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Ms. Francesca Theuma - Early Years Infant Curriculum Coordinator
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Implementation of
International Early Years Curriculum
at VIS
VIS has been running the IPC successfully for 13 years and is taught from Kindergarten to Grade 5. As our Early Childhood has expanded into a prominent feature, both physically with a building of its own and in terms of staff and students, the time has come to address the Early Years Curriculum.
Over the past two years, our Early Years teachers have been learning about the Reggio Emilia Approach, a philosophy that originated in Northern Italy and is now used in many international schools across the globe. In essence, it is a way for teachers to observe what children know, what they are curious about and what challenges them. This approach feeds in perfectly with inquiry-based learning, an approach we use in our IPC units. Inquiry-based learning is a form of active learning that starts by posing questions, problems or scenarios — rather than the teacher presenting established facts or portraying a smooth path to knowledge. The teacher’s role is that of a facilitator to guide the students in their learning journey.
Learning through Play – "How can that happen?", you may ask. One might think that children aren’t learning if they are playing. Essentially, learning should be fun, especially at that age. The aim is for teachers to open a world of wonder which allows the child to travel along a learning journey that may be full of surprises and new ideas but also consolidate through play what they have learnt or need to learn, which enhances their sense of understanding.
Learning through play means a child is creating his/her own play by going on an exploration of what is possible. This, in turn, will give the child a higher sense of self-esteem, the confidence to persist and experiment. The key element here is that there is no right or wrong, the play is not corrected, therefore play makes the child happy. Children develop socially as they learn to play with friends, by sharing or asking for help. Play has different stages, it often starts from solitary play (around 0-2 years old) where the children are focused on their own world and leads, to cooperative play where they start to depend on each other to achieve their goals. In terms of cognitive development, there is a sense of liberty for the child as they can express themselves however they like but also more than often have to work something out, which is critical thinking for a 5-year-old! Practicing problem-solving has to start at a young age, takes a lot of practice and is certainly more fun in a play environment.
Ms. Francesca Theuma - Early Years Infant Curriculum Coordinator