Why Choose Maple Bear for Early Childhood Education?
At Maple Bear early childhood schools students become:
CURIOUS: Passionate about knowledge and learning.
CONFIDENT: Deeply aware of their talents and potential.
INDEPENDENT: Prepared to lead their own lives, and decide their own paths and destiny.
ANALYTICAL: Able to think freely & shape their own beliefs.
FLEXIBLE: Adaptable in a world where change is the only constant.
CREATIVE: Always motivated and enthusiastic about asking “what if?”
PREPARED: In possession of the knowledge and tools necessary for an outstanding performance at college, at work and in life, in their home country or abroad.
GLOBAL: Bilingual and culturally literate for a global future.
Maple Bear was developed from the ground up by Canadian early childhood education experts incorporating the very best of Canadian practice. Similar to that of the United States, the Canadian approach is based on a child-centered and activity-driven methodology.
But the Maple Bear curriculum is designed to achieve specific and measurable outcomes in respect to literacy and other subject areas, such as maths and science, through a purposeful and intentional approach. In particular, the Canadian curriculum and methodology supports the learning goals and educational standards set in the Common Core. And finally, Maple Bear places a heavy emphasis on social and emotional development because learning cannot take place without it.
According to the OECD’s Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), Canada is ranked among the best performing education systems in the world and the PISA 2018 results show Canada as #1 in the English-speaking world in science, math and reading. Canada consistently out ranks the United States and the United Kingdom, often by significant margins. Canada also has smaller than average gaps between high and low performing students.
Many Maple Bear schools offer Bear Care, an infant care & early learning program that accepts infants from 6 weeks to 24 months of age.
Bear Care recognizes that the infant is a capable and active learner. The infant does not need to be “taught” lessons or content. The infant is respected as an already very competent learner, and is allowed, and encouraged, to explore, play, discover and practice in ways, and on a schedule, that best fits his or her emerging abilities, interests and skills.
Schedules are arranged to best meet the needs of the infant. The infant’s day will have consistent and predictable routines, few transitions, and lots of time for repetition and practice. Infant programs cultivate an “unhurried” atmosphere.
Maple Bear provides learning environments that keep the infant safe while allowing for exploration and discovery. Spaces and places have developmentally appropriate toys and furnishings that will accommodate the needs of crawlers, walkers and almost-walkers.
Maple Bear recognizes the importance of the family. Daily communication between parents and program staff ensures that the well-being of the child remains a priority.
Maple Bear is unique because it is based on immersion learning which is different from more traditional language instruction. Maple Bear stands out among other immersion and language programs because its system is proven in 39 different countries.
When is the best time to start a bilingual education?
The research is clear, the younger the better. There is a definite window of opportunity when learning languages is the easiest. Up to the age of 7, it seems children can learn a new language more effortlessly. As development progresses, this window of opportunity begins to close and further learning has to be gained through hard and more traditional learning. Other studies have shown that children who learn a language before the onset of adolescence are much more likely to have native-like pronunciation.
There have been concerns that teaching children two languages at once only confuses them. Fortunately, there has been much research—much of it conducted by Canadians—which shows that far from handicapping children, bilingual education can offer benefits from infancy to old age.
So what are the benefits of bilingual education for young learners?
For a start, it’s very good for development of a second language, a goal of many of our parents who chose Maple Bear for their children. Young bilingual learners have also been shown to have:
- better concentration, analytical skills and multi-tasking capabilities;
- they learn to read sooner than monolingual students;
- they have an increased sense of self-worth and identity;
- they have the ability to live abroad and learn other foreign languages later in life;
- enjoy exposure to more than one culture which leads to a global perspective.
The Maple Bear learning environment is structured so that the children learn language in a natural way, the same way in which they learned a first language.
Maple Bear early childhood schools benefit from our distinguished academic faculty of Canadian trainers, curriculum writers and quality assurance personnel.
The Maple Bear program is a living, breathing curriculum that is constantly being updated. We have a large faculty of experienced teachers and education administrators that we draw upon to develop new curriculum, new training materials and methodologies and school policies. We undertake periodic student assessment at schools to benchmark student performance.
Maple Bear provides continual professional training and support for our teachers. Trainers from the Maple Bear Faculty mentor teachers and introduce them to the latest pedagogies and instructional strategies. We also have partnerships with the Province of Manitoba’s Department of Education as well as the University of Winnipeg where Maple Bear teachers can take courses leading them to a Masters in Education.
Every Maple Bear school undergoes an annual inspection that covers everything from safety equipment to classroom performance. On a regular basis and drawing on the experience of training staff in schools, we review and update our curriculum to reflect the latest developments in the field of education and changes in local regulations and requirements. All Maple Bear schools have clean, secure facilities and low student to teacher ratios.
Our goal is to establish quality schools that will provide an excellent education experience to students for generations to come.
The Maple Bear Program
Foundation Principles
All instruction in the Maple Bear schools follows educational principles which have made Canadian practice so successful:
Outcomes are defined: Learning is targeted to achieve very specific learning outcomes. It is clear what the children need to learn.
Canadian performance standards are applied: Canadian performance standards determine the learning outcomes. Maple Bear students are expected to achieve performance levels similar to Canadians.
Curriculum development is done in Canada by Canadian experts.
Canadian style teaching strategies are implemented: Canadian teaching strategies encourage student independence, strong literacy skills, higher level thinking and problem solving.
A sophisticated set of learning resources are used: Learning resources include books, manipulative materials, visual materials, electronic media, and computer technology.
Assessment of student learning is based on Canadian standards. In all cases, Canadian programming exceeds the requirements of local education authorities in each country.
Bear Care Infant Program
Bear Care Infant Care & Early Learning is a Maple Bear program for children from 6 weeks to 24 months of age. All Maple Bear bilingual, immersion programs are modelled upon best practices in current Canadian early childhood education and Bear Care is no exception.
The Bear Care program respects that all infants are competent learners, and it is designed to educate the whole child – physically, cognitively, emotionally and socially. At Bear Care infants are placed at the centre of the curriculum, and encouraged to play, explore, discover and practice in ways that best fit their individual emerging abilities, interests and skills, with a schedule that is organized to meet their individual needs.
The Bear Care program recognizes the importance of the family and prioritizes daily communications between parents and teachers. Developing strong positive attachments between infants and the Bear Care “Educarer”, the highly trained caregiving adults who look after the infants in the Bear Care program, is at the heart of the program. This focus allows the infants to develop positive and healthy attitudes to a setting outside of their home.
The Bear Care program’s warm, welcoming and nurturing learning environment is designed to keep the infant safe while allowing for exploration and discovery. Spaces and places have developmentally appropriate toys and furnishings that will accommodate the needs of newborns, crawlers, walkers and almost-walkers. Bear Care infants are always learning.
Preschool Core Curriculum
Every child deserves the best possible start in life and the support that enables them to fulfill their potential. Children develop quickly in the early years and a child’s experiences between birth and age five have a major impact on their future opportunities. Maple Bear sets high standards to ensure children’s readiness for elementary school. Maple Bear gives children the broad range of knowledge and skills that provides the right foundation for good progress through school and life.
English Language Arts
By the end of Senior Kindergarten children will communicate effectively in English by listening and speaking, will have a good understanding of alphabetical symbols, will be able to read basic text in English, will be able to use phonic strategies to approach new words, will be capable of using writing strategies appropriate for beginners, and finally, will be able to use and respond to media.
Personal and Social Development
Children will learn to share, to respect others, to listen, and to understand that people have different talents and functions in our society.
Science and Technology
Children will demonstrate curiosity about the natural world, demonstrate knowledge of characteristics of common materials, identify cycles in nature using techniques of observation, and work with others in using the computer in all aspects of their studies.
Creative Activity
Children will understand colour, shape and use of media to express ideas. They will be able to describe responses to music, art, drama and dance.
Physical skills and well-being
Children will develop physical skills (such as balance and flexibility), an awareness of health and safety rules, an understanding of sharing, taking turns, cooperation and socially acceptable behaviour.
Mathematics
Children will become problem solvers. They will learn about patterns in the environment, number concepts, comparisons, sets, basic formal operations (e.g. adding and subtracting), 2-D and 3-D objects, simple graphs, basic measurements, estimation and basic probability.
Language development and acquisition
Children enter Maple Bear School with some basis in English. In learning English children pass through several stages in predictable order: listening, developing understanding, speaking, reading and writing. Successive stages begin while preceding stages are still in development. When Maple Bear children learn a second language, their development in that language proceeds through the same stages in the same sequence as in learning English. Research shows that learning two languages at an early age offers both linguistic and cognitive advantages.
Immersion methodology is used in Maple Bear schools to develop competence in a second language. This means that children learn to listen, speak, read, and write in a second language by surrounding them with conversation and instruction in that language. Children learn in a second language right from the first day.
Literacy, which includes listening, speaking, reading and writing, is one of the most important goals of the Maple Bear program.