NAEYC Standards

This refers to the relationships between children and adults. Staff will ensure children and adults feel welcome. Teachers engage in friendly conversations, encourage children to play together, and help children resolve conflicts by recognizing and managing their feelings. (NAEYC, n.d.)

The curriculum promotes learning and development in each domain: social, emotional, physical, language, and cognitive. This will include short, structured activities and learning opportunities through free play. Teachers will implement the curriculum using the Creative Curriculum and HighScope Curriculum models.  

Staff will focus on supervision of children, opportunities for indoor and outdoor play, children’s work displayed at eye level in the classroom, and the modification of strategies and materials to meet the individual needs of the children. Teachers will identify children's Zone of Proximal Development, determining the potential outcome with teacher guidance (Main, 2021). 

Child assessment will be conducted through observations, checklists, and narratives compiled within a child's portfolio (Gadzikowski, 2019). We will use structured activities used by teachers and play-based activities to determine each child's developmental progress. Progress and goals will be discussed with parents through regular parent-teacher conferences. 

The health standard includes the health and safety of children and staff. It will be implemented in the classroom with proper hand-washing skills, cleaning and sanitizing the classroom environment, and serving healthy and nutritious meals to the children (NAEYC, n.d.). All meals  will be served family style. 

All staff will have valid qualifications in child development, such as a Child Development Associate (CDA), associate degree, or higher education degree. Ongoing professional development and training will be provided regularly to keep up with changing education standards. 

Our program will include family involvement activities, encouraging families to actively participate in their child's education. Studies show that including families in their child's education boosts developmental outcomes, strengthens relationships, promotes cultural understanding, and builds a sense of community (Theoria Technical College, n.d.).  

We will establish relationships with outside agencies that support us in achieving goals for the curriculum, health promotion, children’s transitions, inclusion, and diversity NAEYC, n.d.). This will help us to provide needed resources to all of our families. 

The physical environment includes the indoor and outdoor spaces. Children will be observed using sight and sounds, furniture will be child-sized, and materials will be available that are age-appropriate. Classrooms will be set up in learning centers with various materials. The indoor environment will include spaces for gross motor skills, and the outdoor environment will include activities and materials, such as dramatic play and art, outdoors.

Leadership and management will implement policies and procedures, recruit and hire qualified staff, and ensure training and ongoing professional development. This will include training new and all staff members on curriculum, CPR, First Aid, and Food Handlers. Leadership has an open-door policy for staff and families concerning policies, procedures, and other inquiries.