Koala French immersion Preschool program
Successful children
The pre-school program at Koala School caters to children who are new to French as well as those who are native speakers of the language. Our school provides a rich environment where children can immerse themselves in French language learning on a daily basis.
Built upon the foundation of the national French curriculum, our program is structured around five key learning domains. These domains encompass various aspects of early childhood education, ensuring a comprehensive approach that supports not only language acquisition but also holistic development.
Our language immersion methodology has proven to be exceptionally effective, offering a distinct and successful alternative to traditional bilingual education models. Within our nurturing and creative academic environment, children engage in activities that promote linguistic fluency, cognitive growth, social skills, and creativity.
Through this immersive experience, children not only develop proficiency in French but also cultivate a deeper cultural understanding and appreciation. Our dedicated teachers guide and support each child’s individual learning journey, fostering a love for learning and a strong foundation for future academic success.
The space: The classroom
The teacher at Koala School carefully arranges the classroom to create a nurturing environment that not only piques children’s curiosity but also addresses their essential needs for play, physical activity, relaxation, and exploration. This thoughtfully structured setting provides abundant opportunities for children to engage in sensory exploration, develop motor skills, foster social relationships, and enhance cognitive abilities, all while ensuring their safety and well-being.
The Time: A Typical Day at School
- Arrival 8:30 – 9:00 am
- Circle time 9:00 – 9:30 am
- Workshop 9:30-10:00 am
- Snack and recess 10:00 – 10:30 am
- Workshop 10:30 – 11:45 am
- Lunch 11:45- 12:30 pm
- Nap time 12:30 – 2:00 pm
- Workshop 2:00 – 3:00 pm
The teacher sets up a schedule appropriate for their age, ensuring a mix of activities that vary in physical and cognitive demands.
Times such as arrival, breaks, and the guidance during rest, nap (When full day), and hygiene are integral parts of education. These moments are carefully organized by responsible adults who provide secure guidance for young children.
Social-Emotional Learning
In our french immersion preschool, learning revolves around a core objective for children: Learning and living together harmoniously. The classroom and group form a learning community that lays the groundwork for fostering respectful citizenship, grounded in secular values and embracing cultural diversity worldwide. Within this context, children gradually transition into the role of students throughout their educational journey.
They learn to recognize the roles of different adults, understand the functions of various spaces within the classroom and school, and adhere to associated rules. Children are actively involved in decisions that affect them, thereby experiencing the fundamentals of collective discussion. Preschool thus ensures children’s initial understanding of societal norms, with all adults committed to ensuring equitable treatment for every child in every circumstance.
THE KOALA METHOD - The 5 pillars of success
Mathematics
Acquiring the First Mathematical Tools at Koala School: Mathematics plays a crucial role in structuring thought processes. At Koala School, developing early math skills is a top priority in our kindergarten program. This structured and ambitious approach is woven throughout the cycle, using play, object manipulation, and problem-solving activities to engage young learners.
Our goal is to spark students’ curiosity and enjoyment, fostering a love for exploration and discovery. Through these activities, children learn to understand and use numbers, recognize shapes, and organize collections of objects based on various criteria, categories, and properties (such as shape, size: length, mass, capacity – color, use, and function).
Introducing our little koalas to the joy of mathematical reasoning means encouraging them to play with shapes, explore space, work with maps, create drawings, solve puzzles, understand series, and grasp logic. This enriching experience also enhances their language skills, allowing them to speak precisely about all these fascinating areas.
Language
At Koala french immersion School, nurturing language development encompasses a variety of engaging activities where children speak, listen, reflect, and gradually explore reading and writing. In our preschool program, the clarity and richness of language used by teachers and adults, coupled with a gradual introduction to written communication, play crucial roles in children’s language acquisition journey. Throughout their educational experience, activities are designed to involve both spoken and written language, whether in interactive pairs, small groups, or collective settings:
– Oral language: Through interactive exchanges, children express themselves, understand others, learn, and reflect.
– Written language: Introduced gradually and explained with patience, written communication helps children understand how to record information, reflect on ideas, anticipate outcomes, and communicate with absent recipients.
Give him the keys to success.
Physical education
Acting, Expressing, Understanding through Physical Activity:
Engaging in physical activities at Koala School plays a vital role in the holistic development of children—motor, sensory, emotional, intellectual, and relational. These activities ignite creativity, offering moments to explore new emotions and sensations. They empower children to discover their physical capabilities, refine motor skills, and achieve new balances. Physical engagement also aids in developing spatial awareness, body orientation, and temporal understanding.
Moreover, these activities promote cooperation and nurture respectful relationships among peers, celebrating diversity and fostering socialization.
Furthermore, physical activities at Koala french School contribute to health education by encouraging every child to find joy in movement and effort, fostering a deeper connection with and respect for their bodies. Each activity also provides opportunities for oral expression—in anticipation, in context, in reflection, or in abstract form.
Explore the World
Since birth, through their exploratory activities, children at Koala French Immersion School intuitively grasp certain spatial and temporal dimensions of their immediate environment. These perceptions help them establish initial landmarks within their surroundings, develop expectations, and form memories of recent experiences. However, these understandings remain implicit and limited.
A primary goal at Koala French Immersion School is to gradually guide children in viewing time and space as relatively independent dimensions from ongoing activities, encouraging them to start treating them as such. Additionally, the school aims to nurture children to move beyond their own perspectives and embrace those of others.
Every activity presents an opportunity for oral expression—whether anticipatory, situational, reflective, or abstract. Upon entering Koala French Immersion School, children already possess mental representations that aid them in orienting themselves in their daily lives. To further their understanding and organization of the world around them, teachers offer activities that prompt children to observe, formulate more rational inquiries, establish relationships between observed phenomena, predict outcomes, and identify categorizable characteristics. Children also begin discerning between living and non-living entities, manipulating and creating objects to familiarize themselves with various materials and substances.
Art
Engaging, expressing, and understanding through artistic activities: This learning domain at Koala School encompasses a rich tapestry of visual arts, including painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, cinema, comics, graphic arts, and digital arts. It also embraces the vibrant realm of sound arts, featuring songs, instrumental compositions, and vocal performances. Additionally, our curriculum celebrates the performing arts, inviting children to explore dance, theater, circus arts, puppetry, and other forms of live performance.
These creative avenues not only foster self-expression but also encourage children to develop a deeper appreciation for various artistic disciplines, nurturing their creativity and imagination in a supportive and inspiring environment at Koala French immersion school of Raleigh.
involved parents
From the moment a child joins our French preschool in Raleigh, a consistent and supportive dialogue is fostered between teachers and parents, built on trust and mutual sharing of information. The teaching team at Koala School defines effective communication methods with parents, ensuring the well-being and successful integration of each child into our program, while valuing the diversity of families. These connections enable parents to grasp the school’s operations and unique aspects. Addressing the separation experience between children and their families is a priority for our entire educational team, especially during their first year at school. Daily classroom welcomes provide a comforting routine for each child.
In addition to our preschool program, we proudly offer Koala School Bilingual Summer Camps and track out. Our camps provide a dynamic, bilingual environment filled with fun, learning, and exciting activities. Open to both Koala and non-Koala students, these camps welcome children of various ages and French proficiency levels. They offer a rich array of themed activities that foster creativity, exploration, and social growth, ensuring a memorable summer experience for every child!
For more information and resources on the benefits of bilingual education, please visit this comprehensive short guide. It offers valuable insights into how bilingualism supports early learning and development, helping you understand the positive impact of a bilingual environment on your child’s growth.
