About Us
Our Philosophy
We believe that the child is at work developing a sense of self in relationship to the world in which he or she lives. Parents guide and interpret the culture in which each child grows. The TCC staff support the child in this exploration of self within a dynamic relationship with the child, the parents and the community.
The rights of the children at TCC are to live in beauty and order and in connection with the natural world. Children have the right to feel physically, spiritually and mentally secure and nurtured. Children have the right to freely explore divergent interests.
Children need to see that their parents and teachers are involved in a respectful conversation about their development: spiritual, physical, cognitive, social and emotional. They are encouraged to join in this interchange and to feel supported by their parents, peers and teachers as they explore their own identities through our curriculum.
Our Curriculum
Curriculum at TCC is developed within the spirit of our philosophy: the child is developing a sense of self with the guidance of his or her parents. The teacher enters into relationship with the child and the parents as an active researcher to support and encourage this growth of the self.
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Teachers use Creative Curriculum as their framework. This is a comprehensive, research-based curriculum system designed to help educators experience, plan, and implement a developmentally appropriate, content-rich program for children with diverse backgrounds and skill levels. The curriculum is research-based and grows and changes with the interests and needs of the children.
Children learn through active exploration and play which cannot be divided precisely into individual learning areas, but rather immersed in all. Children learn through all areas or domains in expected and unexpected places – we encourage math in the hallways, social skills in the lavatory, and writing in the block area. It is not happenstance - it is dynamic and meaningful to the child. The teachers nurture the children's growth in this process through observation, reflection, communication and documentation. Teachers select and use materials, equipment, and furnishings to support the curriculum, meet program goals, and foster the achievement of desired outcomes for children. Teachers are dedicated to supporting the diverse and extraordinary potential of each child.
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Teachers assess children through observation and intentional practices. The child's successes, areas of growth, and goals are communicated with families using narratives and reports from Teaching Strategies Gold, child portfolios, daily classroom updates, many informal conversations, parent letters and documentations of classroom investigations. These assessments help teachers make instructional decisions based on information about individual children and also help teachers better understand what they should be teaching (curriculum).