Curriculum

At The Apple Tree Center we use a MSDE recommended state approved curricula for all ages. The Creative Curriculum is a learning concept that allows for children to develop through hands on stimulating and engaging activities. Learning opportunities are developmentally appropriate, multi sensory, enriching and based on the needs and interest of the whole child. We focus on the domains of learning for all children which according to the Maryland’s Guide to Early Childhood Pedagogy Guide includes social foundations, Physical Well – Being and Motor Development, Language and Literacy, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and the Arts. Activities provide learning opportunities through whole group, small group, and individual learning. Additional materials and resources are used to enhance the learning experience and to prepare the individual child for the next step in their development.

In the preschool classrooms teachers will access the progress of each child weekly and provide opportunities for differentiated instruction through small group instruction. Teachers are provided tools to assist with the implementation of the lessons to promote each child’s learning style. Additional materials and resources include but are not limited to STEM, Open Court, Common Core, and Ready at Five, to assist with age-appropriate development. Lesson plans address the developmental needs of the whole child through assessments, observations, and information gathered from families, some of which may include IFSP/IEP.

Infant A and B

Our curriculum is designed to develop and reinforce each infant’s individuality. Children participate in sensory-based learning experiences, while receiving positive, nurturing guidance. We know infants are constantly learning through observation. Within our infant daycare program, we provide fun activities that will help them build upon their cognitive, communication, emotional, fine motor, gross motor and social skills.

Activities in the infant classroom include:

Playing peek-a-boo, completing simple wooden puzzles, singing, exploring clay objects with their hands, practicing rolling over and tummy time and listening to music.

Areas of Development:

The infant curriculum focuses on your infant’s primary areas of development.

We encourage infants to explore their emotions. Teachers spend time singing, playing with puppets, and dancing to make your child feel happy and secure.

Teachers strive to instill social skills in our youngest community members. We start by helping your infant become aware of other people, and move on to imitating hand and facial gestures.

We have many activities designed to increase your infant’s communication skills, which include listening and making sounds. Infants observe themselves in a child-safe mirror as they make a variety of sounds, and they are spoken to constantly by their teachers. Older infants are encouraged to make animal sounds and to say the names of family members.

Infants’ fine motor skills, which include finger and hand movements, need to be stimulated in many different ways in order for them to improve. We offer a wide variety of fine motor skill activities for your infant, from simply shaking a rattle, to scooping up finger foods, to raking his hands through a container of cornmeal.

Teachers address all of your infant’s gross motor skills, which include reaching for objects, kicking, sitting, and walking. Infants are encouraged to lie on their stomachs and look at and reach for books and toys to increase their core muscle strength. Infants may even participate in an obstacle course to motivate them to crawl or walk.

Cognitive skills are the foundation of learning and knowledge. We focus on infants’ explorations of their environment. Your infant will be encouraged to make associations based on prior knowledge and explore the concept of cause and effect by dumping out toys, building and knocking down towers, and manipulating stacking rings.

Toddlers 1 and 2

Our curriculum is designed to develop and reinforce each toddler’s individual needs. Children participate in sensory-based learning experiences, while receiving positive, nurturing guidance. The curriculum will help your child develop their cognitive, communication, emotional, fine motor, and gross motor and social skills.

Activities in the toddler classrooms include:

Singing songs, finger plays, improving their vocabulary through identification and repetition, learn to wash their hands and feed themselves, enjoy age-appropriate playgrounds and practice sharing with other students. Our teachers encourage the child to work at their own speed so they feel successful in the skills they are developing.

Areas of Development:

The curriculum focuses on your toddler’s primary areas of development.

We encourage toddlers with exploring all of their emotions, from joy to frustration. Children begin to gain the skills needed, such as patience, cooperation, and sharing to deal with all of their emotions in a calm, supportive manner

We begin with the toddlers becoming aware of their classmates and move on to encouraging simple sharing activities. Your child will be encouraged to wave goodbye and take turns stacking blocks. These simple activities are the stepping stones for the later preschool years, when children are developmentally ready to share.

We have a deep understanding of how toddlers communicate and teach toddlers to put their wants and needs into words. Toddlers are encouraged to sing simple songs, recite nursery rhymes, and expand their vocabularies

Toddlers’ fine motor skills, which include finger and hand movements, need to be encouraged in many different ways in order for them to progress. We offer a wide variety of activities for your child to develop his fine motor skills, ranging from finger painting, to using a pincer grasp to pick up finger foods, to making and manipulating play dough.

Teachers assist the child with the development of all gross motor skills, which include batting at objects, kicking, walking, jumping and running, as well as improve their hand/eye coordination. You might even see toddlers playing Follow the Leader.

Cognitive skills include thinking, learning, and the investigation of their environment. Your toddler will begin to sort toys by shape and color and will be encouraged to identify facial features by reciting fun finger plays.

Two’s

We encourage your child to examine, create, and share as he broadens his language through interactions with his teachers and classmates in a safe, nurturing environment. Sensory and repetitive activities transform these new experiences into knowledge. Two year olds want to be independent. They want to explore, touch and mimic their peers and teachers. Their daycare curriculum focuses on language arts and literacy, mathematics, science, social and emotional development, gross and fine motor development. Through learning centers and age-appropriate activities, our two year olds have the ability to work at their own pace and learn to do tasks independently.

Activities in the two year old classrooms include:

Practicing writing skills while painting, drawing, and coloring, completing patterns, charting the daily weather and learning about recycling, participating in circle time, gross motor play, and learning about honesty and sharing.

Areas of Development:

The curriculum focuses on your two-year-old child’s primary areas of development.

Two year olds are experiencing a wide variety of emotions, much more than when they were infants and toddlers. We guide the children to express their emotions in healthy and safe ways. Caring teachers will show children different ways to convey their emotions, from sadness and frustration to happiness and joy

We start with your child becoming aware of the other children in the classroom and move on to encouraging the children to engage in group play. Your child will be encouraged to engage in dramatic play activities, such as pretending to shop at the grocery store or acting out stories. These simple activities set the stage for the preschool years, when children’s social skills are more developed.

Between the ages of two and three, children’s vocabulary can grow to nearly 300 words. We provide children with the tools they need to communicate within their classroom community by guiding them to put their desires into words. Children are encouraged to identify common objects and speak in three-to-five-word sentences.

We provide activities designed to empower two year olds. Children’s independence will increase as they are introduced to fundamentals of hygiene and they accomplish basic self-help tasks, drinking from a cup during meal time and putting on their jackets and shoes. Teachers provide the children with many opportunities to master these tasks, because repetition is vital when it comes to learning a new skill.

We address both gross motor skills, which strengthen the large muscle groups of the body, as well as fine motor skills. Children are prompted to climb, jump, hop, and run on the playground to strengthen their leg muscles. Two year olds are developing their fine motor skills in the Art Center, as they are finger painting, making collages, coloring with sidewalk chalk, and creating with play dough.

Cognitive skills are the foundation of learning and knowledge. At age two, children’s cognitive skills are expanding quickly. We challenge the children to become more aware of their environment by asking questions and inviting them to solve problems. Teachers provide the children with many activities designed to encourage them to distinguish between textures, to identify shapes and colors, and to begin counting by memory or rote counting.

Three’s

Our three-year-olds program focuses on your child’s primary areas of development: language arts and literacy, mathematics, science, social and emotional development, gross and fine motor development.

Activities in the three year old classrooms include:

Recognizing print through learning center signs; dramatic play; practice counting beads or blocks; learning about people, plants and animals; participating in activities with their peers; practicing balance, jumping and throwing; participate in family style dining and learn about patience.

Areas of Development:

The curriculum focuses on your three-year-old child’s primary areas of development.

Communication entails more than just speaking words; it’s expressing thoughts, wants, and needs. Communication also involves listening and understanding what others are saying. We offer children many opportunities to express their thoughts and opinions with their friends and teachers. Children will be immersed in a print-rich environment, boosting their pre-literacy skills.

As children become preschoolers, their social and emotional skills need the guidance of a nurturing teacher. We provide activities designed to increase children’s independence, allow them to become more confident in their abilities, and prompt them to play a responsible role in their classroom community.

We focus on all gross motor skills, which strengthen the large muscle groups of the body. Gross motor skills include jumping, kicking, throwing and catching a ball, and demonstrating balance. Children will be encouraged to participate in many favorite childhood games, such as Animal Races, Simon Says, Red Light, Green Light; and Duck, Duck, Goose. Fine motor skills, which include the smaller muscle groups, such as fingers and hands, are also a focus. Three year olds will enjoy strengthening their fine motor skills through finger painting, sculpting with clay, and doing finger plays.

Addresses three year olds’ increasing cognitive skills, which includes problem solving and logical thinking. Children will be encouraged to use their creativity and curiosity when they encounter new tasks, such as building a city out of blocks. To develop logical-thinking skills, Teachers read carefully selected children’s books throughout the day, encouraging the children to answer questions and express opinions about the stories.

Teachers focus on math tasks, which are vital school readiness skills. Children will be introduced to patterning, classifying, and identifying number and shapes.

The teachers provide many hands-on opportunities for children to explore sound, light, colors, animals, plants, and other important science topics.

Four’s Pre-K

The preschool curriculum is a planned program of thematic units. Each theme is built upon a series of hands-on activities, which are integrated throughout all subject areas and learning centers. Children will learn math, science, vocabulary, reading and social skills. Four year olds are eager to learn new things, we allow them to do so through teacher and peer interaction in both large and small groups. The curriculum focuses on developing your child’s skills in several areas, including: language arts and literacy, mathematics, science, social and emotional development, gross and fine motor development.

Activities in the 4 year old classrooms include:

Reciting poems and sharing stories, calculating ad measuring things, identifying differences in the world around them, beginning to identify their feelings, and learn about sharing and generosity.

Areas of Development:

The preschool day care curriculum focuses on your 4-year-old child’s primary areas of development.

Our units contain activities that will promote early literacy skills, including alphabet letter/sound recognition, phonics, and comprehension. Your child will be immersed in a print-rich environment, surrounded by award-winning children’s literature, which helps prepare them for kindergarten.

The activities are designed to increase children’s independence, further developing their confidence and abilities. Teachers encourage the children to play a responsible role in the classroom community. Children will learn to solve problems by using words.

We address all gross motor skills, which include jumping, running, throwing and catching a ball, and climbing playground equipment. Children will be encouraged to dance and participate in noncompetitive races. Fine motor skills, which include finger and hand movements, are vital to your child’s future writing skills. Four-year-olds will strengthen fine motor skills by playing in a sand-filled Discovery Table, by stacking small blocks, and by writing their names with finger paint/shaving cream.

Cognitive skills are the foundation of learning and knowledge. The activities are designed to prepare your child for elementary school. Children will be encouraged to recite finger plays and nursery rhymes, retell stories in their own words, make comparisons, and explore and make discoveries.

Your child will practice important math skills, such as classifying, identifying shapes and numbers, counting, and basic addition and subtraction.

Teachers will provide many hands-on opportunities for the children to explore weather, plants, animals, sounds, light, ramps, textures, and other essential science topics through Peep and other resources.