Senior Preschool

Early literacy focuses on children being actively engaged in acquiring language and constructing their own understandings of how oral and written language works. Children experiment with their understanding of language, testing it in verbal interactions with their peers, parents and other adults.

Children become confident and competent language users through many opportunities to listen and speak, read and write, and view and represent. They participate in shared listening, reading and viewing experiences using such texts as picture books, fairy tales, rhymes, stories, photographs, illustrations and video programs.

Number sense is the most important foundation of numeracy. A true sense of number goes well beyond rote counting and develops when children connect numbers to their own real-life experiences.

Learning to work with patterns helps children develop mathematical reasoning, which is foundational for later success in mathematics. Spatial sense involves visualization, mental imagery and spatial reasoning. It is developed through a variety of experiences and interactions within the environment.

This learning area focuses on the personal and social management skills necessary for effective learning across all subject areas.  By participating actively in learning tasks, trying new things and taking risks, children begin to develop positive attitudes and see themselves as capable of learning.

Children are curious and learn to adapt to new situations. They begin to follow rules and deal with routines in a school environment. They become more independent and learn to take some responsibility for selecting and completing learning activities.

Health and life skills involve learning about the habits, behaviours, interactions and decisions related to healthy daily living and well-being. In Senior Preschool, children begin to develop personal responsibility for health and learn about personal safety and ways to prevent and reduce risk.

The aim of health education is to enable children to make well-informed healthy choices and to develop behaviours that contribute to the well-being of self and others.

Children explore and express their thoughts and feelings through visual arts, music, drama and movement. They become aware of their own imagination and creativity and that of others as they interact with a variety of materials and respond to various forms of expression.

Children begin to develop an appreciation of the fine arts as they become aware of why and how ideas and feelings are communicated in many ways. As children share ideas and listen to diverse views and opinions, respect for and collaboration with others is fostered.