Curriculum

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We endeavor to provide an interesting and stimulating programme that will help the children develop into confident, knowledgeable (age appropriate) and capable individuals.

Secret Garden follows a Christian ethos. We aim to teach Christian principles based on the Word of God as found in the Bible and motivated by a love for and in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our Curriculum is divided into 7 different areas of development, Language development, Cognitive development, Social and Emotional Development, Gross motor development, fine motor development and Spiritual and Moral development. It also contains lessons and activities that are aligned to the subjects and content, concepts and skills for the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) with integration for Grade R.

Example of our Daily programme:

• Fine motor activities, Playdough or fantasy play. (free Play)
• First ring - Theme discussion - Language development, Bible lesson and moral development. Followed by action songs and rhymes.
• Second Ring - Small group time - Cognitive development and exploring concepts. 
• Outside play and Gross motor activities.
• Snack time
• Creative activities - Theme related main and side activities.
• Third ring – Story and discussion.

The teachers follow a strict daily routine. This means that each day certain events are repeated in the same order as the day before, therefor providing continuity and a sense of order. Knowing what to expect is reassuring to children, and they take pride in mastering the routine.

Daily activities include

Visual  Art

Drawing, Painting, Cutting, sticking an picture making.

(In this area the process and skill involved are more 

important than the finished product.)

Music  

Singing, Introduction to and

playing of musical instruments.

Movement

Dancing, basic movement to music, running, jumping, balancing, obstacle courses.

 Drama 

Action poems and rhymes, enacting stories, emotional development through expressions.

Fine Motor Activities

Puzzles, blocks, sorting, threading, lego construction sets 

and Playdough.

 Educational Games

         Practica math sets, memory games,

number games and many more.

 Gross Motor Activities  

Throwing, catching, running, jumping,

 crawling, kicking, climbing…..

  Messy Play

Gooey, sticky, squashy fun with

water, food, paint etc. of different textures and consistency.

Fantasy Play

Pretend play, dressing up dolls, cars, animals, cooking, outside free play. . . 

 Language and Listening

Communication, language and listening skills are developed through listening to the stories as told by the teacher and then repeating the story to

others. Children have the opportunity         to page through the books, ask questions and discover.

Baking and Decorating

Sugar biscuit houses, marshmallow snowmen and racing car finger biscuits to name but a few.

Themes

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Wild animals, Safety, My body, Hygiene, My garden, Transport, Food, Colours, Shapes, Biblical themes, Seasons and much more.