It started off as a research project into building the best launch point for a child’s academic success and evolved into the vision for a complete early childhood education program in Calgary.
Founder Amoriza Gunnink’s My Kinderhouse preschool first launched in 2008, combining the thoughtfulness and creativity of art, the focus of academics and a child’s natural desire to play in a workshop-style learning environment.
The program was a resounding success with both kids and parents; from the humble first location in southwest Calgary, Gunnink, along with a community of Kinderhouse parents, expanded to provide her special brand of learning to all four quadrants of the city – and Chestermere.
It’s her desire to nurture well-rounded youngsters, giving them opportunities to naturally develop social, emotional, intellectual and physical skills in a full-sensory, collaborative environment.
“Learning, to be rigorous and transformative, must integrate the body, the senses, the emotions and the cognitive. Education must open up the windows to the world to children and reflect their life experiences,” says Gunnink.
The My Kinderhouse curriculum draws from both the Montessori and Reggio approaches to learning and is delivered through an arts-focused program for children ranging in age from 2 to 5 years old. They encourage the acceptance and understanding of different strategies for learning, emphasizing educational literacy in a variety of areas that promote the child’s executive function and higher mental function skills.
“In the early years, academic practices must facilitate the creation of meaning, build creative capacities and cultivate integrative frames of references” says Gunnink.
One-on-one attention is essential at this stage in a child’s learning and My Kinderhouse keeps their teacher/student ratio at 1:6 for younger ages and 1:8 for the older kids.
Each of the instructors brings a unique, caring approach to a child’s learning, along with years of teaching experience and background in early-childhood and primary education.
With a variety of programs from pre-preschool, to performing and visual arts camps, literacy and activity-based programs, My Kinderhouse is committed to shaping and preparing youngsters for that next step in their education.