mommy on the metro

My last semester (Oct-Feb.2009) in college was spent outside Miriam College.  Together with my three other classmates, we were going to Summit School everyday as Practicumers.  Our experience was as highly interactive as its approach is to its students, teachers and parents.

Summit International School is a highly progressive preschool that uses the Bank Street Approach that caters to the different cultural background of each child.  The school’s vision-mission is very child-centered where children are involved in the learning process that is suited for their age and development.

No children can hesitate Summit. They are coming to class everyday happy and excited.  Absenteeism is very seldom unless they are very sick or there is a family thing.  Children love to sing the songs as teacher sings with them.  They love to listen to stories shared by the teacher.  Sometimes, they would even ask for it more than once.  Children in Summit are confident and secure. They are not forced, pushed or pressured to do something that is not appropriate for their age and development.  The curriculum developed by Summit School is a balanced one for the wholistic development of each child.

CLASSROOM ROUTINE

Arrival and Morning Meeting

Each morning children arrive at the campus with music playing happily while the teachers greet them one by one.  While children are coming in, there are centers that they can go to and do certain activities before Morning Meeting (or Circle Time) is called.

Morning Meeting is a time for singing many songs that pertains to the checking of  class attendance, days of the week, weather etc. Through the songs, the teacher is able to check the attendance, know the day’s weather, date and day with the class.  The teacher reads also the Morning Message which tells the activities that await them for the day.  The 20-40 minutes time alloted for this seem short and easy but it is one of the most challenging job for the teacher.  The atmosphere during this time sets out the kind of attitude on how the children will be for the whole day.

Work Time

Since the Three’s class is quite a big group (but with 2 main teachers and 2 practicumers), they are divided into three groups.  The activities are rotated among the 3 groups during the week.  Children are assigned to the Writing Area, Blocks Area or Dramatic Play Area, Language or Math Area.    On a particular day, it is Art Time for all.

Snack Time

Differences of culture are shared with the rest of the class as they have “Family-Style Snack” everyday.  The parent of the child is assigned for the day to bring in snack for the whole class.  The snack will depend on the parent.

Full-Group

Once again, they are gathered together.  Teacher sings songs, reads a story with the children, talk to the children about the topic or theme or some teacher-made activities for the whole group.

Outdoor Play

The most exciting part for all of the children.  During outdoor play, they also learn lessons related to the theme.  Teacher makes activities that are associated with the theme or topic. Aside from enhancing their gross motor skills, it’s also a great time to teach children the values of sharing and taking turns.  They have the Gym Area, Sand Area, Geodome Area, Center Field Area and Pet Area.

End of the Day Meeting

After the activity, they learn to change their own clothes as teachers instruct them how and they do it on their own.  At the meeting, teacher reads a story or two, reviews what happened during the day and sing their bye-bye songs.

If you are an interested parent to get your child into a highly-progressive school like this, you may visit the school in the Fort, Bonifacio, Tagiug City.  It is right after International School Manila and across Japanese International School.

• Greenwash Of The Week: The Sustainability Consortium. I have written about some whoppers on this site and in the Greenwash of the Week series (Sustainable Brands was one of my favorites), and this is right up there with some of the best. The Sustainability Consortium, an "independent organization of diverse global participants who work collaboratively to build......
• Best Reads of the Week: Too Many Social Media Choices Edition I fully admit I'm not the smartest guy in the world, but I'm of the opinion that there are far too many ways to tell people to follow you, tell people to read your stuff, or cutesy little buttons to tell people they should read what you just read. Of......
• Thanksgiving - Any Day of The Year No, the title of this blog is not referring to the meal. I'm talking about the being thankful part. Don't worry; I'm not going to give a long, lofty speech. I simply think taking a moment to count our blessings is a healthy thing you can do for ourselves.......
• Downshifting: The First Day of the Rest of My Life “This is it,” I told my wife last Monday. “This is what?” Kris asked. “This is the first day of the rest of my life,” I said. She knew what I meant. For the past few years, I’ve been living in a self-created whirlwind of busy-ness. I know a blog......
• Four Esoteric Laws of the Universe – Part 4 – Seven Cosmic Planes Ancient Esoteric Wisdom and the Seven Plans of Creation  In the previous series of posts on ancient esoteric wisdom, we considered the macrocosm vs the microcosm, the law of evolution and the concept of karma and karmic influence. Now in the fourth and final article on the teachings of ancient......

I got her stuff ready for school.  My assistant gave her a nice warm bath.  Put on her cozy outfit that’s right for a not-so-sunny -outdoor play.  Lastly, I didn’t forget what Teacher Lady said and that is to bring in a Sunblock Lotion for the outdoor play.  Then, off we go.   We walked the streets of our place, rode on a public transportation and marched our feet up to the 2nd floor of the building where Child’s Space is located. No doubt Sophia was excited and eager.

Before going to school, all I had was my excitement for Sophia.  Although I know my daughter’s personality (still have to find out whose genes she has) and the stage that she is going through which is normal for her age, I didn’t let it come to my mind.  I was with her that day to show her that I am truly with her in the face of a new environment with strange people.  Whenever teachers approach her, she would either simply turn her back or just keep still.  During Art Time,  she was the last one to paint her boat and with a very few strokes only.  She didn’t remain seated during Circle Time.  Nonetheless, I still feel that Sophia was enjoying her time there and the outdoor play was the best part of her Trial Class.

As far as I know, I didn’t force her to join or follow the class routine I just let her observe and have the feel of the new space that we are in.  I know this will take time but as Teacher Lady advised (which I also agree) that with the kind of temperament Sophia has, a stable daily routine will make her feel secure and confident of being with other people.  I believe with the kind of philosophy that they hold (that is progressivism) it  has the power to reach out to the needs of my daughter - a program that is CHILD-CENTERED!

• Marin County Hike of the Samuel Taylor State Park Summary: This is a 9 mile loop hike involving the highest peak in the Samuel P. Taylor State Park in Marin County, California. Location: This hike is located at the Samuel P. Taylor State Park, as part of the California State Parks Department in Marin County. Distance: The entire......
• Simple Solutions To Save On Transportation Expenses Transportation is very important to our way of life, but can become expensive when more attention is paid to where you are going over how you are going to get there.  There are many different ways to save money on transportation to local areas and far away destinations and using......
• Personal Security - Make Sure You Have the Security for Your Vacation Nowadays, only several people who take care for their personal security at their home or on the road. This happens although there are lots of people usually take a vacation every year with their family or alone. In this article, there are some tips you may need to ensure that......
• The E-Entrepreneur Success Mindset Series, Part V Invest in Yourself You have no doubt heard this refrain many times.“Invest in yourself! Invest in yourself! Invest is yourself!” But what does ‘invest in yourself mean’? Does it mean you should go out and invest in a haircut that costs two hundred bucks? Does it mean that you should......
• San Mateo County Hike of the Ravenswood Open Space Preserve Summary: This is a 2.7 mile hike that goes out and back in a loop and takes you through the marsh lands along the edge of East Palo Alto. Location: This hike is located at Ravenswood Open Space Preserve, located in San Mateo County Distance: The entire distance for......

As we walked inside the preschool where we intend our eldest daughter to go this June, my hubby and I had gotten that confirmation:

This is what we want for Sophia. The one we’ve been looking for is here!

It’s at CHILD’S SPACE School for the Practice of Appropriate Childhood Education (Santolan, Pasig City) situated near our place in Manggahan. It’s accessibility is a real plus for me.

A child-centered, play-based progressive school that uses the approach the Developmentally-Appropriate Practice (DAP).  Teacher Lady was the one who gave us information about the preschool.   She also toured us to the two just-enough-classroom-size for the number of students per class.  The class ratio for the preschool program is 1:8 with a Teacher Aide.  Not too pricey,  just right! And I mean it, because of all the progressive schools that I am aware of I think it’s the one that our means can afford.   We’ll just have to find out more when classes formally start the 2nd week of June.

Sophia will be sitting in their class this coming Wednesday.  I just hope that she likes it the way we like it for her.

• business opportunities ontario Canada: The Place To Make That First Step In Your Business CareerThe third of the biggest financial center in North America is actually located in Toronto, Canada. Consequently, Canada has been one of the more progressive countries that boast off its stable economy. Canada offers diverse business opportunities equaling to......
• Organize Your Personal Finances in No Time by Debbie Stanley If nothing else, the state of the economy has shown that millions of people don’t have a good grasp of how to manage their personal finances. There are hundreds of books written every year on the subject and yet, this concept still seems to elude many. Some books are either......
• Investigating Positive Forex Trading Education Sites Investigating positive forex trading education sites can be a contest for the novice to forex market. You’ll see hundred, if not thousands of websites concerning the issue of educating about the market. A lot of these sites are suspected in some frauds and all you might get a book filled......
• Reggio Emilia Philosophy Most parents, teachers, education experts, and private and government agencies agree that early childhood education is an important component of the child’s ability to discover his self-identity, determine his ability to cope with more challenging learning and develop his life skills. However, when it comes to the methods, approaches......
• First Aid in Home Repairs pt 2 Here is a continuation on the basic first aid and safety for home repairs. Puncture Wounds: Puncture wounds and dirty wounds need to be addressed by a professional immediately. If a puncture wound was created, a tetanus injection may be necessary. Poisoning: You need to call a poison center or......