Little MillenniumTM (with trademark) has a well researched, award winning and scientifically developed curriculum that focuses on holistic development of every child, through play activities and collaborative group work. The curriculum aims at providing children with a solid academic foundation by implementing a multi-sensory integrated approach to education. Little MillenniumTM has been at the forefront of bringing innovative products in the early child care space in India. Over the years we have won numerous awards including the most recently won Best National Chain for “Innovation in early childhood education” at the Indian Education Awards, 2013.
Curriculum Objectives:
To enable, energise and enhance childhood by fostering complete growth of mind, body and spirit.
Use sequential learning techniques to ensure holistic development of every child across key skill areas
To ensure that children receive attention to their physical, mental and emotional needs
Seven Petal Curriculum :
At Little MillenniumTM , we follow the proprietary ‘Seven Petal’ approach, which ensures the holistic development of every child, through play activities & collaborative group work. The curriculum focuses on seven key development areas for children: cognitive development, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, language development, personal awareness, socio-emotional development & nurturing individual potential.
Nurturing Individual Potential
focuses on encouraging creativity and nurturing latent talent in every child. Our curriculum encourages children to express their creative ideas by providing them opportunities to dance, sing, draw, paint, create, tell stories, act, play sports and games.
Socio-Emotional Development
focuses on building positive relationships with family, friends, facilitators and their inner circle of people. Children are taught emotional and social skills that build values of friendship, sharing, caring and compassion through classroom conversations, discussions, role plays and stage exposure. Children are also taught new social rules while co-operating and responding to the feelings of others.
Personal Awareness
focuses on making the child aware of himself/herself and their immediate environment. Our curriculum is designed to help children develop independence, safety, hygiene and self help skills.
Language Development
focuses on a child's development in terms of communication, expression and presentation skills. We use a language-rich environment to encourage children's development of early literacy skills through storytelling, picture reading, identifying letters and words to expand their vocabulary and practice their developing abilities to communicate.
Cognitive Development
focuses on a child's development in terms of information processing, conceptual resources, perceptual skill, language learning, and other aspects of brain development. Our activities focus on developing thinking skills that include learning, counting, understanding, problem-solving, logical reasoning, remembering and drawing conclusions.
Fine Motor Development
focuses on improving children’s physical and handling skills which require the use of smaller muscle groups to perform tasks that are precise in nature. Our teaching aids like stencils, clay moulding, lacing boards, colouring and writing activities are used to enhance fine-motor skills.
Gross Motor Development
focuses on the use of large muscle groups and whole body movement to perform tasks like walking, balancing, crawling, running, jumping, and throwing. Our curriculum focuses on developing love for sports and physical activities at an early age. Personal Awareness focuses on making the child aware of himself/herself and their immediate environment. Our curriculum is designed to help children develop independence, safety, hygiene and self help skills.
Nurturing Individual Potential
focuses on encouraging creativity and nurturing latent talent in every child. Our curriculum encourages children to express their creative ideas by providing them opportunities to dance, sing, draw, paint, create, tell stories, act, play sports and games.
ECLECTIC APPROACH:
Our proprietary Seven Petal Curriculum follows the Eclectic Approach that takes the relevant strategies and methodologies from multiple schools of thought on early childhood. The Instructional Procedure for two to six year old children has been designed to provide research-based strategies that ensure high quality learning standards and outcomes. The curriculum is based on the following schools of thought which are the basis of the best practices of Little Millennium.
Multiple Intelligence Theory-Howard Gardner
The theory of multiple intelligences was developed in 1983 by Dr. Howard Gardner, professor of education at Harvard University. It suggests that the traditional notion of intelligence, based on I.Q. testing, is far too limited. Instead, Dr Gardner proposes eight different intelligences to account for a broader range of human potential in children and adults.
These intelligences are:
-Linguistic intelligence (“word smart”):
-Logical-mathematical intelligence (“number/reasoning smart”)
-Spatial intelligence (“picture smart”)
-Musical intelligence (“music smart”)
-Interpersonal intelligence (“people smart”)
-Interpersonal intelligence (“people smart”)
-Intrapersonal intelligence (“self smart”)
-Naturalist intelligence (“nature smart”)
Multiple Intelligence Theory expands our horizon of available teaching/learning tools beyond the conventional linguistic and logical methods used in most schools (e.g. lecture, textbooks, writing etc.) . It suggests that teachers be trained to present their lessons in a wide variety of ways using music, cooperative learning, art activities, role play, multimedia, field trips, inner reflection, and much more
Montessori Method (Sensorial Approach) – Maria Montessori
The Montessori Approach was developed by Dr. Maria Montessori (August, 1870 – May, 1952). She was an Italian physician and educator best known for the philosophy of education that bears her name and her writing on scientific pedagogy. Her educational method is in use in several schools throughout the world. Her most effective and famous method was the use of sensorial materials to teach the children. The sensorial materials provide a kind of guide to observation, for it classifies the impression that each sense can receive; the colours, notes, forms and sizes, touch sensations, odours and tastes. She developed didactic apparatus to train the senses and also to train in language and mathematics.
The Montessori Approach is geared to the child’s total development. Emphasized in a manner which lays the foundation for adulthood are four areas of development: physical, emotional, social, and intellectual.
Principles were based upon the development and education of the child from within, without any material reward and punishment through self education by catering to individual differences, sense training and through motor efficiency and muscular training.
Project Work Method - John Dewey
This method is the practical outcome of the pragmatic education philosophy of John Dewey. John Dewey (October 1859 – June 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. Dewey is one of the primary figures associated with philosophy of pragmatism and is considered one of the founders of functional psychology.
Project Work method involves bringing real life into the school. This involves not only motor activities but has problem solving as its main element which results in independent thinking.
Theme Based Approach
Here, every theme focuses on one single topic which is to interest students. It provides a core for group activities by building on the natural interest of learners. Writing, speaking, listening, reading, calculating, and content-related concepts can all be taught within the context of a theme. Themes can provide relevance for students by drawing together concepts under a single umbrella. In addition, themes can attract and maintain students’ interest over a long period of time and can provide continuity for a series of activities.
Play way Method-Fredrich Froebel
“What flight is to the bird, play is to the child” Froebel created a school for the little ones where he introduced the concept of play in teaching the children. Friedrich Froebel (April 1782 – June 21, 1852) was a German pedagogue, a student of Pestalozzi who laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities. He created the concept of the ‘Kindergarten’ and called his school ‘Kindergarten’ which in German means a ‘garden for the children’. Here all educational activities were organized around play.
The importance of Play is that:
It helps to grow physically
Helps the child to comprehend and control the world in which he lives
Helps him to experiment and test out his abilities without taking full responsibility for his actions
Learns to play and behave in a social manner
It is educational
It is therapeutic
An adult can discover many things about a child
Helps in moral training
Developmental Milestones :
Developmental Milestones are markers to measure a child’s growth in areas of cognitive development, motor skills development, language development and socio-emotional development. They help us in understanding how children develop and differ from one another in their growth patterns. Milestones support the understanding that every child is unique and develops at his/her own pace. Natural development milestones are helpful in selecting the best age appropriate programs and activities for children.
Little Millennium’s scientifically developed Seven Petal preschool curriculum focuses on holistic development of each child based on Sequential Learning and Development Milestones.