The principles on which we have developed our curriculum are these:

1. Children can best learn and explore the world when they feel safe and secure. We attend to delivering the quality of individual care and creating an environment that nurtures children's comfort and confidence and fosters their own inquisitiveness and imagination.
2. We continually enhance our own understanding of child development as new research -- including recent brain and neurological studies as well as behavioral research -- contributes new understanding to how children grow and learn at various stages of their development. We structure all of our learning activities based on what they are capable of doing at each stage. By doing so, we see results not only in what children learn, but also in their inspiration to continue learning and to feel proud of their achievements.
3. We address all aspects of children's growth and learning: physical, cognitive, creative, social, and emotional. We see all as important in helping children to develop as whole human beings. So, for example, we deliberately use activities that help children move through progressions of large and small motor skill development -- progressions from crawling to running, from clapping their hands together to manipulating small objects. Likewise, we introduce thinking, creative, and social skills as they are able to learn, practice and ultimately master them. And we help them to label their emotions and as they practice the skills required to manage their behavior in relation to their feelings.
4. Children are individuals. While the field of child development provides us with general guidelines about their capabilities at any given age, children grow and develop in ways that are completely unique to them. They explore and learn in their own way, are fascinated by different things, and respond to the world with their own distinct personalities. We recognize, encourage and celebrate this individuality.
5. Learning is fun! This is not to be confused with entertainment, although some of our activities are certainly entertaining. At the Corning Children's Center, we approach want children experience exploration, learning, and accomplishment as joyous and fulfilling.

The curriculum we develop based on these principles is deliberate, purposeful and individualized. While we have a large repertoire of learning tools and plans, we tailor these each week. Each classroom team works together to develop weekly plans that reflect the interests and developmental needs of the individual children in their room at that time. Weekly lesson plans include activities in all developmental areas: physical, social/emotional, creative and cognitive. The Age Level Specialists assure that these plans are developmentally appropriate and reflect current knowledge in the field of Early Childhood Education.

The staff for each classroom keeps parents informed about lesson plans for the coming week and classroom activities through a weekly newsletter. The staff also meet with parents individually to discuss their child's developmental progress.