“Children learn as they play. More importantly, in play, children learn how to learn” – O. Fred Donaldson, play specialist for children
Every child has a tremendous potential for learning, especially in their formative years. In fact, scientific research has proven that a child’s brain development is at its highest during this period. It thus becomes very critical to channelize their energies in the right direction. This is where activity centres come in and have acquired immense popularity in recent times.
Learning with ‘preferred choices’
As children of different ages collaborate together in a fun-learning curriculum in an activity centre, studies have proven that the youngsters display a greater sense of “justice and fairness”, and even interact in an “emotionally positive manner” under all circumstances. The supervised environment of activity centres focuses primarily on personal as well as skill development, proving to be the cornerstone of mature, creative and socially-adept children.
Moving away from traditional learning
The globally-renowned educator Maria Montessori always emphasized that children learn better when they choose their own curriculum. The overall concept emphasizing that a child is allowed to indulge in an activity that he enjoys ensures proficiency in the particular subject.
Children are greatly encouraged by activity centres: these classroom-turned-workshops boasting of carefully curated learning materials provide a conducive opportunity for the young minds to hone their concentration and skill-sets. The young learners discover like-skills like fluent vocabulary, strong fundamentals in mathematics and abstract ideas through the hands-on use of objects or activities fashioned specifically for this purpose. Armed with the love for learning, a curious mind, enhanced social skills and strategic problem-solving capabilities, the child becomes well prepared to face the challenges that lie ahead of him.
Advantage activity centres
There are many reasons why activity centres have become very popular today. Some of the pertinent reasons include:
- Specially curated activities for specific age groups: The activities are varied and age-segmented: for example, while the younger children may focus on honing gross motor skills and linguistic skills, four to five-year-olds may work on fine motor skills and everyday activities such as cooking, knitting, art and craft, etc. Even older children may even indulge in trips and special events to broaden their learning experience.
- Favourable environment: Activity centres gift young students with an environment suitable for learning and a specially designed curriculum revolving around their specific needs. This allows children to explore and learn not only at their own pace but also on their own terms.
- Develops team bonding: Through the varied set of activities and tasks, children are taught to co-operate with their peer group. Because of the positivity of the learning environment, children learn to respect one another and develop a sense of team spirit.
- Focus on self-discipline: Since the children choose their own activities, the teaching technique automatically teaches them self-discipline, while refining vital skills like concentration, self-control and motivation.
- Creative learning: Creativity in the classroom is encouraged. Learning for joy, rather than grades, allows children to focus more on the process than the end-result, thereby forging a natural path to creativity.
- Enhanced proficiency in Maths and reading: A research conducted the University of Virginia found that five-year olds engaged in activity centres had higher competence in math and reading than their counterparts in public schools.
- Independent and confident children: With no dominating force controlling the classroom experience, children foster a deep sense of independence. They value their own opinion and respect their peers’ choices too. The flexible learning inculcates confidence in these children, a quality that help them immensely in their adult life as well!
We care for your children
Offering more than 40+ different activities, the Wings Multi-Activity Centre is a bridge between home and school. Our activities are tuned towards enhancing creativity and various other life skills for children in a stimulating environment. Our content is specially designed to deliver concepts in an extremely engaging and inspiring way. Whether it is reading, writing, handwriting, drawing, the joy of Abacus, Lego & Robotics, dancing, language lessons or coding, we have something for everyone! A recent addition to our wide range of activities includes joining forces with the Bickram Ghosh Academy to give our students a flying start into the world of performing arts.
For more information, visit www.wingzkids.com
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