SUNSHINE ACADEMY

The program is designed to meet the developmental needs of young children.  It provides experiences that enrich and enhance each child’s cognitive, language, social, emotional, physical, and creative development.  Within the center’s daily schedule, each child has opportunities to create, explore the environment, learn problem solving and personal interaction skills, and learn concepts through first-hand experiences.  Children develop a positive self-concept through a balance of self- and teacher-facilitated activities.  Opportunities for solitary play as well as group activities are provided.  The staff members serve as positive role models and provide care that is supportive, nurturing, warm and responsive to each child’s individual needs. The adult’s responsibility in a developmental program is to assist the child in growing to his or her fullest potential by recognizing each stage of development and fashioning a curriculum that will nurture and facilitate growth during that stage.

We respect parents as the primary and most important provider of care and nurturing, and we believe that parents and teachers are partners in the children’s care and education.

How?

To Make The Program A Good Place For Every Child, We Gear Our Classroom Environment And Activities To This Community And The Families Involved.  We Are Eager To Learn As Much As We Can About Each Child’s Family, Cultural Background, Past Experience And Current Circumstances; With This Knowledge We Work To Create A Program That Fits The Children And The Families We Serve.

So What?

Research And Experience Tell Us That To Be Effective With Young Children, Teaching Practices Need To Be “Developmentally Appropriate”.

What Is “Developmentally Appropriate Practice”?

It Simply Means That Educators Need To Think First About What Young Children Are Like And Then Create An Environment And Experiences That Are In Tune With Children’s Characteristics. A Developmentally Appropriate Program Like Ours Is Age Appropriate.

Why?

Early Childhood Is A Time Of Life Quite Different From Adulthood, And Even From The Later School Years.  Children 3-6 Learn Far Better Through Direct Interactive Experiences Than Through Listening To Someone Talk.  They Learn Extraordinary Amounts Through Play And Exploration.