Education
The Educational Philosophy of the Lee County Head Start Program is to provide an environment for preschool children that is developmentally appropriate, based on sound principles of learning, and that affords children opportunities and experiences that will result in their acquisition of a good foundation for school readiness.
Curriculum means a written plan that includes:
1. The goals for children’s development and learning;
2. The experiences through which they will achieve these goals;
3. What staff and parents do to help children achieve these goals; and
4. The materials needed to support the implementation of the curriculum.
Lee County Head Start utilizes Creative Curriculum. The key experiences of Creative Curriculum correlate with both the program and the domains and indicators of The Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework: Ages Birth to Five. (HSELOF) . Creative Curriculum is also used for teachers to set up the centers and for assistance in establishing an environment for fostering children’s creativity.
Head Start parents may review the curriculum at any time and make suggestions and/or recommendations. Head Start parents are welcome and encouraged to assist with the lesson planning in their child’s center.
The Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework: Birth to Age Five (HSELOF) describes the skills, behaviors, and knowledge that programs must foster in all children. The Framework is organized into the following elements: Domains, Sub-Domains, Goals, Developmental Progressions, and Indicators.
The Domains are broad areas of early learning and development from birth to 5 years that are essential for school and long-term success. The central domains are:
1. Approaches to Learning
2. Social and Emotional Development
3. Language and Literacy
4. Cognition
5. Perceptual, Motor, and Physical Development
The Sub-Domains are categories or components of development within a domain. For example, for the Social and Emotional Development Domain, sub-domains include relationships with adults, relationships with other children, emotional functioning, and s sense of identity and belonging.
The Goals are broad statements of expectations for children’s learning and development. The goals describe broad skills, behaviors, and concepts within a sub-domain that are important for success in school. These are sometimes referred to as standards in the state early learning guidelines.
The Developmental Progressions describe the skills, behaviors, and concepts that children will demonstrate as they progress towards a given goal within an age period. The term “emerging” is used for the youngest infant age group when specific skills, behaviors, or concepts have not yet emerged or are not yet observable.
Indicators are identified for each goal for children 36 months and 60 months of age. They describe specific, observable skills, behaviors, and concepts that children should know and be able to do at the end of Early Head Start (by 36 months) or at the end of Head Start (by 60 months). Given children’s individual differences, some children may demonstrate these indicators before the designated age period and some may demonstrate them later. The indicators listed for each age are not exhaustive—other indicators related to the goal may be observed.
The Framework is not meant to be used as a curriculum, assessment, or checklist. It is never to be used to conclude a child has failed in any way or that a child is not ready to transition into Head Start of Kindergarten.
Partnerships for Education include:
*Book of the Month: Every child enrolled in the Lee County Head Start Program receives a book each month. This reading initiative is provided by a grant from the Slemp Foundation.
*Read Across America: Dr. Seuss
*Virginia Star Quality Initiative
*Smart Beginnings
*Child Care Aware of Virginia