Enrollment starts at twelve months of age.
Language Development
Although language is considered to be one of the four basic areas in any classroom, it spans every other area; it is an integral part of each, as well as a special area in and of itself. The child’s own tools for language are vision, hearing and speech, as well as the sensory-motor skills necessary for reading and writing in the preschool years.
In our toddler unit, your child will be exposed to many materials and activities which will enable him/her to develop and refine his/her vision, hearing and speech as a preparation for the more formal learning of language in the preschool years. He/She will also be exposed to many activities that help develop the sensory-motor skills.
Your child will be exposed to things such as finger plays, songs, the alphabet, words and so much more, which will help your child developmentally grow in language as well as prepare his/her hands and eyes for reading and writing in years ahead.
Mathematics
Shape, size and color are part of our toddler math program here at small beginnings. Introducing the children to shape, size and color in the toddler years is helping them gain knowledge that will allow them to be successful in the sensorial area of our Montessori preschool unit.
Counting and sorting items are essential to the toddler math program. The children count during art projects, group lessons and at recess. Math is used throughout the day in many different ways. We are preparing the children for future math concepts that they will face in their preschool years.
Gross and Fine Motor Skills
Toddlers are very active. As soon as they get up they want to use their gross motor skills to walk, run, climb and be on the go at all times. In the toddler unit we work on skills such as balancing, throwing, kicking and jumping. We play active games which allow the children to begin to verbalize what they are doing and learn problem solving and sharing skills. Outside recess occurs at least twice a day and on special occasions they will play outside three times a day. On inclement weather days the children in the toddler unit will play in the gymnasium, which is always a lot of fun!
Learning to control objects and materials and acquiring skills needed to move at a more controlled pace is not an easy task for a toddler. In the toddler unit, we work extensively on developing fine motor skills. Muscles only get stronger when toddlers use them. The children partake in activities such as picking things up, fat crayon scribble, stacking boxes, dumping things out of a bottler and putting them back in, textured scribble, squeeze toys and so much more. These activities help the children develop their fine motor skills.
Dramatic Play and Blocks
Blocks and other construction materials lend themselves to many types of play, including exploration of form and shape, deliberate attempts to build something (mastery), independent fantasy activities and dramatic play with others. Many kinds of blocks are used daily in our toddler unit. We use blocks in group lesson as well as individual activities. Children learn what blocks look like, what they sound like and what they feel like. Children are taught to sort them according to color, size, shape or type of block. We allow the children to add accessories when playing with blocks such as boxes, little people, animals or toy cars.
Dramatic play for a toddler includes pretend play with dolls, stuffed animals, toy telephones, pots and pans and a multitude of other things children use when they act out what they see happening every day. We offer dramatic play props for our toddlers to use daily. We use these materials inside as well as outside the classroom. We encourage the children to use the materials in their own way and not at the direction of the teacher.
Music
Incorporating music into the daily routine is essential in our toddler unit. Children benefit when singing occurs as part of their daily routine. Singing throughout the day, not just at circle time, follows a child’s natural inclinations. We encourage natural music aptitude in young children here at small beginnings. Singing, dancing, creative movement, playing instruments and listening are all vital components of your child’s musical experience within our toddler unit.
Greeting and good-bye songs and songs for transitions are a part of our daily routine. Repetition of songs promotes learning and success, as children have additional opportunities to master vocabulary and melody of each song. We add simple hand movements that aid the children in learning the concept of sequencing and patterning.
Playing simple instruments are a part of the music experience here at small beginnings. We allow the children to explore ways of creating sound with uncomplicated instruments. By doing this, the children have the opportunity to express themselves uniquely. Children will use instruments such as drums, jingles, rhythm sticks and rattles.
Artistic Development
Creative activities show toddlers that they can do interesting things by themselves. Toddlers may scribble in imitation, and many will scribble spontaneously. By 18 months, toddlers usually display a hand preference. They make circular, horizontal, and vertical marks. Scribbling is enjoyed at this point and may support developing representational abilities. Fine motor coordination improves a great deal over this period, and between two and two and a half, the child may hold a crayon using an adult grip. Many different mediums are used such as crayons, paint, playdough, gluing and chalk. Art work should be hung up for everyone to praise. Toddlers like to be admired for what they have made by themselves.
Schedule a tour to see how much fun your Toddler can have in our clean and enriching classrooms!