How students learn: 

• Develop fine motor coordination (hold brushes, crayons, pencils, etc.) 
• Develop gross motor skills (body awareness, movement, balance, strength) 
• Develop basic literacy & numeracy; recognize and apply letters & numbers
• Reflect, question, and hypothesize for further learning (meta-cognition)
• Practice logical thinking with anticipation and prediction
• Develop hand-eye coordination (visual motor skills)
• Communicate by listening, speaking, and watching
• Experience social and emotional learning

What students learn:

• To develop ideas and capabilities that help them understand their world
• To understand facts and skills for literacy, numeracy, and science

Why students learn:

• To build a foundation for patterns of a societal system (We)
• To explore self-discovery, self-compassion, and self-worth (Me)

What teachers contribute and encourage:

• A systematic structure to support exploration & creativity
• A connection system to what is known and unknown
• Opportunities for students to make decisions
• Responses to authentic questions & concerns

How the school environment helps students learn:

• Provide a secure location with natural landscape and areas for play
• Encourage participation in sharing and co-learning with other students
• Connect to individuals, materials, cultural tools, and symbol systems

Basic Summary of Overview:

• Motor-physical movement
• Cognitive-thought process
• Social-relation to others
• Linguistic-listening, speaking, language
• Emotional-feelings, reactions, awareness
• Literacy: reading & writing comprehension
• Numeracy-numbers comprehension

ME – WE – US – ALL OF US     

Shining Stars Curriculum Journey

ME:  Early-years development in children is marked by their ability and eagerness to discover themselves. Young children are preoccupied and fascinated by their ever-expanding capabilities. They begin to discover their dexterity, mobility, strength, sensation, and preferences; these are all housed within their unique selves. They possess wonder and awe at the possibilities of their development in the journey of ME!

Topics: Physical Body- Inside & Out, Nutrition, 5 senses, 
Emotional Self- Feelings, Likes & Dislikes, Character
Social Awareness- Life Skills, Respect, Compassion

Yoga–For-Kids is perfect for building balance and coordination, strengthening the immune system and improving body awareness. Postures reinforce body parts and their functions. Yoga can promote greater self-control, and aids in releasing tension. Yoga helps children develop a mind-body connection, encouraging their self-discipline and respect, for themselves and others. Yoga also provides an opportunity to practice stillness and the ability to listen and remain quiet.

Mindful sitting, Sun dance poses, “How do I feel today?”.

Physical Body Activities: Children experience obstacle courses, athletics, likes/dislikes, non-fiction resources, 5-senses science projects, hikes, beach trips and cooking recipes for healthy nutrition.

Creative Activities: Children create numerous self-portraits; various mediums are used (watercolors/acrylics- paper/canvas/foil) to help the children express themselves and reflect upon who they feel they are. Character dress up, body tracing, interactive play groups. 

Feelings Journals: Children fill notebooks considering “how do I feel” by making sketches, collages and developing a host of newly discovered vocabulary words about positive and negative emotions.

WE: Having discovered much about who they can be as individuals, children soon realize that by engaging in interpersonal relationships they can enhance their ability to get their needs met, as well as experiencing trust and compassion.  Interpersonal relations become the natural progression after the journey of Me.  Family and friends are their first experiences beyond the individual self.  Friendships further allow children to think in a mutually beneficial way. They join together to share ideas and actions, encouraging the strong Me to become a stronger We. The school setting creates a safe loving place to work together as a cohesive, cooperative group, tapping into combined skills and talents to help all.  By learning to actively communicate and to effectively cooperate, the children participate in a larger We.

WE spaces are those times and places when the group is engaging in together time.  When children join for activities such as morning gatherings, yoga, and meal times, they are actively involved as a We.  They are encouraged to be aware of their We status, as their social interactions focus on listening, participating and respecting each group member.  As they encounter the feelings of safety and acceptance, they can begin to notice and understand how someone else may be feeling and how that interactive dynamic will affect the We.

Topics: 
Friendship- characteristics of a friend, collaboration
School Environment- Responsibilities as a whole
Family- Home life, pets, neighborhood

Yoga- In the WE the children are exposed to a collective yoga session where their participation is part of the experience.  Partner poses give children the confidence to trust another person. Honesty and cooperation with their peers provides an integrated experience. “Yogi says” games, honesty game (Sammy the Snake), cooperation games.

Creative Activities – Children work in pairs to mix primary colors to make secondary colors, group murals around school, make friend dolls, garden art, co-operative art projects working in pairs and expanding to out bigger groups. 

US: Having spent time looking outward through “WE” eyes, children are now ready to expand even more. Their natural curiosity of place allows them to ask more comprehensive questions about the world they live in. How does their neighborhood swell into a city or extend into a country or a continent?  Children begin to trust and accept abstract notions of expansion due to experiences gained in a secure me and supportive we. 

The School community has now become an anchor within a larger community. The children begin to make connections related to their perspective of the community. How far is one place from another? How do we utilize transportation?  How does technology and invention expand our reach?  What can we observe and learn from animals and habitats?  Children begin to let go of barriers and merge with others to form a greater scheme of things. They now benefit from creative friendships and dynamic community support. They test viewpoints, invite opinions, and learn to function within a larger whole, the US.

Topics:
Collective Nature: animals, plants, habitats, weather
Cultural identity: flags, countries, foods, dress
Solar System: placement in space

Yoga: By now the children have gained confidence in their bodies and have begun to trust and rely on their friends in the session. US- story initiated themes add cohesion to their experiences. Poses, whether single or partnered, now represent a collective experience. Are they forming animals in a habitat, machines to travel in, or playing games? 

They encounter multiple choices and expectations for the whole. A greater sense of cooperation and responsibility are provided. 

Story-initiated themes- animals and habitats, transportation, full Sun Dance sequence with added expressions. 

Creative Activities – Continued projects around school (Upper + Lower school), make & sell cookies, recycled art projects, flags of countries/maps, recycling, creating their own country.

All OF US: The final phase of growth for a child is to recognize their sense of universal connectivity and our responsibilities to one and all. Children learn to express kindness, compassion and tolerance.  Their acceptance of others is equivalent to an acceptance of self. Each individual is on the same journey of ME, WE and US.  Children come to recognize that by venturing outward, they ultimately return inward to a base of empathy and love.  This grounding in universal love allows them to travel assuredly outward again, further expanding each time.

Yoga: Children begin to understand the integration of their yoga practice, and more importantly they assist their classmates. 

Children work on the physical postures, feel the importance of breath, become aware of their emotions and state-of-mind, and help others also develop these different aspects of yoga coming into union.

They encounter multiple choices and expectations for the whole. A greater sense of cooperation and responsibility are provided.

Creative Activities

• Projects around school, make & sell cookies, pottery classes, Arts & Craft
• Books; Gail Clarke, Flags of countries, Recycle