about elite kids academy

Infant/Toddler Curriculum

(12 months to 36 months)

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The Creative Curriculum is an efective tool for achieving the best standards in a high-quality early childhood program for infants and toddlers. It uses a framework in which caregivers are the foundation of the curriculum and play a central role in nurturing relationships among caregivers/teachers, children, and families.

 

The curriculum uses a daily schedule and routine to give infants and toddlers a feeling of consistency. It promotes creative activities, pretend play, reading and alone play, as well as group play and time.

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Preschool Curriculum

(3 to 5 years old)

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We believe children learn best by pursuing their personal interests and goals. Children are encouraged to make choices about materials and activities throughout the day. As they pursue their choices and plans, children explore, ask and answer questions, solve problems, and interact with classmates and adults. In this kind of environment, children naturally engage in key experiences-activities that foster developmentally important skills: creative representation, language and literacy, initiative in social relations, movement, music, and learning concepts of numbers, space and time.

 

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School Programming

(all ages)

 

Cultural Relevance

EKA believes that culturally relevant early care and education requires care-giving routines, teaching strategies and curriculum matching the child’s home culture. Miami is a place where families and children can retain their unique cultural identities while maintaining their places in the larger framework of our society.

 

Our program brings that reality to life in the classroom as children learn about their own and their peers’ cultural practices. By implementing a cultural relevance program, we teach acceptance of all people, all appearances, and all cultures.

 

Anti-Bias Philosophy

EKA demonstrates an ongoing commitment to integrate an anti-bias philosophy into every aspect of its program. “Anti-bias” refers to teaching children to respect, appreciate, and positively interact with people who are different from them.

 

Dual Language Acquisition

This vital program will focus on any parent/guardian or child learning a second language. Strategies are introduced to help parents/guardians increase their understanding of the importance of communicating in the home/heritage language, while supporting a child in the process of learning a second language.

 

Inclusion

Our goal is to provide the highest quality care to every child. Training sessions, conferences and workshops for parents/guardians as well as caregivers will be conducted to provide information describing specific disabilities. EKA welcomes therapists to visit the school for therapy sessions to improve the child’s performance. (EKA is not responsible and does not interfere with student/therapist relations.) EKA provides children with disabilities the opportunity to function in a group situation with children who do not have disabilities.

 

Conscious Discipline

Conscious Discipline is an emotional intelligence program whereby children learn to express their emotions and resolve problems with words. Rather than punishing a child, teachers use conflict as an opportunity to teach children how to respond to and interact with others. Conscious Discipline is proven to increase academic achievement, decrease problem behaviors, improve the quality of relationships, and increase teaching time.

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Daily Communication

Daily contact between family and teachers is an essential component of any high-quality early care and education program. By sharing information concerning a child’s activities and welfare, we can work together toward meeting his/her developmental needs. Teachers in the infant/toddler suite will provide the family with daily written notes about the child's food intake, elimination, sleeping patterns, moods, and general behavior. Families will have an opportunity to communicate with their child's caregiver regarding the child's progress every day. Caregivers will inform the family of any issues or concerns they may have regarding a child. This is also an opportunity for the family to voice comments and suggestions regarding the child’s classroom and the school. An integral part of EKA’s program is that teachers send ongoing emails to communicate with families about the learning experiences taking place in the classroom. Additionally, each student has an individual journal. The journal is used as a method for parents/guardians to write to their children and communicate with their child’s teacher.

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Screenings

All children will be screened using valid and reliable screening tools that are developmentally appropriate. Screening will be completed within the first 45 days of any child’s enrollment. The purpose of this process is to identify if any special needs are present and implement the necessary approaches to ensure the child’s development. The program uses a wide range of tools for assessment: oral language, vocabulary and math skills development, social/emotional development, family progress and outcome, and age-appropriate developmental screenings. The results of these screenings are used for the individualized planning for children. Should the results of any screening point to an area of concern, a referral will be made to inappropriate professional/discipline.

 

Assessments

Assessments are used as a tool to monitor students’ overall development. Assessments can be done through observation, documentation, and record keeping of what the child does and how he/she learns. Areas for growth are identified. Assessments are beneficial for the overall program: the data collected allows opportunities for the teacher to plan individualized experiences for the child. In turn, the data is also shared with families to work collaboratively toward achieving goals for the child.

 

Media and Promotional Policy

Because of the exposure we receive due to the quality of services we provide, our school is frequently visited by outside guests as well as the media. These visits are often documented through interviews, photographs and/or videotapes of our programs, staff, and children. In addition, we have private and public partners, including the United Way and the Early Learning Coalition. Throughout the course of the school year, we as well as our funding and program partners, visitors and the media may use your child’s image, voice or schoolwork for promotional and/or educational purposes including but not limited to posters, brochures, newsletters, and our website. By law, administrators protect the privacy of all children and are prohibited from releasing a child's personal information. As it pertains to a child’s image or voice, as a matter of Elite Kid's Academy's practice and policy, Page 8 of 37 Rev. 8/15/13 parents/guardians are required to provide written permission before the we permit a child’s image or voice to be photographed, filmed, and or recorded by the media or the Academy. All parents or guardians must sign a “Voluntary Consent Form” at the start of the school year stating that EKA along with its funding and program congress, visitors, and the media have permission to use a child’s photograph, student work, or voice for promotional or educational purposes.