:20
Group tidy
Story and songs
Goodbye
11:20 – 11:30
Cloakroom
11:30
Dismissal in front foyer
Afternoon
Arts Adventure
Afternoons
(participants must be 3 by the end
The Afternoon Arts Adventure program at
the Oakville Academy for the Arts will take children through a magical
introduction to the Arts. Young learners will have the option of
joining a Monday/Wednesday session or a Tuesday/Thursday session – both
taught by highly qualified Early Childhood Educators and practicing
visual artists. This unique and special program will provide
opportunities for young artists to work and experiment with abundant
visual arts media, explore ballet and jazz dance fundamentals with a
professional Academy dance instructor during a daily 45 minute class,
enjoy a healthy snack, make music and play in our beautifully equipped
Kinderschool classroom.
During the school year, children will,
along with their teachers, use the visual arts to explore themes and
ideas of interest and meaning for them. For instance, a trip to the
museum might offer inspiration that leads the group to explore papier
mache and the construction of dinosaur sculptures. One child’s love of
the colour green can easily translate into a study of Canadian artist
Emily Carr and the use of green in her famous British Columbia forest
paintings. Throughout all exploration, fundamental elements of colour
and design will be reinforced in developmentally appropriate and
captivating ways – using both familiar art materials and artist-quality
materials. As in any high-quality studio experience for very young
children, this program will be strongly process-based as opposed to a
take-home craft approach. Children will be encouraged to gain mastery
through the repetition and use of consistent media like paint, paper,
dough and clay over time – it is through this approach that young
artists begin to build upon former skills and become deeply competent
and creative! Within the context of each
session, participants will take part in a 45 minute dance class. One of
the weekly sessions will focus on primary ballet fundamentals and one
will emphasize an up-tempo jazz element. Both dance genres will
emphasize expressiveness, simple floor routines, body sense as well as
rhythm and co-ordination.
Faculty
Kim Speer
Director, Kinderschool
Programs
Kindergarten Teacher
Afternoon Arts Adventure
Instructor
Kim is entering her third successful year
as the Director of Kinderschool Programs at the
Oakville Academy for the Arts. Kim is also
the Kindergarten teacher of our innovative and progressive Junior and Senior
Kindergarten class and co-teacher of the Afternoon Arts Adventure Program.
Kim graduated from Brock University’s Theatre Performance and Directing
Program and has also received an Early Childhood Diploma with
Honours from George Brown College.
Shannon Remes
Head Preschool Teacher
Afternoon Arts Adventure
Instructor
Shannon
returns for her third season at the Oakville Academy for the Arts as our
Head Preschool Teacher and co-instructor in our exciting Afternoon Arts
Adventure Program. Having graduated with an award for excellence in
teaching from the Early Childhood Education Program at Sheridan College,
Shannon continues to apply her skills and knowledge in the creation of
magical arts-based programs for young learners.
Certified Kindermusik
Educator
Preschool Teaching
Assistant
Afternoon Arts Adventure
Music Instructor
Christy is a graduate of The University of
Western Ontario where she studied voice with Alvin Reimer and Brian
MacIntosh. She is thrilled to be entering her
second year at the Oakville Academy
for the arts as a voice, piano and Kindermusik instructor, ballet
accompanist and Preschool assistant.
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
