Welcome to our Early Years Division.
Our school structure recognises the need for young children to have a setting and programme that meets their unique developmental needs. We hope that you will find the Early Years Division of the school to be a warm and welcoming place where your child can begin their educational journey in a nurturing, caring environment. We pride ourselves on attaining a high standard in all developmental areas for all children, providing them with a balanced programme and increased self confidence and independence.

The Early Years Division at SSIS is one of two divisions in the primary school, the other being the Primary Division. The Early Years division staff comprise a Head of Division, grade level coordinators and early childhood trained teachers.



Curriculum and beliefs
Early childhood should be a time of joy, discovery and security.
At SSIS we provide a holistic, child-centred and play based programme to cater for the diverse needs and interests of every one of our unique students.

The Early Years curriculum, centred on the Primary Years Programme, can be viewed in terms of five areas which contribute to the child as a whole. These areas are articulated in the school mission and aims as academic (in which we identify the intellectual and the language areas), social/emotional, physical and aesthetic. Our programme provides a balance between these areas so that our students may develop in a holistic and natural way with high self esteem and enthusiasm for school.The Early Years students enjoy a range of inquiry units that allow them to make connections between what they already know about the world and what they discover through their inquiry. The curriculum, delivered through developmentally appropriate practices, enables our students to achieve the necessary skills, concepts, knowledge and attitudes needed for a successful transition to Grade 1.

Structure of the Early Years Division
The Early Years Division has three levels:

• Nursery 3 to 4 year olds
• Pre Kindergarten 4 to 5 year olds
• Kindergarten 5 to 6 year olds
  

In Nursery, each classroom operates independently. In Pre Kindergarten and Kindergarten, pairs of classes work together in a double room open space that allows for flexibility in catering for students’ needs.
Learning centres and play areas such as spaces for reading, mathematics and science exploration, imaginative play, construction or visual arts, may be set up across classrooms with students able to mix with a diverse range of students and adults.

Staffing
Each class has two experienced, qualified homeroom teachers: one expatriate English-speaking teacher and one local Chinese speaking teacher (who is also able to speak some English), and a classroom teaching assistant. The two homeroom teachers for each class work together within the classroom and have times when they teach together, such as during the programme of inquiry or for special activities, and other times when one of the homeroom teachers is on duty such as during English lessons, or lunch supervisions.

Parent Involvement
We wholeheartedly support the involvement of parents in the Early Years program as we believe it is essential to the happiness of our students that the school/home partnership be a strong and cooperative one. The variety of ways in which parents are involved is limited only by parents’ schedules! Please don’t hesitate to see your class teacher to become more involved in the Early Years Division.

Daily Routines

Food
All Pre Kindergarten and Kindergarten students have a morning snack and hot lunch served in the school canteen and an afternoon snack served in the classrooms. Teachers supervise and model appropriate manners and social skills.For Nursery, morning snack and lunch is served in the Nursery Dining Room. Afternoon snack is served in the classrooms.

Sleep
After lunch Nursery children have a nap. The beds and linen for the naps are provided and allocated to individual children for the year.Children in Pre Kindergarten and Kindergarten are also encouraged to have a rest after lunch when it is clear that they are feeling tired.

Toilet
Children are given frequent reminders to use the toilet and are supervised in hygiene practices such as washing their hands before meals and after the toilet.Assistance is given to children who need some help with toileting but all children must be fully toilet trained before commencing school.

Exercise
There is a daily time allocation for either outdoor play or physical education, in addition to an outside break after using the canteen. Children will not be taken outside in extremes of weather. However it is expected that children will be able to participate in outdoor play.

If your child is too sick for outdoor play then they are very likely to be too sick for school and should be kept at home until they are better.

Special Programmes
As much as possible all specialist programs in Early Years are integrated into the year level programme to provide security and continuity for our students.
We provide support programmes through:

• Two English language support teachers who work with ESL students and also take the students for Library lessons.
• A Visual Arts teacher for all levels
• A Performing Arts teacher for all levels
• A Chinese-as-a-second-language teacher for Pre Kindergarten and Kindergarten students
• A learning support teacher for children with special educational needs.

In addition to the many special and support programmes provided, there are a several field trips and events throughout the year. Please see the school calendar for updated information.