At The Cottage Kid’s Playchool, we know that children learn in different ways and at different paces!
Our learning environments provide meaningful experiences that nurture children's curiosity, perseverance, problem-solving skills, and love for learning. Our educators create a fun atmosphere where children are engaged, challenged, and have choices. We base our curriculum on research and best practices in early childhood education, focusing on social and emotional development, language skills, early math, and pre-literacy. Our curriculum is inspired by various educational philosophies, including High/Scope, Montessori, and an Emergent approach. By blending these ideas together with our own, we offer a progressive and unique teaching method that caters to each child's individual learning ability, rather than just their age. Our curriculum aligns with Aistear and Siolta, which are the curriculum framework and quality framework in Ireland's early years education..
Our daily activities, which children have a choice to participate in include:
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Sand & Water Play
Skills are practised as the children pour, dig, scoop and build, encouraging gross motor muscles to develop.
Social and emotional awareness is enhanced as the children share, listen and co-operate with each other.
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Sensory Play & Art
Much of our learning comes through our ability to use our senses to retain information. Children are encouraged to play with different materials, paints, clay and playdough to help them get comfortable with different textures. Sensory play has many benefits including supporting brain development, enhancing memory, developing fine motor skills , supporting language and encouraging creative and independent thinking as well as providing a calming effect on feelings.
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Active Play
Both indoors and outdoors we offer children opportunities to engage actively and imaginatively with people, objects, and their environment, and develop skills through experiences and play possibilities.
Active participation in education helps children learn more, as it encourages the brain to tap into the cognitive and sensory networks that help process and store new information.
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Social & Emotional Development
Every opportunity throughout our day is used to support Social & Emotional development.
Skills such as emotional regulation, turn taking, sharing and even conflict resolution provide rich opportunities for children to learn.
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Yoga/Movement Classes
Our weekly Kido Kid's Yoga class is delivered by Mandy who is a Kido Kid's yoga instructor. This class teaches about inner calmness and body awareness and combines stories, rhymes and songs. This class helps children to learn to manage stress, build their concentration, works on gross motor skills and increases their confidence.