Introduction/specifics

Our daycare center opened in September 2023 with four areas (nursery, kindergarten, after-school care center and commercial kitchen). It includes 135 childcare places for children from the age of one to fourth grade.

Our childcare places are divided as follows:

Daycare area (1-3 years): 24 places

Kindergarten area (3 years - school entry): 76 places

After-school care area (1st class - 4th class): 35 places

The city of Bad Neustadt a. is responsible for our facility. d. Saale. A trusting collaboration takes place through regular meetings between the daycare center management and the provider. Constant exchange and contact enable openness and information about current events

Rooms

Our entire facility is on one level and is designed to be barrier-free. In the large entrance area there is a stroller parking space and the connecting doors to the kindergarten, dining room, kindergarten, commercial kitchen, administration, crèche and after-school areas.

The kindergarten area has three large study rooms, four intensive care rooms, a large toilet facility for children, a mud lock with a direct connection to the outdoor area and a storage room.

The administration area is located right next to the kindergarten area and includes a large staff room with a kitchenette, a meeting room, two toilet facilities (men's and women's) for staff as well as a management office, caretaker's office and a storage room.

The kindergarten dining room is directly connected to our commercial kitchen. This means that the food can be served over a counter or through a door in the kindergarten dining room. In addition, it has its own “participatory kitchen” with a platform. Our after-school care center also has a direct connection to the commercial kitchen via a counter and doors.

The after-school care area has a dining room, a play hallway with a reading niche and a connecting door to the outdoor area, toilets for girls and boys, a large lounge and three homework rooms, which are used as theme rooms before and after homework. Furthermore, right next to the after-school care area is our exercise room, which is used by all areas (nursery, kindergarten, after-school care).

The crèche area includes a large dining room, a parents' waiting area, two large work rooms, a play hallway with a mud lock and direct connection to the outdoor area, two bedrooms, a toilet facility with a changing platform, and two toilet facilities (men's and women's) for the staff. There are also connecting doors in the crèche area to a storage room and the building services.

Outdoor Facilities

Our facility has a spacious outdoor area.

In addition to a direct connection to a soccer field and a red court with a basketball field, the outdoor area for the kindergarten includes a willow tunnel, a footpath, a climbing path, a nest swing, a bobby car racing track (also for other vehicles), a sandpit with slide and play tower, a sandpit with water feature, a playhouse, a "sweet garden" with berry bushes and a large lawn. Since the children's play is different in the kindergarten area and the crèche area, the two outdoor areas are separated by a fence. There is still the possibility of using the two outdoor areas together through a gate.

In the outdoor area of the crèche there is a sandpit with water feature, a sandpit with play equipment, a footpath, a wicker tipi, two playhouses, a nest swing and a large lawn.

The after-school care area has an inner courtyard and currently uses the outdoor area of ​​the kindergarten, the soccer field and the Rotplatz. An additional expansion of the outdoor area is possible via another green area directly next to our building.

In addition, our facility has its own parking lot for parents and employees and a bicycle parking space.

Daily Schedule

Daily crèche routine:

7:00 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.                      Arrive in the kindergarten area

7:45 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.                      Arrive at our various rooms

9:00 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.                      Morning circle

• From 8:45 a.m. to 9:15 a.m., no drop-off time

9:15 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.                    open breakfast

from 9:15 a.m.                                    Free play time/offers

11:15 a.m.                                    Lunch

• 11:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. no pickup time

12pm                                               nap

12:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.                 Free play time for the children who are not sleeping

1:40 p.m.                                         Wake up

2:15 p.m.                                          Afternoon snack

2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.                 Free play/collection

3:00 p.m. to the end of                          Pick up in the kindergarten area

Kindergarten daily routine:

7:00 a.m. to 11:40 a.m.     Arrival & free play time, promotions

Rooms open: i.e. Yellow, Green, Red Room and the gym or courtyard gym or courtyard approx. 9:00 a.m./9:15 a.m

• Activities of the day: a signal is given to the children; Anyone who is interested can take part; Meeting point: at the meeting point
• After breakfast: morning circle
• Monday/Tuesday: Rocket meeting for all preschool children
• Friday discovery day

8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m./9:45 a.m. free breakfast

Children who take part in breakfast should be in the daycare center by 9:00 a.m. at the latest

11:40 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. accompanying lunch (every child eats during this hour) then we open the courtyard and group rooms for play.

No drop-off and pick-up times between 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m

2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. free afternoon snack

3:00 p.m. End of the day

4:00 p.m. End together with the after-school children

Daily routine after school:

There are two different daily routines in our after-school care center. One reflects the daily routine during school hours, the second reflects the daily routine during school holidays.

Daily routine after school

11.20 a.m. end of classes and arrival of the first children

-->Free play time until lunch

12.30 p.m. 1st group: Lunch

                    2nd group: free play time

-->Time for offers, projects in after-school care rooms

1:00 p.m. 1st group goes outside

1:15 p.m. 2nd group lunch

from 1.30 p.m. 2nd group goes outside

2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. homework time (no pick-up time)

 3:00 p.m. Meeting point for the entire group

--> Bus children and home run children are sent

--> Children who stay decide where and what they want to play

3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Free play time

-->Time for offers, projects, outdoors and in the after-school rooms

--> cleaning up together, free play until collection

Daily routine after school holiday period (7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

7:00 a.m. Arrive in the kindergarten area

8:00 a.m. Arrive in the after-school area

-->Free play time

9:00 a.m. breakfast together

-->afterwards free play time/offer

12:00 p.m. Lunch

-->afterwards free play time/offer

3:00 p.m.  Afternoon snack

-->then free play time until collection

3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pick up from the kindergarten area

Food

Our facility has its own commercial kitchen. Our kitchen staff prepare fresh and balanced meals every day. Our kitchen also supplies another facility in Herschfeld.

Eat crèche and kindergarten

Our crèche and kindergarten children receive a rich breakfast buffet, warm lunch and an afternoon snack prepared by our kitchen staff every day. The cost of the three meals is €4.00 per day. The children who attend our daycare are automatically registered for meals.

Children who do not visit our facility for certain reasons (e.g. illness) and are logged out via the Kikom app by 8:30 a.m. on the respective day will be automatically deregistered from the meal and the meal costs will not be charged. (Additional costs are billed by direct debit at the end of the following month).

Food hoard

Our after-school children have the opportunity to take part in the warm lunch or to bring their own food from home. The cost is €4.20 per hot lunch.

Parents must register for meals via the Kikom app by Tuesday (4:00 p.m.) at the latest for the coming calendar week. Cancellations from the hot lunch for the respective day are possible via the Kikom app by 8:30 a.m. at the latest. (Additional costs are billed by direct debit at the end of the following month).

Drinks in the daycare center

Our building has four drink stations where children can get water around the clock. In addition, children are offered unsweetened tea at certain times. A flat rate of €5 per month will be charged for drinks and will be deducted from the utility bill at the end of the following month.

Basics

Our pedagogical orientation

The guiding principle in the open concept is the self-determination and personal responsibility of everyone involved in educational processes.” (Erschärin-Ausbildung.de The open concept in the daycare center - implementation of the open work, date not known)

For us this means: We want to provide children with educational spaces and places of learning that they can choose independently, that stimulate their individual interests and give them space to try things out, learn and deepen their knowledge. They should learn to interact with one another in a social context and recognize the individuality and uniqueness of each person. They should have the courage to try things out and draw conclusions from situations for their further actions.

Here is a descriptive Nigerian proverb: “It takes a whole village to raise a child.” Our educational spaces should be this village for the children. You should find a variety of suggestions, contacts, topics and answers in the rooms. We as educators in open work see ourselves as companions, observers and offer the children space for a variety of experiences.

Participation in our institution: Open work offers many opportunities for participation, self-determination and co-determination. The children can make self-determined, individual decisions in the crèche, elementary school and after-school care areas. You will learn a basic understanding of democracy and the rights of children. The attitude of the teachers towards each individual child is reflective, respectful and in an exchange with the child. Children are included in decisions, and this is reflected in everyday life depending on their level of development and maturity.

Other pedagogical concepts and attitudes that we use in addition to the open concept include psychomotor skills/motor pedagogy. Here the child is seen holistically; the individual areas of development are supported through movement activities. The aim is to enable ego competence, we competence and factual competence in order to act emotionally and socially, to learn skills through movement and to be able to transfer them from the big to the fine. Those who have “exhausted themselves” manage to work in a focused and concentrated manner in open learning windows, learn new things and deepen their skills.

Montessori education teaches us “help to help ourselves”. We incorporate these into our everyday lives and enable the children to have educational processes that take place in a prepared environment - they also learn how to find solutions to problems on their own. We accompany and support by visualizing everyday situations so that the children can act as independently as possible. This is particularly important because many children are not of German-speaking origin and can easily orientate themselves in everyday life through pictures. This conveys security and encourages communication among each other.

Situation-oriented approach: One of the main focuses of the situation-oriented approach is to integrate the life situations of children and their families into educational work. The children should become independent. This approach is reflected in the diverse possibilities of our daily routine. We can also respond individually to individual children through the reference educator system and address children's topics in projects. Every child has the opportunity to take part. However, he consciously chooses whether he is interested in the topic or is currently experiencing something else that is more important to him.

Our image of the child

Every child is unique in their personality and character and different from others. From birth it develops its own structures with which it perceives the world. It brings with it skills and competencies and controls its activities on its own. Every child has the right to:

• Belonging, security and protection
• Communication and appreciation
• Independence and autonomy
• Self-efficacy
• Participation in daily events
• Movement
• Opening up the world through your own actions
• Community

Preschool work in our daycare center – preparing for the next step in a playful way

Preparation for school is an important part of our educational work. We attach great importance to offering the children a protected and stimulating environment in which they can develop their interests and abilities. Our rooms invite you to discover, research and actively learn.

From the spring of the penultimate year of daycare, we begin with the first playful activities to show the children how learning works in an age-appropriate way. In the last year of kindergarten, we specifically deepen this work. The focus is now increasingly on:

• Linguistic and mathematical skills
• Graphomotor exercises
• Cognitive skills
• Strengthening a positive self-image

All preschool children meet once a week to form regular preschool groups. In addition, we offer the “D240” course on our premises – another building block on the way to school readiness.

Getting used to our daycare center – arriving with heart and trust

The first step into daycare is a very special moment – ​​for children and parents. It is important to us that every family can make this transition at their own pace. Getting used to us means: being allowed to arrive, feeling safe, building trust.

We accompany you as a family sensitively and individually through this phase. Your questions, requests and suggestions will be heard at any time. Every adjustment is unique – just like every child. That's why we coordinate the process with you and make it flexible and needs-oriented.

We are guided by proven concepts such as the Berlin and Tübingen familiarization models. Because: For us, bonding is the basis of all education.

Teamwork with parents

The focus of our educational partnership is a partnership-based, professional collaboration between the parents and the educational staff at our facility. Parents are the safe haven for their children; no one else knows a child as well as they do. We approach parents with a positive, interested and appreciative attitude, because all parents want the best for their child. This creates understanding and mutual appreciation. Through trust and exchange, we can work together to achieve the best possible for each individual child. Our facility is a place where all families are welcome, regardless of nationality, culture, family constellation or biography. Appreciation, transparency, openness and cooperation are our top priorities.

Collaboration with parents/guardians is reflected in:

• Door and angle conversations
• Development discussions
• Admission interviews
• Conflict discussions
• Parent communication app KIKOM
• Parents' Advisory Council
• Parent actions
• Parents' evenings

Specifics

The idea of inclusion in our daycare center

Our daycare center is attended by children from a wide variety of countries of origin, where culture, religion, values ​​and language differ. According to Article 12 BayKiBiG, daycare centers should help to promote the willingness of families with a migrant background to integrate. “Educational institutions have a responsibility to adequately address social exclusion and to offer all children fair, equal and shared learning and development opportunities.” (BayBEP 2019, p. 21)

Our door is also open to children with disabilities or those with imminent disabilities. They should be looked after and supported together with children without disabilities in order to enable them to participate equally in social life. (see Art 12. BayKIBiG January 1, 2024, version July 8, 2005) 

Our life together should be characterized by mutual appreciation, acceptance and tolerance. Everyone should be able to learn from each other and prejudices should not arise in the first place. We believe and experience that children approach “otherness” with a remarkable openness and naturalness.

The integration/inclusion task to be carried out also brings with it challenges. Certain framework conditions (structural conditions such as accessibility, increased personnel requirements, appropriately trained specialists) must be in place in order to do justice to all sides. In particular, it requires mutual interest, understanding and clarity about values.

Holiday Care

Our after-school care area offers care during the school holidays. (For daily routine see article “Daily routine”)

Homework Support

Homework support in our after-school care area

• Homework time from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. During this time the after-school care area is not accessible.
• Children can only be picked up/walk home alone by prior arrangement.
• Task of the after-school care center àcheck for completeness (no tutoring!)
• Parents’ task (daily homework check!)
• Every Friday is “homework-free” (insight into the HA situation, time for leisure activities)
• The main responsibility for homework lies with the parents and the children themselves!