EARLY CHILDHOOD FOUR YEARS OLD CURRICULUM

OVERALL GOALS

Students will have the opportunity to participate in:

• Printing their names.
• Activities involving understanding size and shapes.
• Practicing and manipulating letters and their sound.
• Expressing their ideas, verbally and physically.
• Weekly practice in coloring with crayons, markers, chalk, cutting, learn how to cut and to hold a pencil properly.
• Daily activities using body parts with ropes and physical education equipment and games.
• Language and Math programs, that enable children to listen to directions and develop skills needed.

SCIENCE

Rationale

As the young mind grows to understand self and then family, the interest shifts to the environment. Experiences in science involve the study of God's creation, which leads to understanding the concept of God and growing to love and respect Him. Although science in preschool stage offers few scientific concepts, the processing of science related information fosters a natural inquisitiveness about the environment that God has created.

Goals

• To understand that God is the Creator of this bountiful creation.
• To understand that everything in creation has purpose.
• To believe that God controls the creation.
• To develop skills of observing, describing, classifying and problem solving using logic and reasoning. • To develop the ability to communicate observations in short sentences.
• To understand that the Creator is the provider and Sustainer of creation.
• To develop a love for both the Creator and creation and a sense of responsibility to both.

MATHEMATICS

Rationale

The early childhood experience is a readiness program designed to introduce very basic mathematical concepts. The student is presented age appropriate skills, such as matching, sorting, counting, measuring, and comparing, all of which can be implemented into the daily routine of the child. Mathematics is a discipline, which builds on prior knowledge, so this preparation lays the framework to absorb real mathematical operations in proceeding levels. Integrating Islam starts with the recognition of Allah as one to the understanding that day and night, operates on a mathematical precise measurement of time as well as our exact location in the atmosphere is precise to sustain our existence. To integrate Islam across the curriculum as well as science is to show the wisdom of Allah.

Goals

• To foster awareness of the relation between Math and Islam in the creation of God.
• To develop an awareness of sequence of numbers.
• To understanding the meaning associated with numbers and to identify numbers according to objects.
• To recognize numerical symbols.
• To order numerals and sets, such as the fewest to the greatest.
• To be able to understand and implement the directional positioning of numerals.
• To communicate mathematically using quantitative terms.
• To compare size and serration.
• To recognize shape and form.
• To understand that whole consists of parts.
• To understand measurement

Objectives

Students will be able to:

• Recognize correct or incorrect guesses for over and under.
• Associate the terms top, middle, and bottom with the appropriate positions.
• Associate the terms on, inside, outside with the appropriate positions.
• Associate the terms right and left with the appropriate positions.
• Sort out objects by discerning similar attributes.
• Determine that one of the shapes is different from the others by the attribute of size.
• Determine that one of the cutouts is different from the others by the attribute of shape.
• Determine appropriately that one object is different from the others by the attribute of type, size or shape.
• Identify objects that are the same.
• Identify objects that are the same color.
• Recognize and repeat patterns seen and heard.
• Match the objects and maintain the one-to-one correspondence.
• Identify the set with more objects.
• Recognize and show the numbers one to ten.
• Recognize that there are a variety of ways to show the same number.

LANGUAGE

Rationale

Language is one of the means to assess intelligence. Speaking, listening, reading with comprehension and writing are specific tools to measure the educational process. So, with the preschool student, learning to communicate involves the development of good speech patterns and vocabulary building skills. Again, all of the preschool experiences constitute a readiness training to facilitate the education of a growing mind. Exposure stimulates the thought processes. Reading stories, puppet shows and role-playing help to foster a proficiency in language for the preschool student.

Goals

• To encourage oral communication.
• To build good listening skills.
• To inspire in a student a yearning for reading beyond the classroom experience.
• To teach the left to right reading pattern. To help To understand word meanings, and the function of space between words to read.

OBJECTIVES

Students will be able to:

• Develop language skills: Listen to a story.
• Follow oral directions.
• Develop speaking skills.
• Develop pre-reading concepts and vocabulary: First and last name.
• Develop pre-reading concepts and vocabulary: Position words top, bottom, over, under, on, off, in, out, up, and down.
• Recognize the shapes: square, circle, triangle, etc.
• Discriminate initial consonant sounds of letters.
• Develop oral language and concepts, chariot, oxen, seasons (winter, spring, summer and fall).
• Understand sequence of events.
• Understand likeness and difference.

READING

Rationale

The Structural Reading readiness program provides the necessary link to prepare the students to undertake the ''Reading" curriculum that the Kindergarten program achieves. Teaching reading by a sound-symbol method has been a proven success with 98 of all new students. Emphasis is placed on the preparation to read and not the pre-occupation with play. We value the mind, and realize that at every age level, knowledge can be dispensed, simplified and gradually absorbed, but it must be given as a birth right to a normal, mentally alert child. As reading is the doorway to learning, we take their little hands and minds to the threshold to absorb what God would allow, and their attention will tolerate.

Goals

• To prepare students to read.
• To complete the designated Reading readiness skills for enrollment to the Kindergarten, ''Reading Curriculum".
• To teach that school is a place of learning and learning is lifelong.
• To develop a love for reading.
• To show the relationship between reading and writing.
• To teach sounds of letters to correlate with symbols.
• To recognize and identify the alphabets.

ART

Rationale

Art is definitely an "across the curriculum" subject in preschool. It gives substance to vagueness and promotes creative expression. Every lesson is a potential art project.

Goals

• To provide opportunities for fine motor coordination.
• To develop creative thinking.
• To foster independent work habits.
• To add fun to learning and social interaction.
• To build self-esteem through ungraded, non-competitive projects.
• To use form to develop handwriting skills.

Objectives Students will be able to:

• Compare and identify the parts of something.
• Have fine motor coordination.
• Be creative.
• Build self-esteem through ungraded non-competitive projects.
• Develop handwriting skills.