The Village Philosophy
Our intent at Village Preschool is to help each child become their most authentic self. Children are heard and accepted. Their feelings, ideas and opinions are dealt with respectfully. Rules in the classroom keep the children safe and healthy and encourage consideration of others. These rules are enforced without rewarding, punishing or praising, and free of manipulation.
it takes a village
We believe active family involvement, a strong parent education program and continual school-home communication to be essential in the healthy development of the child. These principles also help families develop the skills needed to build healthy, life-long relationships with their children.
individual empowerment
Teachers observe and comment on what they see and hear in a non-judgmental way. The children’s feelings of joy and satisfaction empower them to trust themselves and enable them to build an authentic self esteem. They become confident and respectful members of a community.
play-based education
Play gives children the opportunity to understand themselves, their peers and the world in which they live. They are able to totally immerse themselves in a project or experience. Play becomes more complex when children use the same materials over and over again, adding new elements, and using them in different social situations. This is how they become masters of invention. This is what discovery and true knowledge feels like. It changes who they are and who they become.
What Research Tells Us
The Village philosophy is based on years of child development research and developed over time through experience with generations of children. Children emerge with the confidence they need to enter school and be managers of their own actions and feelings.
why emphasize play?
Systematic research has increasingly demonstrated a series of clear benefits of children’s engagement in pretend games from the ages of about two and one half through ages six or seven. Studies have demonstrated cognitive benefits such as increases in language usage including subjunctives, future tenses, and adjectives. The important concept of “theory of mind,” an awareness that one’s thoughts may differ from those of other person's and that there are a variety of perspectives of which each of us is capable, is closely related to imaginative play (Jenkins & Astington, 2000; Leslie, 1987; Singer & Singer, 1990; Singer & Singer, 2005).
what does it mean to teach judgement-free?
Strong evidence exists that both praising and punishing are harmful to a child’s emotional life. Both positive and negative judgment seek to control, and not to teach. Instead, unconditional love and interest in the child’s work and play is the best way to encourage learning, positive self-esteem and healthy parent-child relationships. Some phrases you might hear at Village:
“Boy, you worked so hard on that, I can tell! It really shows.”
“I’m listening.”
“It sounds like your body is trying to tell you something.”
“What kids do need is unconditional support. Love with no strings attached. That’s not just different from praise—it’s the opposite of praise. ”