Our Curriculum

Our curriculum is central to what makes Discovery Village unique. 

Created onsite by our own leadership team and teachers and constantly updated, we begin with children’s sense of wonder and curiosity. From children’s interests we design activities that incorporate skill building preparing children for Kindergarten and beyond. Language and communication skills, phonics, pre-writing, math, the arts and sciences, physical education and nutrition, Spanish and Sign Language, social-emotional skills and so much more is incorporated within playful experiences. Time outdoors is an integral part of our program.

We emphasize learning by doing, through play as well as projects in which each child has a unique role, while contributing to group creations. Children are given choice and teachers design and redesign based on children’s interests, questions, and ideas.

day care curriculum

INFANTS – The First Year

Our youngest villagers are embraced in nurturing relationships with teachers through which they develop a strong foundation for life. They participate in playful activities that are thoughtfully designed to develop sensory, spatial, social/emotional, language, communication, and creative skills.

Age appropriate art and science activities are central to our early childhood education program. Lots of outdoor time is included each day. The schedule and activities in the infant program is entirely responsive to children’s needs. Eating, nap and play time follow each child’s natural schedule, and is coordinated with schedules parents set at home.

WOBBLERS AND WALKERS – 12-18 MONTHS

As children’s communication and motor skills improve, they are able to become even more immersed in activities that promote self-expression. This includes ongoing language development, the arts and sciences, physical activity both indoors and outdoors, and imaginative play. There is a strong focus on values, particularly our core values: caring, connecting, creating, contributing, and well-being. Children practice speaking, developing language skills to describe their experiences and their emotions.

While in the infant program the activities follow children’s natural schedules, in wobblers and walkers children follow a shared schedule with set times for meals, naps, learning, and play. They participate in life as a community, developing relationships with teachers and peers, exploring their world, and find ways to express themselves through words, projects incorporating the arts and sciences, and play.

TODDLERS – 18 months to 3 Years

With growing awareness of the world around them, our toddlers are immersed in playful creativity. Encouraging both their growing independence and their developing social connections, there is focus on the individual as well as cooperative life in our village. Learning in all areas is interwoven into hands on, experiential activities, supporting cognitive, social-emotional, and physical development. Well-being through physical activity both indoors and outdoors, nutrition, self-care, and self-awareness is emphasized.

Reading readiness, pre-writing, and number concepts are introduced, alongside exploration into topics that emerge out of our children’s natural curiosity. Social-emotional learning remains central to the early childhood education experience. We delve into activities to develop character, emphasizing our core values of caring, connecting, creating, contributing, and well-being.

PRE-SCHOOL & PRE-K

During these important years of rapid cognitive, social-emotional, and physical growth, our pre-school and pre-K villagers learn through purposeful and imaginative projects and play, actively promoting the development of vital skills. Taking ever greater responsibility for the design of their classroom activities, sparked by their interests, our villagers learn by doing. Children participate in a wide range of learning experiences promoting the development of early literacy and math skills. There is much opportunity for scientific, artistic, and cultural exploration in topics stemming from children’s interests.

Physical fitness and nutrition are central to the Discovery Village experience with daily play and exercise both inside and outdoors. Our preschoolers actively develop social-emotional skills and deepen values. They enjoy ever more substantive experiences of connecting with their teachers and peers, engaging in experiences with individuals in the local community, and even connecting with others globally, using digital communication tools as needed. They demonstrate greater choice and independence in their own creative expression, and actively participate in experiences promoting wellness and care, including self-care as well as care for and connection to others, our communities, and our world.

day care curriculum