Philosophy

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=100 BGCOLOR="#CC66FF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="01ae64d0.gif" border=0 width="230" height="77" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">   </B></div> <bR> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <A HREF="programs.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Programs"><B>* Back To Programs Page</B></A></div> <bR> <div> <B>* Philosophy</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="parents.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Parents"><B>*Parents</B></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="our_staff.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Our Staff"><B>*Our Staff</B></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.stl.unitedway.org/" TARGET="_blank" TITLE="http://www.stl.unitedway.org/"><IMG SRC="0114e3a0.gif" border=0 width="78" height="58" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=380 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="00c64643.jpg"> <bR> <div> <B><U>Philosophy</U></B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U><IMG SRC="0448e530.jpg" border=0 width="398" height="595" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></B></div> <div> <I><B>A Curriculum philosophy...</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <B>At Stella Maris, we believe that nothing is more important than our children. Each child we serve is unique, and has feelings that need to be nurtured.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>We also believe strong, stable families raise strong, active learners. That is why the educational curriculum at Stella Maris Child Center focuses on three primary objectives:</B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000008000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Preparing children for kindergarten </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000008000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Improving parenting skills in the families we serve </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000008000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Helping our families develop stronger family relationships</B></div> <div> <B>When a baby is enrolled at Stella Maris, he or she is initially cared for in our infant (Tangerine and Blueberry) room. By age one, the child moves to our toddler (Pear and Banana) program. A year later, toddlers move onto our Star and Rainbow rooms. Each of these programs has a child to caregiver ratio of 4:1.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Shortly after turning three, most children move to one of our preschool rooms, where the maximum student to teacher ratio is 10:1. A child remains in this room for the remainder of their time at Stella Maris, unless they later return for our summer camp.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Research shows that young children learn best through direct sensory encounters and not through a formal academic process. In other words, they learn best through hands-on experiences, especially play, and when their emotional needs are met.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>All of our programs are developmentally appropriate, as outlined by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and feature:</B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">A wide variety of materials with which children can play and experiment </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Children making choices about activities' </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Teachers with training in early childhood education; </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Teaching plans that take into account each child’s interests and abilities so that each child can experience success and joy in learning;</B></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>