Programs
We offer three Programs:
- Parents and Tots – for children 12 months to 3 years of age
- Estonian Immersion – for children 3 to 6 years of age
- Estonian Enrichment – for children 3 to 6 years of age
The Estonian Kindergarten offers two streams — Estonian Immersion for beginners in Estonian and Estonian Enrichment for Estonian-speakers.
The curriculum for all children includes:
- Estonian language acquisition / enrichment
- Music and singing
- Folk dancing
- Arts and crafts
- Reading and writing skills development
- Estonian cultural awareness / themes
We make an effort to bring children in the two streams together frequently in appropriate activities such as dancing and music, class visits and games, to allow children of the same age group to get to know each other and develop a sense of community, regardless of Estonian language skills.
Theme Units
The curriculum for the Estonian Kindergarten has been set up in the form of theme units. Activities for each day are centered around the theme or sub-theme. The length of each theme unit depends upon the variety of sub-themes the teacher wishes to cover and/or the interest shown by the class for a particular theme. We try to set up our program in a “child-centered” learning environment, using “hands-on” learning at activity centers, keeping in mind that a child will learn a subject better if it is introduced to them through their senses.
The main theme units are:
- All about “me”
- Autumn
- Christmas
- The year
- Estonia/being Estonian
- Our environment
- Spring
Estonian content and materials are introduced in these themes whenever possible and appropriate. For example, there are various opportunities for drawing out comparisons between Canadian and Estonian customs, traditions, culture, language, or climate, as well as many other subjects.