The York Avenue Preschool Curriculum is designed for the specific age group: Twos, Threes or Fours. Included in the curriculum are age appropriate specials. It is implemented keeping in mind the strengths and needs of the children in each classroom. The Preschool Program is a full year program beginning early September and ending early June.

Social/Emotional Skill Development The York Avenue Preschool Curriculum emphasizes the development of social skills and a positive self concept. Teachers model social skills and help children first as Twos’ separate from parents and become part of the class community and finally as Fours’ become part of the larger school community. Children move through the stages of play, from solitary to parallel to cooperative. Children develop confidence in themselves and their relationships. This growth and development happens over time because of the caring, nurturing, positive environment at York Avenue Preschool for both the child and the family.

COGNITIVE SKILL DEVELOPMENT Young children are motivated to make sense of their world. Young children learn by doing. Learning is a complex process, it is the result of the child’s thinking and interactions with the people and objects in his/her world. The York Avenue Preschool curriculum facilitates learning by providing stimulating and challenging materials and activities that engage children. Teachers observe, question and provide the next steps to develop thinking and learning further. As children grow and develop they acquire new skills that they use in the learning process.

LANGUAGE SKILL DEVELOPMENT Language Skills, both expressive and receptive are integral to the York Avenue Preschool curriculum.
* Expressive Language: we encourage the use of language to effectively communicate thoughts and ideas. Our teachers listen and respond to what children have to say. They extend children’s comments into more descriptive, grammatically correct statements thus providing the model for elaborative thinking.
* Receptive Language: the goal in this area is to promote understanding through listening and thinking. Themes are the vehicle by which our teachers provide extensive experiences in this area. Themes are interdisciplinary in that they include experiences in the arts as well as content areas. Themes extend children’s knowledge, create connections with known concepts and provide experiences in listening and thinking.
* Pre-literacy skills: experiences are provided which develop the young child’s oral language comprehension, an awareness of and playfulness with the sounds of language (phonemic awareness) and a foundation in concepts of print and letter knowledge. Our teachers maximize the learning potential of interactive literacy experiences by arousing interest and curiosity before reading a story; by asking questions that keep children engaged during the story; and by providing questions and activities that give the young child a chance to respond to the story.

PHYSICAL SKILL DEVELOPMENT Day by day children are given opportunities to develop Fine Motor skills through the use of small blocks, pegs, scissors, crayons etc. Classroom activities develop auditory skills (the ability to hear rhymes, the sounds of letters, and sounds in words) and Visual skills are improved through eye hand coordination activities available throughout the day. Outdoor play and indoor Gym activities develop their gross motor skills.

TWOS, THREES and FOURS

The Two’s day begins at 8:50 and ends at 11:45. Young Two’s (2.3-2.6) attend class Tuesday and Thursday mornings while Older Two’s (2.7-3.0) attend class Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. Our Two’s program focuses first on the successful separation or transition from home to school. Following this success the emphasis moves to language acquisition and the development of age appropriate cognitive and physical skills. A typical day’s schedule would include large and small group activities, choice time, snack time, outdoor play and either music, gym or library.

The Three’s program is a five day program. The Three’s program has two options. The first is a five day morning program. The day begins at 8:50 and ends at 12:00, with an extended day one morning till 1:00. The other is a four day afternoon program, Monday through Thursday. The day begins at 1:30 p.m. and ends at 4:30 p.m. Our developmental curriculum continues into the Three’s classrooms. Themes now anchor learning and allow for letter knowledge, pre literacy skills, language and math concepts to be integrated into the daily activities. Various After School Activities are offered in the afternoon to our threes.

The Four’s also have a five day program. Their day begins at 8:50 and ends at 2:30 Monday through Thursday. The Fours day ends at 12:00 on Friday. The Fours curriculum continues the Theme approach. The theme approach is dynamic and challenging. The purpose is to engage children in their learning and create a broader knowledge base. Themes integrate all knowledge disciplines, provide for acquisition of reading readiness skills and foster creative problem solving and thinking skills. The Fours class works with one alphabet letter each week creating connections between the letter, the sound and the children’s lives. The Fours class focuses on a different children’s author each month. Also, children are introduced to the works of artists represented in the many Museums found within New York City. The fours class works with different media used by artists, observes specific works of art and uses this knowledge within their own expressive parameters.

SPECIALS

ART A rich arts program allows the young child to explore, discover, invent, create and grow in this expressive area. Art experiences are available in all classrooms every day.

In addition, The Three’s and Fours work in the Art Studio each week. The process of art is emphasized here. Texture, shape, color, line and form (the five elements of art) are used creatively and imaginatively in the Art Studio.

MUSIC Music instruction is provided to all classes. In Music class the children sing, dance and respond to music. Responding to music allows the young child to develop memory, listening skills, motor skills and the imagination!

LIBRARY We have our own lending Library which children visit each week. They choose books to share with their families and listen to a story read by the “Guest Reader,” a parent volunteer. Our library is operated by our preschool families.

FRENCH FOR FOURS “Bonjour”… “je m’appelle”… “un, deux, trios…” can be heard as our Fours listen, learn, dance and sing in French class. Our language program provides exposure to the sounds of the French language and development of a basic French vocabulary.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION All our children attend an indoor Gymnastics program; once a week as Two’s and Three’s and twice a week as Four’s. Included on the daily schedule is play on our new, state of the art, outdoor playground.