Kids By The Sea as the "New Neighborhood"

Mary Biggs, an early childhood educator and director at Basic Trust Childcare Center discusses the idea of using early childhood settings as a "new neighborhood."  At Kids By The Sea we strive to create a community built around our children.  We work to support families by nurturing the type of relationships and offering the type of services that used to be fulfilled by extended family and other community groups. Today, too many families feel as if they need to do everything by themselves, often with many stressors such as too little time, money, and support working against them.  Each year Kids By The Sea tailors our program to best meet the needs of the families we serve.  This might look like parenting classes and book clubs, community dinners, nights out with your spouse while the kids play at school, or clubs based around your interests; the possibilities are endless.  We want to support you in creating the community you desire.

Curriculum

At Kids By The Sea, we believe children learn best when we engage their hearts and minds.  We want them to leave Kids By The Sea with confidence in their abilities, a great love of learning, and an understanding of the process of asking questions, investigating topics deeply, and creating meaning. The main vehicles we use to promote this type of learning are Project Based Learning and Play. For more information on both, see the below links.
Project Based Learning
​Play

Theory and Approaches

At Kids By The Sea, we are influenced most strongly by the theories of Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget, and Lev Vygotsky.  The approaches that speak most deeply to us are R.I.E and the Reggio Emilia approach.

  Erikson:

• Children are only free to explore and learn when they first feel safe, secure and supported in their environment (both the physical environment and the relationships within that environment).
• The social/emotional development of the child is of the utmost importance.
• Children in our school are working to develop a basic trust in their environment, a sense of autonomy, and the initiative to go forth into the world.

    Piaget:

• Children learn best through hands-on-experiences.
• Children learn by actively engaging and exploring their environment.
• Children have an innate desire to learn.

    Vygotsky:

• Children learn within the context of relationships.
• Children have the richest learning experiences when their own ideas and inventions, curiosity, initiative, and creativity are encouraged by a supportive adult.
• Learning is a lifelong process, not a product.  We all continue to learn through out our lives.

    Reggio Emilia Approach:

• Environment as a third teacher: We believe the environment plays an active role in the education of the child.  The environment should be ever-changing and change-able based on the interests and developmental level of the children.  We also believe that we all learn best, and enjoy places most, when they are aesthetically beautiful and inspire creativity.
• Role of the teacher: We believe the role the teacher is first and foremost that of a learner alongside the child.  We experience in the same delight, wonder, curiosity, research, and critical thinking that a child does.  In this way, we are able to guide the child and serve as a resource as we and discover the world along with them.   We also believe in the power of observation and documentation as a way of making learning visible. 
• Role of the child: We believe each child is a unique, amazing being filled with potential and that each child has an innate desire to learn.  We have the utmost respect for the individual child (no matter what age or ability level) and work only to build upon their natural curiosity of the world.
• Connection to family: We believe in creating authentic relationships built on mutual respect with every family that comes through our door.  We believe that, together, we are doing the most important job there is in the world: raising children.  We work hard to support each other and believe the child's learning experience is much richer when there is a strong connection between school and home.

    R.I.E

• We have a deep respect for each child as a unique individual, no matter what the age.
• We have a strong belief that each child is perfect just as they are in that moment and a deep trust that they will develop in their own way, in their own time.