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Star Kids International Preschool

By on September 7, 2015

Tokyo mum makes room for early learners in Minato-ku.

Because this is Tokyo, there’s always a new restaurant to try, an entertaining event to watch and loads of stuff to do. Parents – this month, you have a new school to check out!  Star Kids International School located just a stone’s throw away from Daimon station in Shibakoen, has opened its doors to children.

We caught up with Star Kids’ owner and director,  Tokyo expat  JD Gohil, to ask more information.

 

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Tell us about the Early Learning programs available to small children at Star Kids.   
At Star Kids International Preschool, every child is a star!Our objective is to bring out the hidden star in every child we teach. We focus on the “whole child” approach, this simply means an overall development of a child right from fine motor and gross motor skills to literacy, numeracy, art and socio-emotional skills ( learning to play together, communicate and understand each other). These are all very important for a child’s development. Our IPC curriculum (International Preschool Curriculum) is a well balanced curriculum which takes into consideration all of the above areas in a child’s development. We encourage children to learn and grow at their own pace as every child is unique.

Here is a look at our preschool program:

First Step
Age: 1.6 yrs to 3 yrs
Time: 9am to 12pm, 5 days a week (minimum 2 days a week)
This is usually a child’s first experience being away from his/her parents but we try our best to make our classes as fun, relaxing and stress-free for the children as possible. Children will learn songs and dances, take part in our fun IPC play-based learning activities, go to the park, and be encouraged to explore everything around them, slowly learning and playing together. It doesn’t matter if your child does not know English as our teachers are highly experienced. Mums, please don’t mind if your children come home with little paint on their clothes. Your children were busy having fun, learning about shapes, colors and all sorts of other fun things!

Preschool
Age 3ys to 6yrs 
Time 9am to 2pm, 5 days a week (minimum 2 days a week)
This program is also packed with fun IPC play-based learning activities but focuses more on literacy, numeracy, and the social-emotional behaviour of a child although, for the children, it’s all part of preschool fun. Singing, dancing, going to the park, are among our daily activities. Children learn to play together and share (which can take a little practice), steadily improving under the guidance and care of their loving teachers. At Star Kids International Preschool, we encourage mums to pack homemade lunches. From our experience over the years, children are always happy to see lunch boxes made by their mums. They proudly show everyone “my mum made this for me!”. Mums and dads, please be ready to hear about all the fun things that happened in the classroom as everyday is different and packed with fun.

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After School
Age 3 yrs to 6 yrs 
Time 3:30pm to 5:30pm, 5 days a week (minimum 2 days a week)
This short program is for children attending other Japanese schools/kindergartens in the mornings but would like to join us in the afternoon. Our IPC curriculum is filled with play- based learning activities. Because the children learn through play and fun activities, they don’t even know they are learning. For them, it’s just play!

All Day
Age 3 yrs to 6 yrs 
Time 9am to 5:30pm, 5 days a week (minimum 2 days a week)
This program supports working parents. The children simply join our morning Preschool program then take a nap or enjoy quiet, teacher-supervised playtime after which they take part in our After-School program. We also provide Early Spot care from 8:30 am and Late pickup from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm for an extra charge. We understand some days can be busy at work and a parent has to drop their children off early or pick them up late. Just let us know a day or two in advance and we’ll have everything organised.

English Club
Age 7 yrs to 12 yrs 
Time 4:30 to 6:00 pm (minimum 1-3 days a week)
This a special program we will soon be launching for School Aged children who are attending their regular school in the morning and would like to join us in the afternoon to boost their English education. Our goal is to teach useful, everyday English to elementary school children through a variety of games and fun activities.

What exactly do children benefit from an IPC-based learning?
IPC stands for International Preschool Curriculum for Early Childhood education. Based in the USA, IPC is a curriculum which is widely accepted around the world, with objective and play-based activities that children learn a lot from. All IPC activities are very well researched and are designed in such a way that they correlate to the themes of each unit. Each thematic unit covers the 6 content learning areas of IPC: Language Arts, Numeracy, Creative Arts, Socio-emotional, Science, and Motor skills.

Each thematic unit consists of at least one activity from each of the above to ensure that a child’s brain and motor skills are developed “wholly”. The curriculum is designed for children 6 to 36 months and from 3 yrs to 6 yrs.
The curriculum has been developed by expert teachers who have a background in Early Childhood development and has been further reviewed by a team of Early Childhood Education experts. The curriculum is always updated to ensure that any changes or new developments in Early Childhood Education are incorporated.

How much parent involvement is required when one signs up for a preschool program at your school?
Parental involvement is necessary for a child’s complete development. As a preschool, we offer the best education possible but, to complete the circle, parental involvement is necessary. A monthly newsletter and regular information from the teacher will be shared with parents to keep them well informed of what’s going on at school. But remember, a child’s education doesn’t end in school. It is always great to teach children at home and to help them practice what they have learned. It could be as simple as counting, or recognizing shapes and colors while shopping! Also, we will have preschool events throughout the year where parents can accompany their children and enjoy learning and having fun as a family along with other families. Together, we can make one big Star Kids International Preschool Family!

Have you got nap hours in between activities?  programs that support working parents?
Yes we do have a nap time for children staying all day upon parent’s request. We like our children to feel comfortable at Star Kids. We help them do that by turning down the lights, playing quiet music and singing songs. Our teachers are very good at making the children feel relaxed.

What can you say is unique about Star Kids?
Star Kids International Preschool has a unique curriculum which focuses on the overall development of a child. Children learn by feeling and exploring things around them.

Children are encouraged to learn and grow at their own pace. Our teachers focus on the “whole child” – socially, emotionally, intellectually, physically, and spiritually within a structure that allows for some natural flexibility. We use a variety of teaching strategies to enhance learning and development, and an appropriately challenging and safe environment is provided for children to explore and manipulate. We try our best in bringing out the hidden talents in a child. To bring out the “star” in each and every child is our motto. We empower children by offering them opportunities to make decisions and solve problems. It is our goal for children to be able to build confidence in their abilities and establish lasting relationships with teachers and friends.

A very important issue that comes up for most parents shopping for a school in Tokyo is child safety.  What measures are in place to ensure child safety in case of fire or earthquakes?
Child safety is very important at Star Kids International Preschool. Everything in the classroom is carefully selected, keeping child safety in mind. There is enough space for children to move around freely in the classroom. Apart from that, our premises has two Emergency Exit doors along with the front door entrance/exit. Shiba Park is close by in case we have to evacuate due to earthquake. We have scheduled evacuation drills to train children for such situations while they are at preschool or home. An awareness of how to/ what to do is always helpful in a country which is prone to natural disasters.

When is your Open House?
While we don’t have any scheduled “Open House” days, we are always happy to open our doors to families interested in our school. Just send us an email or give us a call to make an appointment. Also, coming up soon – we are planning to hold a special Halloween event, with a Christmas event to follow. We will be letting people know more about these events very soon, through our website and Facebook page.

Hello Mums and Dads

I’m Jaidevi Gohil, or you can simply call me JD. I am the Owner/Director and one of the teachers at Star Kids International Preschool (I wear many hats). I, along with my business partner Ms. Divya Raj (Owner/Director), have always dreamt of opening a preschool as I find it very exciting and rewarding to teach young children. This is my first step in serving our community with the best curriculum for children at a location right in the heart of Tokyo.

I’m a mother of two beautiful, curious, and very active daughters. I am constantly on the lookout for some new and fun learning activity or teaching ideas. My teaching journey began while I was at university in India. I love teaching young children. It’s exciting to see how their minds work. Children are naturally curious. Alll we have to do is create an atmosphere for children to feel safe and naturally explore their surroundings. This means it is the job of a parent or a teacher to create such an atmosphere. This is exactly what we do at Star Kids International Preschool. I believe learning should be fun. From my experience, both as a parent and as a teacher, children are more willing to learn if it is fun for them. Every child is unique and learns at his/her own pace. Learning and exploring on their own helps a child to be confident. Early Childhood Education is very important in a child’s life as it is the foundation of a successful school experience. I feel giving children the opportunity to make decisions and solve problems on their own can lead a child to be a confident, happy and successful individual.

To contact Star Kids, go to http://starkids-japan.com

About Carl Williams