Kindergarten Enrichment

Starting Kindergarten is a huge milestone in a child and family’s life and you want to know your child has a safe and supportive place to go after school. At Catalyst Kids we believe our programs nurture healthy school habits and develop well rounded children. We foster a sense of belonging while encouraging creative expression and a healthy lifestyle. Our daily schedule includes meeting time, homework and academic enrichment, 30 Fit, enrichment clubs, open recreation and a nutritious snack. Individual programs structure their day to meet the needs of the children and families they serve. 

Our Kindergarten Enrichment programs provide a high quality, academically challenging, and developmentally appropriate curriculum for TK and K children. “Learning through Literacy” is a curriculum approach that teaches English Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies and other content areas using children’s literature, both fiction and non-fiction. The primary resources for “Learning through Literacy” is  KidzLit, a research based literacy program designed specifically for use in afterschool programs.  It enhances a child’s motivation to read, builds skills, and develops core values. This curriculum resource was launched during the 2014/2015 school year. 

Schedule

In our programs, children have opportunities to work individually, in small groups or in teams to mentor other children, facilitate discussions or take initiative by taking on a role or job. Our goal is to provide opportunities for continued development of communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity skills. Below is a quick synopsis of each segment of the daily schedule.

Meeting Time – We begin each day with a whole group meeting as a way of building community and welcoming everyone to the program. During this time the group shares information about activities planned for the day, special visitors that may be in the program, teacher or child absences and/or problems or conflicts needing to be resolved.

Homework and Academic Enrichment time – Our programs strive to connect the activities we plan with what children may be learning in school. Our activities focus on creating connections to school day learning through literacy based curriculum, with high quality children’s books, as an entry point into exploring writing, reading, math, social studies, science and social/emotional skills.

30 Fit – We offer 30 minutes of planned physical activity intended to support your child’s physical development and healthy lifestyle through fun games.

Enrichment Clubs – Every 4 – 6 weeks your child will have an opportunity to select one of our club options. Clubs offer your child a chance to explore an area of their interest in a small group setting. Past clubs have included: legos, baking, drawing, photography, gardening and chemistry for kids.

Open Recreation – We offer your child the opportunity to play in large or small groups, develop hobbies/ skills or simply “hang out” with friends.

Environment

Our environment is a unique reflection of the children, families, staff and school community who are part of our program. Our spaces are designed as an extension of the “classroom” space, intentionally accessible and set up to support children in meeting their own needs. They include areas for art, dramatic play, blocks, reading, quiet space and outdoor space. 

Our Staff

Our teachers understand the developmental needs of children ages 4 – 6 years. Our teachers make authentic connections that nurture growth in children through creative, fun, respectful, and collaborative relationships. Our teachers live in their passion and talents as seen through their engagement with children and curriculum development. 

Family Engagement

We believe family and school partnerships are essential to each Kindergarten child’s success. Family partnerships are developed through daily conversations, collaboration on center events and a variety of parent meetings. Our partnerships with school personnel are developed through quarterly meetings, school events and shared program goals. 

Mound, Oxnard

Each school year, our Mound center introduces their Kindergarten children and families to KidzLit and KidzMath, the curriculum resources that form the cornerstone of the Learning through Literacy approach implemented during Kindergarten enrichment time.

This year, the kindergarten group at Mound requested “Lions at Lunchtime” from The Magic Tree House book series (https://www.magictreehouse.com/). Each day, teachers read a chapter from a book they are working on and then focus activities on concepts that tie in with what children are learning about in school. The group engages in learning strategies such as graphic webbing, KWLs (What they know, What they want to know and What they have learned), journal drawing and writing. By acting out scenes from the story and various creative projects, the children are able to express what they have learned from the story.  The story ideas often touch on math concepts as well. Lately, the group has been exploring geometry, symmetry, and map making. Take a look at some of the cool activities they have been working on.

Stocklmeir, Sunnyvale

Our Master Teacher Linda Vuong and co-teacher Nichole Smith loved the classic book Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson and wanted to incorporate it into their Kindergarten Enrichment Program at our Stocklmier center in Sunnyvale. In the program, activities are added into the learning and reading of books. During the reading, they discussed what Harold drew with his purple crayon. The teachers gathered up everything purple that they could find in the center such as pom-poms, craft sticks, feathers, glitter, jewels, markers and crayons. They asked the children what they would create if they had a purple adventure and let them use all the materials the teachers put out. The next day, they also had the children use just paint to create their pictures. Some of the creations the Kinders came up with were very original such as a machine that charges things so it won’t run out of batteries, boats, mountains, houses and a machine that makes unlimited food for the poor. They imitated the story by drawing things they wanted and things they needed.

Since there are eight books in the series, the teachers are using the next books to extend what the children are learning during that week in the classroom. During the week the children were learning about shapes, they choose the book Trip to the Sky which has pictures created with shapes. The children learned that most pictures are shapes put together. They also worked on basic shapes by using scissors to cut construction paper into shapes and put them together to make a picture. For example, they put rectangles and triangles together to make a rocket. The children also worked on self portraits by drawing themselves as shapes.

    

See More of Our Programs

Before/After School
Preschool
Kindergarten Enrichment
Infant/Toddler
Camps