Introduction/specifics

Introduction

Our day care center St. Barbara-Glückauf is an institution of the catholic parish St. Viktor in Damme and is located in a settlement area near the center of the village. Up to 115 children can be cared for in our facility.

Rooms

Räumlichkeiten

Outdoor Facilities

Outdoor facilities

Our outdoor area is designed close to nature to provide the children with extensive opportunities for movement and sensory perception.

In free play they can engage in different areas and with various materials.

We are particularly concerned that children spend a lot of time in the fresh air and in movement, therefore the playground is available to them the whole morning, by arrangement with the educators.

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Daily Schedule

Daily schedule

No two mornings at the daycare center are alike, but the structure that gives the children security and trust is the same every day.

The children are brought to the day care center in the morning until 8.30 am. After the welcome they can start playing. In the morning circle, which takes place once a week, more often if necessary, and in the crèche area almost daily, we discuss the day together. The children decide which song to sing, which game to play or which prayer to say.

After the settling-in period, each child decides after consultation with the group educators where, what, how long, with whom they want to play and when they want to have breakfast.

Each group, including the cribs, has access to the gym for group gymnastics once a week.

Lunch for the children from the three full-day groups is served in the two children's cafes of the facility.

The children from the full-day groups continue their play after a rest period.

Food

Common meals in the crèche and kindergarten

The breakfast

Breakfast takes place in the café of the nursery and kindergarten in the company of an educator. In both areas, we set the tables together with the children and make sure that the atmosphere is comfortable.

Every day we provide the children with a small selection of fruit, vegetables and drinks. Additionally, we offer them yogurt two days a week.

Independent action, freedom of choice and good table manners are the main focus.

The lunch

In the children's café of the crèches and kindergarten, the children from the all-day area take part in the lunch that is supplied to us by an external provider.

Once a week our housekeeper cooks a healthy and delicious meal together with the participating kindergarten children. From a varying selection of dishes, the children can decide what is cooked together and what dessert is served.

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Basics

Our pedagogical approach

Through regular observations we identify the interests, abilities and strengths of the children. We support them in their plans and decisions so that they can organize their day in the day care center as freely and variedly as possible.

For this reason, we have chosen the pedagogical approach of project- and situation-oriented, group-wide work.

Our focus is on appreciative communication and co-determination in order to support the children in their independence, self-confidence and personality development.

Employee

 Employees

The St. Barbara-Glückauf daycare center employs educators, social assistants and curative educators.

One educator is a language specialist in the federal program "Sprach-Kitas" and one is a language specialist of the state of Lower Saxony. We also employ an FSJ-ler, three cleaning staff and a janitor by the hour. The head of our day care center is a specialist for day care centers and is released from group service.

We offer trainees the opportunity to complete an internship with us as part of their training. They are accompanied by trained practical mentors.

Qualification

What distinguishes us

Many employees have gained further qualifications in various fields such as, for example, infant pedagogics, integrative education and upbringing and sensory integration.

In order to ensure that everyone within the college has the same level of knowledge, we often invite external speakers to join us.

In this way, many areas of project work, movement development and participation have been addressed in recent years.

Within the framework of the federal program Sprach-Kitas, our language specialist has participated in the long-term further education: "Language specialist for early childhood language education and language promotion" and has been certified in this field.

In 2007 we were awarded the Bewegungskita trademark, the criteria of which we still fulfill.  
From August 2010 to July 2013 we took part in the Consultation Kita project of the state of Lower Saxony.
Together with Mrs. Schöps we were certified in 2017 in the STEP area.

Additional Offerings

Animal Accompanying Pedagogy

Animals positively influence the development of children. For this reason we have chickens and fish in our facility. Guided by the educational staff, the children are supported in their care and feeding. Depending on their age, the crèche children are also integrated into these processes.

Forest Days

In addition to the many learning and experiential opportunities offered by the forest, we would like to sensitize the children to nature so that they will have a basis for dealing with it in a responsible manner later on.

Teamwork with parents

Parents working together

We are aware that parents know their children best. Therefore we would like to establish a good and trustful contact with them. Mutual esteem and acceptance, a good relationship and a lively exchange about both the children and the goals of the educational work are of great importance. Only in this way can we make our work with the children transparent and achieve optimal, individual support.

Specifics

Participation = co-determination of the children

Participation and involvement of children is an important foundation in our educational work.

Through co-determination, children are encouraged in their social competence and they experience that they are heard and that they make a difference.

Their needs, wishes and opinions as well as their decisions are taken seriously. Therefore, we give the children a large say in the daily routine.

For example, they can participate and decide on their day in the day care center by voting together in the morning circle:

Where the forest day is spent

Which play and movement material they bring into the group

From a small selection of dishes, which is cooked once a week for lunch

They decide for themselves:

When, what, with whom, how long and where they want to play

The time of breakfast

Together with the children we have developed a complaint procedure that guarantees that no childlike criticism is lost. Every complaint is taken seriously and documented by the educators. Together with the management, if necessary, a solution is sought that is satisfactory for all.

In this way they are empowered:

to express their opinion and learn that it is important

Expressing wishes and feelings

Standing up for yourself and others

respect the opinions of others

Participation is also lived out in the crèche according to age: It is important to us that we always orient ourselves to the current stage of development of the individual child and it is our goal to enable them to act independently.

This includes making decisions: 

What is sung or played in the morning circle

What do I play when, where and with whom?

When do I go for breakfast?

Where do I sit down for dinner?

What and how much would I like to eat from my can?

Who can change my diaper?

All these questions and situations that recur daily bring children step by step on the path to co-determination.

Description and Stations

The Glückaufsiedlung is located on the outskirts of Damme.

You can reach us via Holdorferstraße in the direction of Holdorf. You turn left into Bergstraße.

Our daycare center is located in the middle of the old mining settlement on Uhlandstrasse.