Toddlers

Play and Discovery

12 months – 24 months

This is an age of discovery and wonder. Toddlers are becoming more aware of what is happening around them, often imitating others and learning what interests them. What’s more, as they begin to develop new skills, they begin to build greater confidence in their abilities.

In addition to personal care, our toddler teachers focus on:

Approaches to Play and Learning

To support our toddlers’ growing abilities, we incorporate plenty of playtime throughout the day. Every experience in the classroom is a potential learning opportunity, and every learning center in our classroom a dedicated space for their growth and development.

Cognitive Development

Even at this early age, children can begin to develop STEAM skills through such activities as building with soft blocks, pretending with puppets and soft books and toys, and playing dress up. Cleaning up after a day of play helps toddlers to learn to classify and organize, which are important pre-reading and math skills.

Communication and Language Development

To help develop our toddlers’ vocabulary and knowledge base, we encourage them to engage in conversation with their friends and teachers during play and learning experiences. We teach Baby Signs (American Sign Language), allowing them to communicate their needs and express themselves both verbally and non-verbally. Our toddlers also participate in weekly age-appropriate Spanish, French, or Mandarin lessons.

Physical Development

We encourage our toddlers to learn through physical activity and sensory play, including strengthening their motor skills through puzzles and stringing large beads. In addition to creative learning, we also focus on developmental skills such as potty training.

Social and Emotional Development

To help promote their social and emotional development, we give our toddlers plenty of dedicated time to learn social skills, through play, music, and dance with their peers. Mealtime also becomes an opportunity to develop important social skills as well as teacher-led and age-appropriate activities that promote communicating needs and feelings.

Age-Appropriate Learning

Interactive Learning

We encourage learning through music, art, physical activity, and sensory play.

Toddler Development

In addition to creative learning, we focus on developmental skills such as potty training.