Curriculum



Our natural learning methodology means that we trust biology as a guide to understanding human development.

We ground our curriculum in the internationally recognized High Scope model, highlighting cognitive development through experiential learning and social-emotional intelligence through the building of authentic relationships.

We believe that children construct their own knowledge, and we trust children to seek out their own learning goals.

We believe that children learn naturally through play, and that their learning environment should be child-centered and child-led.












Young learners' playful experiments in nature are the key to building understanding in all subject matter. Immersed in the natural world, the whole child thrives.


When children throw rocks, collect leaves, watch animals, or build with sticks and mud, they are learning about many things. At Elements, we strive to guide children's play in a way that will help them answer their questions about the world around them. Teachers and children work together, reading and writing about our collective questions. We graph, draw, map, and tally our observations. We talk, laugh, play, and explore the endless learning possibilities that are provided in the natural world.

Elements Preschool's natural learning curriculum is designed to help children be self-aware, confident, and responsible. We seek to help each child see themselves as an essential part of a community within the larger environment and the world.





MATH AND SCIENCE



We learn math and science principles by counting, separating, categorizing, dividing, sharing, comparing, tallying, and mapping. We observe life cycles, growth patterns, habitats, experiments, and investigate the biological foundations for organism behaviors.




ART AND CREATIVE EXPRESSION





Children naturally approach the world with creativity. We paint, dance, draw, play music, create stories, dramatic play, dress-up, and sing. Without conventional toys in the woods, children dream themselves to be so many things, letting their imaginations run wild. Our artistic supplies are pine cones and leaves, flowers and bark, seeds, wood, plants, and trees!

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Language and Literacy





In this program children are immersed in language. Teachers echo, reflect, and discuss experiences with children as they happen, expanding communication and language skills. Children explore language and literacy through symbolic representations, pretend writing, drawing, playing with letter sounds and rhyming, reading, listening, storytelling, and explaining. .



elements



5141 Platt Rd
Ann Arbor, MI


(734) 369-3357