by on 13/02/2018 532
Tender Minds was born out of the desire to create an environment that is more responsive to the voices of children. The school was established upon the baseline of providing a balance between two things – care and learning – in an awareness that, typically, early childhood education providers either focus on one or the other, rarely both equally. After-school enrichment activities and daycare services are included as part of the package with the needs of urban parents in mind.
The school sits within a secure, guarded facility with classrooms spanned across spacious settings. We all know the feeling of being stuck in a windowless room under fluorescent lights for long hours. One word – depressed. Not at Tender Minds. It is illuminated with rays of natural light, which will effortlessly increase one's “feel good” levels. Imagine what that would do to the minds of the little ones. If you were to look out of your window right now, what do you see? Not everyone has the privilege of replying that their windows open up to exquisitely pruned bushes or calming waves of the sea. The school is blessed with windows lined with views of green hedges dotted with flowers and trees in between.
Since it was founded in 2010, Tender Minds has grown its reputation on providing a strong core program complete with an all-rounded educational experience. On one hand the overall program caters to the needs of urban parents – after-school care, meals and the beginning in early childhood education. Of course, the true foundational concepts revolve around the children's needs and development. The school offers a developmentally appropriate early childhood education program based on an integrated curriculum with focus on layering the child’s learning experiences and knowledge. At Tender Minds, children first explore through play and experimentation. As children develop their skills, teachers will challenge them by adding another element to their existing activities, gradually layering more and more elements to build a strong foundation. This encourages children to exercise their their thinking skills. Teachers help the children develop a variety of areas through an activity-based thematic program. Not just plain old fixed and definitive activities, but flexible tailored units that caters to the learning styles and abilities of the current students. The curriculum starts by keeping children engaged and stimulated through activities that includes puzzles, toys, blocks and many more. The youngest bunch gets to occupy the biggest classroom in the school due to the nature of the freestyle activities that they do.
It is not just about the academic reading and writing. Children are also encouraged to learn teamwork, discipline, safety and consideration for others through walks in the park, playtime in the outdoor playground and water-play near the children’s pool. Rain or shine, children can always occupy themselves at the indoor play area that comes with a slide, caterpillar crawling tunnel and an assortment of pretend play toys. The school is a big believer in development through toys. They are not just any toy picked up from the corner store; the toys are specially selected to comply with children's safety measures and are sturdily constructed with a children developmental purpose. When the children play with toys, they settle, they imagine and they interact. When they interact, the younger ones learn from the older kids and the older kids learn to take care of the little ones. Witnessing a compassionate girl comforting a crying little one in the play area attests to the importance of group play in early childhood education.
While it is important to hold the children's interest through fun and games, Tender Minds does not neglect the academic side of things. The little ones are taught literacy through phonics with sounds and images from videos. New languages are introduced to the children through songs, flashcards, translated stories and books, then comes writing.
The school treads on the philosophy that all children can learn when they are accepted for who they are and where they are in their educational journey. It is synonymous to the recurring theme of their concert – “We Celebrate our Children's Progress”. The classes never take on more than fifteen students at a time, allowing for a personal, individual approach to instruction and learning. If ever there is a child who struggles to catch up, teachers are always there to provide an individualized approach, at the child's own pace of learning.
Over the years, parents are drawn by the perfectly balanced program that Tender Minds have to offer. Teachers always give the children undivided attention and instill the right values in them; classes are never left unattended and rest assured that the children are safe. I can put my hand on my heart and say that children graduating from Tender Minds are on a positive route to grow into a better person.
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