Holistic Child Development: A Fully-Inclusive Preschool

What is quality preschool education?

Without adequate early learning and health essentials in the first five years of life, the later ages and adult outcomes of far too many children will be unnecessarily compromised. Children around the globe are facing a ‘life skills gap’. To close that gap, there is a need to expand preschool foundation, as a solution, for attainment of social, economic and occupational success. Children who have attended quality preschool go on to show positive effects on important adolescent and young adult outcomes. Families (and nations) significantly benefit when children are protected from harm, are well nurtured, and learn at healthy rates in order to enter school well-prepared for future academic and social progress.

Early childhood care and education places strong emphasis on developing the whole child i.e. attending to social, physical, emotional and cognitive needs. Quality preschool education and care is considered to be one that integrates educational activities, nutrition, health care and social services. Five childhood development domains are: physical – biological and physical (including motor skills) functions; social – interaction with others and understanding of responsibilities; emotional – creation of emotional connections, developing self-confidence and sharing; language – development of communication skills, both to other people and oneself; and cognitive skills – mechanism for organizing information. Children depict prominent differences in their thought patterns through stages of cognitive development.

The current curricula can be divided into two broad categories – “whole-child” and “skill-specific” curricula. Whole-child curricula emphasize child-centered active learning cultivated by strategically arranging the classroom environment, to promote learning by encouraging children to interact independently with equipment, materials and other children. Skill-specific curricula uses explicit instruction focused on specific academic (e.g. literacy or math) or socio-emotional (e. self-regulation or problem-solving) skills and provide the context of play and exploration. Most-effective approach is one that integrates whole-child and skill-specific curriculum – foundation for positive effects on children are interactions with teachers that combine simulation and support, which build higher-order thinking skills as well as knowledge of specific content i.e. treating Preschool Education (and Care) as a “holistic” child development service.

A sister company affiliated with Insights Success Media Tech LLC, “The Knowledge Review Magazine” (TKR) is a global education magazine providing knowledge, news, blogs, articles for students, educators and universities, giving them a broader view of the vast education sector while talking about the best educational practices, top institutes and their courses & policies, (educational) problems and solutions, innovators and their success stories and new technologies to provide students with tools and strategies they need to excel in the future. Every edition of TKR covers education from different dimensions – the July 2019 edition has focused on the top 10 preschools in Dubai for 2019 in their July edition, while listing Canadian Oaks Kindergarten as the cover story owing to its “Holistic Child Development” approach.

Insights from the Cover Story

Canadian Oaks Kindergarten, a project of the Silver Oaks International Education Services (SOIES) Group is a fully inclusive preschool that follows a Montessori-inspired curriculum for children aged 1.5-6 years while providing additional therapy and full inclusion to children in need of special cognitive support. SOIES Group, with over a 100 years’ heritage in education, operates 25 British curriculum schools with over 6500 pupils from Pre-school to KG-12 offering dynamic British-Asian education with British / Finnish teacher training at an affordable cost. SOIES Group took over Canadian Oaks Kindergarten (first established in 2013) in 2018 and rebranded it, primarily focusing on quality early years’ holistic child development with “an intent (that) recognizes children as the future’s greatest resource & (a belief) that (our) most valuable contribution to the community and our world is through developing an enlightened future generation.  The safety, care and education of young children mold their self-esteem and equip them with the ability to find love, happiness and success that last forever. During these formative years, the social, physical, and intellectual functioning of the child is unified.

The most important function of our educational & developmental program must be to provide children with strong fundamentals and strong values – Integrity, Courage, Respect, Optimism & Creativity. The foundation (we) develop must enable children to acquire more specialized knowledge and skills through becoming life-long learners. (This) approach creates happy, learning children who get on-going opportunities for developing social skills, building character, making friends and becoming an enlightened generation of tomorrow”.

Combining skill-specific with whole-child development helps children achieve competencies in Language; Math; Digital Literacy; Listening & Speaking; Problem Solving; Critical Thinking; Confidence; Relationship Building; Manners; and Healthy Living. Completing the distinctive features of this preschool are state-of-the-art & safe facilities, which include swimming pools, indoor and outdoor activity areas, a tailored learning environment in each classroom and a dedicated special cognitive therapy facility.

Evidence of its effectiveness comes directly from parents – quoting two telling reflections from mothers (publicly available reviews):“With its legitimate Montessori method of teaching, Canadian Oaks is a hidden gem among the landscape of traditional schools in Dubai.

They have a holistic approach to develop the child. A comfortable ratio of kids to teacher ensures that your child’s individual progress is properly addressed and taken into account there is a strong sense of family and cooperation amongst the staff that translates into a nurturing environment for children. Their campus is set on a spacious villa that provides opportunities for play and exploration for the young ones. I couldn’t have made a better choice for my son Phoenix. It is just unfortunate that their curriculum does not go beyond KG2” – Phoenix’s Mom. A second positive affirmation comes from Mrs. Daza: “As a parent, I know that having chosen Canadian Oaks was the best option for my children.

They love their school and go every morning with their hearts excited and happy to join their friends. In this place, my children are getting not only learning but also values to grow up independent, loved and happy. The Montessori approach makes a true difference in the learning process. I really appreciate the excellent job that the staffs are doing for my kids. Many thanks.”

SOIES Group has received international recognition, over the years, by a range of internationally accredited bodies. These awards include: “Outstanding Contribution in Education for All”, UAE Ministry of Education Sponsored Award 2016 in Dubai, by Global Education Supplies & Solutions (GESS); 21 “British Council International School Awards” between 2015-17; and ranked as the “Best British International Impact School in the World”, through the British International School Magazine Award (BISA), London, UK in 2018.

About the Author

Hassan Sattar is the CEO of Canadian Oaks Kindergarten. He is an author & edupreneur. You can reach him at [email protected].