EARLY YEARS CURRICULUM

A GUIDE TO OUR EARLY YEARS SUBJECTS

• Literacy

  Our Early Years students build a joyful foundation for literacy through purposeful activities and integrated, project-based units. Grounded in a workshop model tailored for young learners, students develop early reading and writing skills through exploration, collaboration, and shared discovery. They engage with rich literature, informational texts, and oral language activities that connect to their current themes and studies of the world around them. 
• Mathematics

  In our Early Years program, mathematics is an adventure of discovery. Through hands-on, exploratory learning and purposeful play, young mathematicians build a strong conceptual foundation. Our approach integrates math seamlessly into daily routines, stories, and inquiry-based units, allowing children to see patterns and solve problems in a meaningful context. Students develop resilience and curiosity as they collaborate to overcome playful challenges, nurturing the creative and critical thinking skills that are the heart of our interdisciplinary program.
• Science

  Our Early Years science program is a sensory-rich and playful introduction to the wonders of the natural and physical world. Through guided exploration and discovery-based learning, young scientists develop curiosity, sharpen their observation skills, and cultivate a love for investigation. Children are encouraged to ask questions, make predictions, and creatively engage with materials in their environment. They explore concepts connected to their daily lives and integrated units, laying the groundwork for understanding life, earth, and physical sciences through hands-on experimentation and tinkering. Their natural progress is nurtured in alignment with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
• Social Studies (Understanding of the World)

  Our Early Years Social Studies program is explored through integrated, play-based units that encourage curiosity and discovery about the world. With a focus on self, family, and community, children begin to understand their place in both their local environment and the wider world. Through stories, imaginative play, and collaborative projects, they are introduced to foundational concepts of belonging, culture, cooperation, and community roles. This nurturing approach helps young learners develop empathy, communication skills, and a positive sense of identity as citizens of their classroom and the world.
• Art

  Young artists develop their fine motor skills, concentration, and hand-eye coordination as they freely experiment with a variety of safe, age-appropriate materials and textures. The focus is on the experience of creating, which cultivates confidence, sensory awareness, and a natural love for making art. This creative play provides new and rich experiences that broaden children's awareness and encourage a fearless, personal form of artistic expression.
• Host Country Language

  Our Early Years Host Country Language program nurtures a joyful curiosity for the Mandarin language and Chinese culture through immersive play, songs, and daily routines. We focus on building a positive association with the language by connecting it to children’s immediate world: greeting friends, exploring familiar festivals, and understanding the community around them. This playful, sensory-rich exposure naturally fosters their receptive understanding, laying the foundation for a lifelong love of the language that supports their everyday life and cultural connections.
• Music

  Our Early Years music program fosters an innate love for music through joyful, play-based exploration rooted in the Orff-Schulwerk approach. Young musicians develop foundational skills through vocal play, creative movement, musical games, and by exploring various instruments, including their own bodies. The focus is on developing rhythmic competence and melodic awareness through imitation, exploration, and improvisation, and laying the groundwork for musical literacy. Our program immerses children in a variety of musical traditions and cultures through call-and-response, storytelling, and song. These engaging, social experiences naturally cultivate listening skills, coordination, self-expression, and confidence.
• Physical & Health Education

  Our Early Years PHE program  promotes holistic development of the whole child — mind, body, and spirit — through movement exploration. We focus on building a strong foundation of fundamental motor skills, including locomotor movements (such as running, jumping, and hopping) and object control skills (like throwing, catching, kicking, and striking). The program is thoughtfully designed around the four strands: Affective (enjoying movement), Psychomotor (developing coordination), Cognitive (understanding spatial awareness), and Social (sharing, taking turns). These are delivered through engaging games, imaginative play, and simple fitness and dance activities.