Outdoor sports are vital for holistic development of a child and also for teaching them the true meaning of sportsmanship! Whether a victory or a defeat – how to accept it gracefully, cannot be taught only in the four walls of a classroom. Hence, to give hands-on exposure to kids on outdoor sports, Tappy Toes Nursery – a trusted name in early child education had organized a grand, one of its kind sports event, recently. The school Principal, Ms. Foram Gohel gets candid in a pleasant tête-à- tête as she shares the details about the event.
Recently, on 18 th February, we held a Sports day at Emirates International School, Jumeirah branch. It was one of its kind where we invited parents along with their children to participate in sports activities. We collaborated with Nature’s Cart and House of Pops with an objective of promoting active and healthy lifestyle. The selection of these two vendors was done on the basis of their healthy and nutritious food offerings. The event gave an opportunity for parents to bond with their kids as well as the community members of Tappy Toes Nursery. We had sports activities for kids of all age group as well as for their parents. Parents participated in large numbers with a sporting spirit! It was a wonderful opportunity for all parents to connect with staff members, other parents and members of the community. Also, one of the many advantages of hosting an event at Emirates International School was that it gave parents an opportunity to take a tour of the school campus, understand the facilities, curriculum and meet the school management team. It was a good platform and an opportunity for parents looking forward to enroll their child in school. The feedback received from parents was positive. I would say that it was one of the biggest event of the term which was a major success.
Holistic development is crucial in the early years of development as it’s about academic, social, emotional and physical health and wellbeing of the child. Children need sunlight, good & positive spirits, fresh air and physical movements to boost their natural development. Sports and physical activities help children reach their Early Learning Goals. For a child to develop into a well-rounded and healthy individual, they need to be taught the significance of exercising at an early age. Fine motor and gross motor skills are part of child’s physical development and these developments affect the other areas of learning such as writing, balance, vision, understanding space and sizes, controlled movements, team work etc. Personal, social and emotional development becomes easy with physical movements and spending time in nature. Open environment refreshes children as well as adults. Given the fast pace of life, it is more important than ever that parents get to spend time with their child in nature to relax, calm down and reconnect.
We offer outdoor visits to ensure children spend time in nature and enjoy physical activities. Our nursery has a no-screen policy as we want them to engage with other children to develop their interpersonal skills and learn through hands- on play activities. We encourage parents to spend time with their children mostly in outdoor activities especially during weekends. We suggest places they can visit and activities they can do at such places which are quite economical. We have sports in the nursery on weekly basis to ensure children participate and stay active. We have themes in our curriculum about nature such as picnic in a park, visit to the beach and other places along with roleplays too. We also arrange field trips to Miracle Garden, Zoo and many attractive places so they get a chance to learn about nature and environment. Every week, we send weekly notes to parents to inform them on the next week’s learning goals and along with that, we send them ideas about what activities to do outdoors in terms of sports and active lifestyle. Given the weather of UAE, we encourage parents to spend as much time as possible outdoors when the weather is pleasant and recommend indoor places to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle during summer.
Our pedagogical approach, as outlined in the curriculum, puts emphasis on age- appropriateness, learning through play, and encourages staff to be flexible in adapting different approaches and practices. We focus on continuous child development for the whole nursery age range through implementation of one curriculum framework that focuses on Early Learning Goals. Also, we ensure favorable staff-child ratios in place that can positively impact learning and development. We always strive to impart quality education, care and support.
We believe that children will lead the future. So, we need to provide them with a strong support system, academic guidance and holistic development. We want children to have hands-on learning experiences along with their holistic development in personal, social and emotional areas. We are an inclusive nursery and we welcome all children to learn together. We provide a platform for children to learn through sharing, caring and embracing diversities. We serve to diverse range of families. We support children with inclusion needs as well as gifted and talented students to ensure their development. We are a screen-free nursery and are applauded by parents for this approach as children lean too much on devices from a young age. We understand that technology based learning is important and we do offer them technology based learning opportunities periodically but our main focus is to develop child’s skills without screens. We cater and support parents through workshops, seminars, play dates and individual support sessions.
So, we do have a special program at Tappy Toes called as parent partnership program. It involves understanding the parents and the support they seek when they come for admission. Constant and clear communication with parents to ensure that they get updates about their child on daily basis through Parent App. Scheduling regular Parent Teacher Meetings to give feedback on their child’s progress. Also, individual meetings and calls to support any challenges they face. We keep them informed about workshops, seminars and play dates to help learn better, seek support and socialize with other members of Tappy Toes Nursery community. We have collaborations with various institutions to support parents and their requirements. This eases their worries about their child’s further education.
In terms of future plans, we want to continue providing outstanding quality education, support parents and the community. Also, we do have plans of expansion and we look forward to cater to parents all around Dubai and UAE.
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