Grace House Kindergarten is an associate early childhood educator of Raffles House Preschool, an independent premier school -www.raffleshouse.com. Through committed philosophy, objective driven curriculum, and a focus on a fun filled learning environment, we have successfully been engaged in the development of preschool children.
At Grace House, we aim to educate the whole child, preparing each child for a joyous journey of life-long learning. We believe that we are touching lives and that a caring environment surrounded by highly qualified teachers are instrumental in providing the highest quality child-centered curriculum, that focuses on intellectual, social, emotional and physical developmental milestones. We believe that the purpose of early childhood education is to foster communicative and social competency in young children, based on Christian values. This competency relates to all aspects of self, learning to live comfortably with others, learning to master and safely express one’s feelings, and learning to love life and welcome new experiences.
We believe that an appropriate curriculum is necessary in helping children to achieve competency, and should be thought of as including everything that happens to children during their time at the centre. Our curriculum promotes creativity, emotional health, physical prowess, social expertise and cognitive skills.
We believe in basing our curriculum on knowledge of a child’s development and learning that appreciates childhood as a unique and valuable stage of the human life cycle, valuing the quality of a child’s lives in the present, not just as preparation for the future.
We believe that the family is the most important influence on how children grow and develop, and appreciates and supports the close ties between children and their families; recognising that children are best understood in the context of family, culture and society and encourage parent-teacher partnerships when deciding specific goals for their children’s learning in the Centre.
We believe that children’s learning is enhanced when parents are involved and participate in the teaching process. Keeping parents informed at all times of the children’s progress in the Centre, helps reinforce what is taught in school.
We believe that trusting relationships between teachers and parents lead to trusting relationships between teachers and children. Making home visits promotes better understanding of the child’s natural home environment, so that the teacher can plan improvements to the Centre to help the child feel more at home.
We believe in accepting feedback and criticism from parents and as a way of checking and improving our services to families. Parent-teacher conferences are strongly encouraged as often as necessary.
We believe in drawing on families as resources and links to the rich ethnic communities in Singapore, encouraging parents to celebrate festivals with the centre in ways that are meaningful to them and their children.
We view parent volunteers as equals in the task of participating in classroom activities and teaching the children. Parents are invited to visit the Centre and help out whenever it is convenient for them.
We believe in caring about children and their families by offering help to strengthen family life so the children benefit from a stable family environment. Parenting courses and informal afternoon tea on weekends allow parents the opportunity to talk about problems encountered at home. We also offer referral services to assist and support families with difficulties.
We respect the family’s child rearing practices and will whenever possible accommodate the family and child.
Our philosophy centers on a common goal for all parents, based on Christian values and principles. Our goal is to educate the whole child. What this means is that we look at education not only as a method to equip the child with depth and a wide range of knowledge and skills, but a commitment towards building a strong value system and a passion for life-long learning in each child. Ultimately, we believe our ability to deliver really depends on the goals we set in the curriculum, our values, and training of our teachers and our ability to seek advice and incorporate progressive methods from educational experts and learning institutions.
Grace House curriculum is spelled out in clear individual learning objectives and milestones. Children learn through integrated and interactive experiences, which allow them to imagine, explore, reason and communicate. Our learning foundation is based on a thematic approach guided by the learning objectives, supported by fun and objective driven, hands-on learning centers. A good balance of Play and Structured Methodology is an important, natural and integral part of learning in Raffles House. Children are taught by language specialists. Our motivation is the education of the whole child, with competency, confidence in learning and communication.