Tamagawa International Preschool

[EduCativ]

At Tamagawa International Preschool we strive to create “Life-Long Learners”. We strive for excellence by fostering an eagerness to learn and explore new ideas. Since our school is located in Japan, we integrate Japanese cultural and philosophical ideas into our teaching style. We believe that learning is not always measured just by how well a student performs on a specific project. Children at the kindergarten level vary widely in developmental progress and may perform at very different levels.
At Tamagawa, we value the process of learning, where children can experiment with thoughts and ideas to ultimately achieve learning objectives in a much more rewarding fashion than would be achieved through just an evaluation of an end “product”. This environment encourages children to explore and try new things. It makes them willing to achieve their own goals and learn to contribute their ideas to the learning process. It encourages children to be bold and to be confident in expressing their opinions. At Tamagawa, we emphasize the basics while recognizing and accommodating each child's strengths and learning style. Long after your child has left our kindergarten program, your child will benefit from this crucial foundation in learning.
Children in our toddler class learn through play. Emphasis is placed on training in independence and self-motivation as students are encouraged to choose and complete developmentally appropriate activities. The program provides for the emotional and intellectual needs of each child and fosters the child’s growth in self-awareness as well as an understanding and consideration of the needs of others. Group activities are designed to help the child see herself/himself as a member of our school.
The development of the child’s ability to express herself/himself orally is a major goal of the toddler class program. Students develop language skills as they listen to stories, perform plays, recite sing and participate in daily morning/afternoon circle time. Students are encouraged to speak in front of the class during their Show and Tell time.
All learning objectives are developed to meet standards consistent with, and incorporating elements of, Early Elementary curriculums in the U.K. and North.
America and Australia with an investigative, student-directed, learning approach. Our new Physical Education class has started this term. The classes are being taught by Coach Someya, the director of the Someya Athletic Club, and have been a great success. All the children have been participating in the classes with lots of enthusiasm. We have been learning to stretch, jump, hop, do somersaults, walk backward, throw a ball, and lots more. Before class starts, we ask the children to change into their gym clothes. This promotes independence and gives children another opportunity to practice changing by themselves.
Children participate in whole group, small-group, and individual learning activities to develop language awareness and promote language skills.
A focus on “reading readiness” guides our reading programs which use a variety of resources (big books, “authentic readers” – storybooks, and guided readers). Students have the opportunity to expand upon concepts learned in instructional time during center time and by engaging in projects. Assessment is undertaken regularly using professional, progressive, assessment tools that gauge each student’s abilities. These assessment tools also drive the next steps in teaching to further each student’s progress in their listening, speaking, reading, and writing capabilities.
Children learn with the emphasis on the use of countable, manipulative, items during instructional time and center time. This approach allows students to develop concepts in math that are appropriate to their cognitive development to allow them to move from “concrete” mathematical operations to “abstract” operations. Resources used in instructional time include elements taken from North American classroom textbooks as well as modified Montessori modules.
Students focus upon themes that are relevant to their understanding of the world around them. Thematic learning engages the students’ interest to promote a deeper, more enriched, understanding of the subject matter during instructional time, center time, and time dedicated to projects.
While we continue to expand our school’s programs, currently we have developed the following themes!

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