Programs for the Petite, Moyenne and Grande section
1. Learning the language
The oral language is the basis for learning in nursery school. The child learns new words daily through songs and nursery rhymes, where the sense of the word is studied and explained by the teachers. The child also progressively studies the syntax of the French language through the different exchanges made between teachers and classmates during the daily activities or through personal instruction. At the end of nursery school, the child knows how to use articles, nouns, verbs, adverbs and prepositions correctly and is capable of producing complex phrases.
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
Understand a message and react or respond in a relative manner Name with exactitude an object, a person or an action made during the daily life.
- Formulate, while being understood, a story
unknown to the listener or an invented story - Take the initiative to ask questions or to
express his or hers opinion.
2. Discovering writing
The discovery of writing is done progressively and by stages. First, the child works on the sound of the word and learns the basis of the alphabet, which is done by listening to texts that the teacher reads and then explains. Writing is introduced in“La Petite Section” where the child expresses himself through drawings with a variety of size and support. In “La Moyenne Section,” the child learns graphics where he or she studies how to draw loops, bridges, waves, triangles and copy the stick letters (capital letters). In the“Grand section,” the child knows how to write his or her name in script and cursive.
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
- Identify the principal functions of writing
- Listen and understand a text read by an adult
- Know a
few classic texts, mainly nursery rhymes - Produce an oral statement in an adapted manner
so that it can be written by an adult - Differentiate sounds
- Distinguish syllables from a pronounced word,
identify a syllable in different texts - Understand words from an oral and written
statement - Recognize and write most of the letters of the
alphabet - Copy in cursive , under the instruction of the
teacher, small simple words where the letters and sound have been identified - Put into effect sounds and letters
- Write his or her name in cursive
3. Becoming a student
Becoming a student is learned progressively. At first, the child learns to recognize how to distinguish himself from the others. Then, the child learns to live in community, to respect the rules and to become more independent while participating in school activities. Particular attention is given towards the respect of a person and the well being of others, as well as the obligation to follow rules given by the adults.
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
- Respect others and respect the rules of daily
life - Listen, help, cooperate, ask for help
- Have self-confidence, control his or her
emotions - Identify adults and their roles
- Accomplish simple independent tasks and play his or her role in the school
activities - Say what he or she has learned.
4. Expressing oneself with his body
Physical activities are essential to gross motor skills, sensory and intellectual development of the child. The activities in the gym room are organized around three areas: gross motor skills (jumping, climbing, and rolling), fine motor skills (throwing, making something roll), verbal communication and self-expression (dance and games which are sung).
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
- Adapt his or her movements to a variety of
environments - Cooperate and oppose individually or
collectively , accept collective constraints - Express him or herself on a musical rhythm ,
with or without an object; express sentiments and emotions by gesture and
movement - Describe or represent a simple task
5. Discovering the world
There are always many occasions to discover the world, explore other cultures, help children to develop their reasoning from cause to effect, and to interest them at making scientific experiments. The child learns to name, classify, describe and exchange his point of view during specific activities that answer the insatiable curiosity of the children. The week of the “Francophonie” in March is also an occasion for the child to explore other cultures that are also present in our small international school.
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
- Recognize, name, describe, compare, put away and
classify different materials, objects depending on their qualities and usage. - Know manifestations of the animal and plant
life, relay them to big functions: growth, nutrition, locomotion, reproduction. - Know and apply a few hygienic rules to the
body and there functions, distinguish the 5 senses and their functions - Realize a danger and take it into account
- Uses points of references during the day, week and
year - Situate moments from one to another
- Draw a circle, a square and a triangle
- Compare quantities and solve problems that involve them
- Memorize the numbers in sequence until at
least 30 - Enumerate a quantity while using the sequence of the known letters
- Situate oneself in the space and situate
objects in relation to his or herself - To locate oneself in the space of a page.
6. Perceive, sense, imagine, create
The artistic activities are essential in our school. Through paintings, coloring, drawing and music, the child discovers new subjects and techniques allowing him to be creative. he goal for these artistic activities is to continue to help the child at expressing imself and to open his eyes to the world of art and music. The child’s imagination grows as well as his knowledge; he feels emotions and enriches his ways of expressing himself.
At the end of nursery school the child is able to:
- Adapt his movement to the material constraints
(instruments, supports, materials) - Use drawing as a means of expression and
representation - Realize a plan composition or in volume
according to an expressed desire - Observe and describe works of patrimony, build
collections. - Have memorized and know how to interpret songs
and nursery rhymes - Listen to a musical extract or a production,
and then express and talk with the others to give his or her impressions.