info 20132014 information packet

7/30/2019 info 20132014 Information Packet

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play ! laugh ! learn ! grow ! play ! laugh ! learn ! grow ! play ! laugh ! learn ! grow ! play ! laugh


Information Packet SY 2013 -2014

Thank you for your interest in our Early Learning Center. Choosing a school is a decision not to betaken lightly; we value and appreciate the trust families place in us for the care and education oftheir children. This packet is intended to give you an idea of who we are, our mission, beliefs and

curriculum, and a summary of our programs. Visit us on Facebook Head To Toe Addis Ababa - toview photos and learn more about us. Please feel free to contact us for further information or to

make an appointment to come by for a tour.

Who Are We?

My husband, Teddy, and I officially opened Head to Toe in 2009 with our young son in mind. Ourmission then, and now, is to create a community where staff and families collaborate and supporteach other in order to give children a fun, safe, and loving place to learn and grow together.

It is our goal to provide a variety of activities each day that are exciting and stimulating so ourstudents develop socially, emotionally, physically and mentally to the very best of their ability. Toachieve this, we are active observers as your student works and plays. These observations, our

knowledge of child development and a sloping curriculum, allow us to personalize your childs

experience so they can be safely challenged and supported as they grow and learn.

My education and experience teaching started in 1994 when I completed my Masters in EarlyChildhood Education and began teaching outside Atlanta in the US. In 1999 I added a Specialist inEarly Childhood Education with a concentration in Teacher Support and Curriculum Development anddecided to explore international teaching.

Since then, I have taught in Lebanon, the UAE, and Addis Ababa, where I soon realized the only way

I could truly follow my passion and beliefs about how children learn best was to open my own school.Together with a dedicated staff, Teddy, and I have built what we believe is a true community based

Early Learning Center we are proud of, both as owners and parents.

A core staff of kind and loving teachers has been working with us since we first opened. As we havegrown over the years we have added additional teachers, aides and specialists. Collectively we have abroad range of backgrounds, education and experiences that add to the richness of our community,

but we all share a love of children. I am sure you and your family will become as fond of them as wehave.

Stability is especially critical to third culture kids or children who are settling into a new

environment. For this reason, and for the convenience of families with older and younger siblings, we

now offer a Kindergarten program. Our hope is that students can stay in one place for the length ofa posting, and that younger and older siblings may attend together.

Parents are an integral part of our community and we host several events throughout the year to

Head to ToeEarly Learning Center & Kindergarten

Jane Pyecha, Director [email protected] 0930 01 23 51

Visit us on Facebook at Head To Toe Addis Ababa


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encourage and allow your participation. We respect your professional time and realize it is not alwayspossible for you to attend events during the workday. For this reason, our Open House, Family Days

and Conferences are on weekends so that you may attend and share in these important, and fun,activities. We are also available after school should you wish to make an appointment with the

teacher and Director.

However, some events can only be held during the school day, but out of professional respect,advanced notice is given and the event is tailored and organized to maximize the benefit to both you

and your child. We hope you find these days not only fun and enjoyable, but also informative, andworthy of taking time off work.

The constructive feedback, suggestions and comments of our families helps us maintain our mission ofa true community center and are always welcome!

Our Pedagogy

As an Active Learning Program, we believe children learn best through play and exploration, and thusprovide a variety of opportunities for problem solving, independence and investigation at every age.

We combine pieces of several internationally acclaimed programs, most notably, Reggio Emilia,Creative Curriculum, Investigations, and HighScope. Our programs are designed for fourdevelopmental age groups.

! Infants (ages 6 months 2 years) - This program serves infants and their accompanying nanny.By providing a language rich, stimulating environment, children begin to see themselves as

independent, confident learners. Motivated nannies will learn new methods of interacting with

children and a multitude of songs and activities they can use in the home. Infants can enrollfrom 1 up to 5 mornings a week. The ratio is 1 teacher for 6 nanny/infant pairs.

! Toddlers (age 2) The focus of our Toddler program is to allow children ownership of theirlearning by teaching them to make appropriate choices. Throughout the morning, toddlerschoose from a variety of learning areas and materials to explore and investigate. Toddlers

enroll 2, 3 or 5 mornings a week. Our student: staff ratio is 4: 1.

! Early PreSchool/PreSchool/Pre KG (ages 2! - 5) Through play children learn collaboration byworking with peers to solve a variety of problems and creating group projects. During small

group, children meet with their lead teacher to challenge and support their individualdevelopment in one of the six curricular areas. These students are enrolled 2, 3 or 5 mornings

a week with a student: staff ratio of 6: 1.

! The annual fees for each of the above programs are: 2 mornings a week-$2200, 3 mornings-$3300, 5 mornings-$5500.

! Afternoon Activities Parents can choose to send their child any day/s Monday Thursdayfrom 12:30 2 or 12:30 -3:30. The annual fees for one half afternoon per week is $330 and

for one full afternoon per week is $660.

! Kindergarten (ages 5-6) Through the continuation of our active learning curriculum, childrenwill develop further skills in reading, writing, language, math, social studies and science. The

program is 5 days a week with early release at 12:30 on Fridays. The annual fee for ourKindergarten program is $11,000 and the student to teacher ratio is 8:1.


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For the stability of our students, whenever possible and appropriate, teachers and students will loopwith their group to the next program level. When new students join, we assign a primary caregiver to

greet them each day and stay with them until they are comfortable with the routine and the staff atlarge.

The Daily Routine

Since the needs and interests of our students are our primary focus, our schedule is very flexible anddoes not strictly follow the clock. At some point in the morning, your child will participate in each of

the following:

Welcome/Choice Time/Wash Up 7:30 9:00 is dedicated to welcoming children as they arrive andallowing them the opportunity to smoothly transition into the school environment. Parents and

siblings are invited, and encouraged, to join their student at this time - meeting friends, otherfamilies, and seeing what new and exciting things we have been doing. Students from all of our

morning programs play and interact together freely in the area of their choice.

Greeting Time/Large Group Each program gathers for a shared large group experience comprised ofsongs and language activities designed to increase vocabulary/language/problem solving skills, build asense of community, and help children get settled into the day.

Small Group Children divide into smaller groups either by age/developmental level or based on the

activity they have chosen from the four or five we have prepared for them.

Snack/Recess Everyone gathers for a picnic inside/outside and 20 30 minutes of free play.

Plan/Work/Recall This is the largest block of time and is the core of our Active Learning Program.It is designed to provide an opportunity for students to make age appropriate plans and work

independently or collaboratively to complete them. As students mature, they will begin to meet atthe end of this time to share their work and answer questions from teachers and peers.

Art This is the main focus of the Reggio Emilia program. Through planning, problem solving andfollow through, children are exposed to a variety of media and experiences with art materials andallowed to create their own masterpieces. At the end of the year we hold an Art Auction of thechildrens collaborative work to raise money for our Community Outreach Program. The Infants

explore art materials in their own small group as their interest in messy play develops.

Music This curriculum focuses on songs, language, movement, beat and rhythm. Students gainconfidence performing in a group and to an audience of families.

Library Each week a focus book is read with a supporting activity following. Afterward, childrenhave time to read by themselves or with friends. Each child may check out one book a week to take

home and share with their family.

Pick Up Everyone enjoys free play either outside/inside for pick up. Families are again invited, and

encouraged, to spend time with their child in the school setting during pick up.

Afternoon Activities Our afternoons are designed to be an enrichment of the mornings. Dependingon how long they stay, students may: choose a learning area, have lunch and quiet time, and an


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activity such as music, art, science, math, language or exploration.Our Learning Areas

In order to best stimulate creativity and interest, we add/remove materials and open/close areas of

learning based on our observations of students. Our Center contains, but is not limited to, thefollowing areas in which children may explore freely:

Puzzles Library Science Construction Drama CookingPlay Doh Math Games/Toys Project Room Movement LanguageWater Sand Outdoor Pla Art Studio Black To Music

Our students interests drive our activities. After hearing discussions and conversations duringsnack, recess, and choice time, over the years, the students have planned and designed a: zoo, snowvillage, store, restaurant, fire station, machine factory, seasonal rooms, a circus, an ocean, a hospital,

a garage and a gas station. Our only limit is the creativity of our students which is boundless!

General Information

First-Aid/First Aid Emergency/CRP/Child Protection -Each year our staff takes a training course ineach of these areas. For further details on these, and our evacuation procedures, please see our

parent handbook.

Hours: We open at 7:30 and all students should be picked up by 12:30, 2:00, or 3:30 depending ontheir program. In order to protect the professional time of our staff we reserve the right to charge

a late fee for children who are regularly picked up late.

Snacks Please bring a healthy snack for your child each day. Purified water is available and we

encourage children to drink it throughout the day. Afternoon students need to bring a lunch as well.For the health and safety of our children, each year we notify parents of all allergies and ask that

you not send any foods containing those products.

Winter and Summer Break Camps We offer fun, safe, supervised play during these holidays forchildren ages

2-7. Children should be registered prior to camp and $10 a day rate applies.Yearly Schedule Our school year is 176 days 88 per semester. We make every effort to follow

other international schools in Addis Ababa so that siblings have the similar schedules. However, ourmain focus is to best meet the needs of our young students so some of our holidays may vary.

Professional development for our whole staff is also a priority so we have scheduled several in-service days throughout the year to provide workshops in areas such as first-aid, child protection,curriculum development, behavior management, etc.

Fees/Payments By Ethiopian law, all payments must be made in Birr using the current exchange rate

and an official receipt must be issued. Payments can be made by check, cash or wire transfers. All

payments are final. The annual student fee is due at the time of registration each year andguarantees your childs place until the tuition fee deadline.

1st Semester - Registration for new families begins March 1, 2013. Tuition is due on or before

August 31, 2013. Enrollment is not guaranteed after this date and a 10% late fee will beapplied.2nd Semester - Registration will begin November 15, 2013. Fees are due on or before January

31, 2014. Enrollment is not guaranteed after this date and a 10% late fee will be applied


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HTT 2013-2014 Calendar

Saturday August 17th -OpenHouse for Families

August 19th- First full day of

school

AUGUST 2013

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31

FEBRUARY 2014

S M T W Th F S

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28

February 21st Teacher WorkDay

September 11th EthiopianNew Year

September 26th- Work DaySeptember 27th--Meskel

SEPTEMBER 2013

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30

MARCH 2014

S M T W Th F S

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31

March 24th-28th Spring Break

October 15th Eid Al Adaha(approx)

October 21st-25th Fall BreakOctober 30th Semester Mid-

Point

OCTOBER 2013

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30 31

APRIL 2014

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30

April 7th Semester Mid-Point

April 18th Good Friday

April 20th Easter Monday

November 28th-

Parent/Teacher Conferences

November 29th-ThanksgivingHoliday

NOVEMBER 2013

S M T W Th F S

1 2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

MAY 2014

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31

May 1st & May 2nd

Parent/Teacher ConferencesMay 3rd - Parent/Teacher

ConferencesMay 28th -Downfall of the Derg

December 23rd-January 14th-

Winter BreakDECEMBER 2013

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 31

JUNE 2014

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30

June 13th Last day of school

celebration!

January 14th Teacher WorkDay

January 27th Start of SecondSemester

JANUARY 2014

S M T W Th F S

1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31

176 School Days

88 days per semester

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