Issue link: https://publications.tfs.ca/i/1528092
12 TFS IT'S NEVER TOO EARLY FOR FRENCH At TFS we capture that openness in our Jardin d'éveil Hafez program for two-year-olds. Named after a beloved former principal of La p'tite école who started the program in 2010, our Jardin is both a learning experience and a special place, where our youngest students thrive in an immersive world of French, guided developmentally in the most wonderful of ways through stimulating and creative activities by our experienced and caring staff. Based on the renowned child-centred Reggio Emilia approach, they grow and learn joyfully through exploration. Housed in their own building, their little home away from home sits above our ravine, with its ever changing colours. They have their own playground and inside there are four specialized rooms designed to foster specific areas of development through learning activities. It's the perfect place to open our students to the world around them and to introduce them to the magic of the French language. Their first language steps Our unique French program gradually introduces the language, leading to a full immersion learning experience after about two months. Within a year, our Jardin students are able to express themselves in French. JARDIN D'ÉVEIL HAFEZ The Reggio Emilia approach The Reggio Emilia approach is an educational philosophy that cultivates learning through exploration and discovery. Originating in Italy, it sees children as capable and curious learners, using an emergent curriculum based on their interests. Teachers serve as co- learners, and the environment is considered the "third teacher." Emphasizing relationships, collaboration and parental involvement, this approach values documenting children's activities and encourages expression through various media, known as the "hundred languages of children." e moment our children enter the world they begin to learn. ey slowly begin to understand their environment, to recognize the people who love and take care of them and to test how their arms and legs work. Learning is as natural as breathing. A WORLD OF WONDER AND EXPLORATION Licensed by the Ministry of Education in Ontario and inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, our program meets the requirements of the Ministry and the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014.