Introduction/specifics

Our small, family-like kindergarten consists of two groups, each with 25 children aged 2.6 to 6 years or until they start school. Based on our Christian view of humanity, we respect, support and accompany the children entrusted to us holistically in their unique personality

Basics

‘Hello, you are welcome!’ is our motto, we want to live this joy with the children, through the children and in the community.

We have a few key guiding principles for our work that characterise our daily activities.

OUR WORLD AND WE ARE CREATED BY GOD

As a Protestant centre, it is a matter of course for us to live out our Christian faith with the children on a daily basis. We celebrate all the festivals in the church's annual cycle and enrich each day with songs, prayers and biblical stories. Values such as love of neighbour and tolerance characterise the way we treat each other in the house.

BONDING COMES BEFORE EDUCATION

From the very beginning, we want to be reliable caregivers for the children. Needs, feelings, moods and special situations take priority over educational aspects. We also pay a great deal of attention to partnership-based interaction and sufficient free play time so that the children can experience social interaction.

HELP ME TO DO IT MYSELF

The motto of the reform pedagogue Maria Montessori also guides our work at the school. When designing and providing learning and play materials, we make sure that the children can acquire new areas of knowledge and learning structures as independently as possible.

DIVERSE EXPERIENCES OF NATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Experiencing and exploring nature throughout the year is part of our daily activities. Our children have the opportunity to play in the fresh air every day. Every summer we spend two weeks just in the forest!

WE PLAN AND CREATE WITH THE CHILDREN

Many projects, morning circle themes and creative activities are based on suggestions from the children. We involve the children as full partners in our everyday organisation. In this way, they should learn to represent their opinions, make compromises and pursue goals. Self-motivation and a sense of self-efficacy are the key to later learning success at school and at work.

EVERY CHILD IS AN INDIVIDUAL

Away from template work - towards unique and distinctive results. Children develop pride in their work when it is uniquely their own, without correction from adults. The development in all areas of learning should be visible to everyone; every child has their own pace, their strengths, their weaknesses - their own ME! We want to strengthen this and see it grow, not bend it into shape.

Our aim is to support your child's overall personality so that it can grow into a happy, independent, self-confident, tolerant and socially competent person.

Projects

Forest week

Every summer, we spend a week in the forest with the children. the children meet early in the kindergarten and we set off together. after we have explored the forest sufficiently, we return to the kindergarten in the early afternoon.

Excursion week

A second fixed ritual in the course of the year is our excursion week. we meet with the children early at the kindergarten and go to a different destination every day for a week. The activities on offer are based on the needs of each group and range from visits to playgrounds, museums, a trip to the cinema in Helmbrechts, a visit to Hof Zoo and even a train ride to Münchberg for an ice cream.

Lent

As a Christian organisation, we fast: This means that between Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday, we deliberately abstain from sweets at the kindergarten. We also use this time to focus on health education. How much sugar is in which food? What does our body need a lot of and what does it need a little of? These are topics that we work on with the children during these 6 weeks. Parents are invited, but not required, to explore these topics further at home.