What do the experts in education think?

Experts support the PNS curriculum because it focuses on the students’ intellectual, social, and emotional development, without limiting them to basic, rudimentary skills. Harvard University, Rutgers University, Columbia University, The American Academy of Pediatrics, and the State of New Jersey Department of Education recommend the PNS curriculum and approach specifically. The No Child Left Behind Act strongly recommends that early childhood education develop literacy and numeracy skills in order to prepare children for kindergarten and elementary school. And numerous educators and researchers report the importance of this type of  preschool in helping students succeed throughout school.

Listed below are a few resources and their recommendations; visit our website for more books, websites, journals, magazines, and other resources explaining the value of making the right choices for your child’s education. We also have a collection of books in the Parents’ Library at PNS which families are welcome to borrow.

The curriculum and program at PNS follows the recommendations of the State of New Jersey Department of Education Standards of Quality for Early Childhood Education. Among other specific elements, strong emphasis is placed on family involvement, multifaceted development, and unstructured play time. Developing strong language, literacy, math, and science skills by using the activities and methods found in the PNS  program is also strongly recommended. For a complete description of their expectations, visit www.state.nj.us/njded/cccs.

A 2006 report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says free and unstructured play is healthy and - in fact - essential for helping children reach important social, emotional, and cognitive developmental milestones as well as helping them manage stress and become resilient. The PNS program implements this recommendation throughout its curriculum. For more information, visit www.aap.org/pressroom.      

The Harvard University Graduate School of Education has a special webpage on Early Childhood Education which contains current research and recommendations relevant to educators, parents and children. The importance of a child’s social, physical, cognitive, and emotional development is emphasized in many of the articles. For more information, visit http://www.edletter.org/fcd/index.shtml.

The website for the No Child Left Behind Act has developed a section entitled “Helping Your Preschool Child” which describes numerous activities for helping young children develop the skills necessary for success throughout school and life.  Parents and teachers are encouraged to read to, play with, and otherwise engage the children in their lives to prepare them for a lifetime of learning. For more information, visit http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/early/edpicks.jhtml?src=qc.

"Healthy Habits, Healthy Kids" offers parents a wealth of information, ideas, recipes, and resources for keeping families physically, educationally, and emotionally healthy. See the website at www.hhhkids.com.

"The Savvy Source: Where parents and preschool teachers share their savviest ideas on how best to help your child learn and grow" is a website full of information, activities, resources, and opinions for families with yourg children. For more information, visit www.savvysource.com.