Goddard Systems, Inc. (GSI), the nation’s No. 1 childcare franchise, received Middle States Corporate Accreditation in recognition of its high quality early childhood educational programs. The Middle States Commission on Elementary Schools of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is one of three accreditation units of this regional accrediting body.

“This recognition is an additional acknowledgement of the work GSI does to ensure Goddard Schools maintain high quality early childhood education programs,” said Sue Adair, Director of Education of the 380-plus location school franchise. “We are proud of the work our franchisees and executive team have done to maintain best in class educational practices.”

The Middle States Association (MSA) of Colleges and Schools has been providing accreditation and school improvement to colleges, secondary schools and elementary schools for over 100 years.  Over the past few years, the accreditation standards have been extended to early childhood programs through the Early Age Education Accreditation.  The Middle States Commission of Elementary Schools reaches out to public and private schools throughout the country and across five continents.

GSI’s education and business philosophy is continuing to gain national traction; the company opened 19 new locations in 2011. By positioning locations in top-tier markets across the nation, GSI is now located in 35 states with over 380 schools in communities across the nation.

Goddard Schools across the country are reaching out to all Goddard School alumni. The organization is accepting applications for its fourth annual $10,000 Anthony A. Martino Memorial Scholarship. The application deadline, February 19, 2012, is quickly approaching.

The scholarship is awarded to a Goddard School alumnus each year to use toward his or her education at an accredited college or university.

“The Anthony A. Martino Memorial Scholarship provides financial support to a graduate of The Goddard School who demonstrates an excellent work ethic, commitment to family and community and a love of learning,” says Joe Schumacher, chief executive officer for Goddard Systems, Inc. “We are eager to determine this year’s recipient of this prestigious award.”

The Anthony A. Martino Memorial Scholarship is named in memory of the founder of The Goddard School, an entrepreneur who started several other well-known franchise companies including AAMCO Transmissions, Inc. and MAACO Auto Painting and Bodyworks, Inc. According to Schumacher, Martino was a successful businessperson who worked his way up from humble beginnings to achieve success.

Eligible applicants can access the scholarship application on Goddard’s Web site at www.goddardschool.com under the Communication tab. Students interested in applying should follow the guidelines below:

• Applicants must be graduates of The Goddard School Pre-Kindergarten and/or Kindergarten program.

• Applicants must submit a completed application form.

• Applicants must use the scholarship to attend an accredited college or university.

• Only high school juniors and seniors are eligible.

• To complement the Scholarship Application, applicants may submit a video essay between 30 and 120 seconds (e.g., How The Goddard School influenced your career path/education).  Video essays should be mailed to 1016 West Ninth Ave, King of Prussia, PA 19406 ATTN: Scholarship.  (Video content may be used by Goddard Systems, Inc. in advertising and publicity, including broadcast and social media.)

• Relatives of Goddard Systems, Inc. or The Goddard School employees are ineligible.

• The scholarship recipient selection will be made without regard to race, age, gender, religion, political beliefs, employment status or any other factor which could constitute unfair or illegal discrimination.

• Decisions of the Scholarship Committee are final in matters relating to the above practices.

• Scholarships will be awarded on the basis of funds available and applicant eligibility.

The Goddard School has been at the forefront of early childhood education for nearly 25 years, and the results of a recent assessment are proof of this. (Results from the Children’s Progress Academic Assessment [CPAA], an early childhood assessment, show that Goddard School students consistently outperform the general population of CPAA users by a significant margin and met or exceeded grade level expectations at a higher rate than the general population in every concept assessed on the CPAA.)

To learn more about The Goddard School, or about the Anthony A. Martino Memorial Scholarship, families are encouraged to visit www.goddardschool.com/scholarships.gspx.

“These four educators represent our best resources in early childhood education. GSI is proud of their accomplishments,” said Sue Adair, GSI Director of Education.

GSI received “Teacher of the Year Award” nominations from all across the country, including those from Goddard School owners and education directors as well as recommendations from parents, peers and, in some cases, children.  In addition to the recognition, the teachers received a cash prize and a gift package from GSI.

The Goddard School “Teacher of the Year” honorees each initiated ongoing projects that benefit their classrooms, schools and communities. The following teachers were honored:

• Michelle Boudreau created an original program for the children of The Goddard School located in Auburn, Massachusetts, stemming from a simple weekly theme of “Bridges.” A map of the United States was added to her “circle time” area—generating a lot of excitement and questions from the children. Photographs of various bridges were placed around the area, and the children used string to connect each photo of a bridge to its corresponding state. Boudreau, inspired by the children’s enthusiasm, carried the theme of “Bridges” throughout the curriculum, finding innovative ways to incorporate it in math lessons, social studies, literacy, music, Spanish—even as yoga poses! The children discovered all about various types of bridges, beginning in their home state with the Memorial Bridge (arch bridge) in nearby Springfield, and continuing the learning experience in California (suspension bridge), Illinois (moveable bridge) and Vermont (covered bridge).

• JoAnn Davenport developed a creative social skills program entitled Preschoolers for Pets. She introduced “Henry the Hotdog” (similar to Flat Stanley) to the children of The Goddard School located in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. Each child was given the opportunity to take “Henry” home for a weekend—and the children loved caring for “Henry”! Davenport created a newsletter for the families to share Henry’s visits to each child’s home. Together, they collected items for a local animal shelter, prepared homemade dog biscuits and made dog and cat toys. The families were invited to join in with the presentation of all the goodies to the shelter.

• Jen Grinberg of The Goddard School located in Wayne, New Jersey implemented an imaginative program focusing on building community through universal compassion, daily kindness and caring—both in and out of the classroom. This program was inspired by Have You Filled a Bucket Today: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids, by Carol McCloud. This program not only encourages children to reach out and express love, respect and appreciation for others but also helps them to express their feelings in a positive manner, to establish an atmosphere against bullying and encourages more positive school and home environments. Grinberg read the book to her class, and each child decorated a bucket. The children were then encouraged to fill the buckets with kind words and compliments.

• Charlotte O’Toole instituted a literacy program that not only teaches children to read, but also fosters a lifelong love of reading at The Goddard School located at 8866 Columbia 100 Parkway in Columbia, Maryland. O’Toole developed Running the Bases to Reading—an annual literacy campaign. The ‘team’ of children, along with their ‘coaches’ (parents), work towards a goal of each reading 100 books by the 100th day of school. A monthly record of books read is maintained as an innovative, interactive wall display and the ‘team’ watches the ‘player’ run the bases, tracking their progress. This year, the ‘team’ read a total of 1,570 books—well surpassing their goal of 1,300!

Goddard Schools across the nation will help spread the message that by working together, the nation’s youth can make a positive impact on the environment and propel the country toward a sustainable future. Goddard Schools in 37 states will launch an entire week of activities and lesson plans beginning March 21 leading up to a big celebration for the Stepping Up for the Environment event on March 25 at 10 a.m., a day before the global event.

“This is an exciting opportunity for our teachers and children to get creative in ‘stepping up’ awareness about saving energy and the environment,” says Joseph Schumacher, CEO of GSI. “Joining Earth Hour enables our students to learn important lessons about the environment and get the message out to their families and in their communities.”

Individual Goddard Schools will integrate environmental education into art projects, science lessons and even snack time. Classes will nominate an official “Lightning Bug,” who will be responsible for always turning off the classroom lights when the children exit the room. Students will also create invitations asking parents and neighboring buildings to join them in Earth Hour.

On March 25th, Goddard Schools will celebrate Earth Hour with Stepping Up for the Environment. The event will consist of GSI’s 45,000 students participating in a day of environmentally friendly activities. At 10 a.m., schools will turn off any non-essential lighting for one hour.

“Although our schools won’t be in session during the global Earth Hour celebration, we still wanted our students to be involved in the annual event,” said Schumacher. “By holding Stepping Up for the Environment on the Friday before Earth Hour, we’re hoping many of our students will become advocates for the cause and encourage their families to participate on Saturday.”

For more information on The Goddard School and Stepping Up for the Environment, visit www.goddardschool.com/Default.gspx.

Over the last two decades, children have lost eight hours of unstructured playtime in their week. Since 2002, 34% of kindergartens have eliminated recess. This trend of cutting back on playtime may have more negative effects than most parents are aware of. Although the debate on whether rigorous academic learning or play-based learning is more effective rages on, recent studies have shown playful learning has many positive, lasting effects unmatched by academic-based learning.

“When compared to academically-based preschool programs, children in play-based programs outperform the other group socially and academically by the time they reach the fourth grade,” said Kyle D. Pruett M.D., a child psychiatrist, published author, and advisor to The Goddard School®.

In a study conducted by psychologist Rebecca Maron of the University of North Florida, 1,200 toddlers and preschoolers were followed to measure the long-term academic effects of play-based learning vs. academic-based learning. The results strongly show the play-based learners outperforming the academic group both socially and academically by 4^th grade. These findings support the claim that play-based learning increases a child’s ability to both learn abstract concepts and interact with peers.

Supported by a growing body of research from Play for Tomorrow, the consortium behind the respected “playful learning” movement, The Goddard School believes in and supports the power of play for learning and has incorporated the concept into their proprietary FLEX^™ Learning Program. Playful learning is not a new concept at The Goddard School. It has been at the heart of their curriculum from the beginning, reflected in an approach to learning that presents new skills to children in a playful and engaging way.

Research has shown many lifelong benefits of learning through play, including an increased ability to learn from mistakes, develop independent decision making and fine-tuning of children’s physical development and perceptual motor skills.

“Young children who learn through play are more capable of making their own decisions, advocating for themselves and using creativity to solve problems as they grow. Play is essential to the development of your child’s brain, triggering trillions of neural connections that form the basis of healthy cognitive function and mastery of your child’s physical world,” says Dr. Pruett.

To further support these learning techniques, The Goddard School has launched a system-wide initiative, the Goddard Community Games event, on February 5. During the event, families in schools across the country will have the opportunity to enjoy a “hands-on” playful learning experience with a variety of programs, ranging from Sign Language, Yoga and Nutrition to World Cultures Voyages, Everyday Math and “Rock ‘n’ Tot” pre-dance and creative movement. The focus will be on fun, as parents and their children share in a day of discovery and enrichment.

“The children attending The Goddard School today are the leaders of tomorrow,” says Sue Adair, Director of Education at Goddard Systems, Inc., franchisor of The Goddard School. “Our teachers nurture each child’s self confidence and foster their lifelong love of learning by incorporating teacher-planned and child-directed learning activities into each day. When children enjoy learning, they take away not only knowledge of the task or concept but a sense of personal accomplishment that prepares them for a successful journey through life.”

The Goddard School^® believes in the power of play for learning. In an effort to spread the word to families across the nation, the educational preschool will sponsor the Goddard Community Games on Saturday, February 5. The event will involve children and their families in a variety of playful learning activities based on the core curriculum and enrichment programs that form an integral part of The Goddard School’s proprietary FLEX^™ Learning Program.

Playful learning is not a new concept at The Goddard School. It has been at the heart of their curriculum from the beginning and is reflected in an approach to learning that presents new skills to children in a playful and engaging way.  Today, supported by a growing body of research from Play for Tomorrow, the consortium behind the respected “playful learning” movement, The Goddard School hopes to encourage families across the nation to recognize and celebrate the power of play for learning in their own children.

“When an activity is fun, children are engaged and eager to learn – they flex their mind and body,” says Joe Schumacher, CEO of Goddard Systems, Inc., franchisor of The Goddard School.  “Play helps them become happy, confident learners.”

During the Goddard Community Games event, families will have the opportunity to enjoy a “hands-on” playful learning experience with a variety of programs, ranging from Sign Language, Yoga and Nutrition to World Cultures Voyages, Everyday Math and “Rock ‘n’ Tot” pre-dance and creative movement. The focus will be on fun, as parents and their children share in a day of discovery and enrichment.

“The children attending The Goddard School today are the leaders of tomorrow,” says Sue Adair, Director of Education at Goddard Systems, Inc. “Our teachers nurture each child’s self confidence and foster their lifelong love of learning by incorporating teacher-planned and child-directed learning activities into each day. When children enjoy learning, they take away not only knowledge of the task or concept but a sense of personal accomplishment that prepares them for a successful journey through life.”

To learn more about the Goddard Community Games and The Goddard School, parents are encouraged to visit www.goddardschool.com/games.

On January 3, 2011, the Goddard Community Games Virtual Tour will begin its journey across the country via Facebook, Twitter and The Goddard School Blog, acting as a launch to our nationwide Goddard Community Games event on February 5*.  All families are invited to join us on this exciting cross-country tour by sharing your favorite family-friendly activities and places to visit in your community (and why!) on Facebook (e.g., the best family-friendly restaurant, top no-cost activities and favorite educational landmarks).

To provide your feedback, comment below or on our Facebook Page!  Check the Virtual Tour Bus Schedule (from the Goddard Games tab within Facebook) – when the Virtual Tour Bus “arrives” in your area a compilation of all our families’ favorite activities in your community will be posted on Facebook for your vote!

When sharing your favorite place in your community, be sure to let us know where you are located (city or state)!

Let the Goddard Community Games begin!

*At participating locations.  Check with The Goddard School in your community for dates and times.

Click here to view the embedded video.

To watch more videos from The Goddard School, click here!

PLAY IS LEARNING!

Pretend play is an important component of your child’s cognitive and social development. Your child processes his/her feelings and understanding of the world as he/she plays.

“Young children who learn through play are more capable of making their own decisions, advocating for themselves and using creativity to solve problems as they grow. Play is essential to the development of your child’s brain, triggering trillions of neural connections that form the basis of healthy cognitive function and mastery of your child’s physical world,” says Dr. Kyle Pruett, a Yale University child psychiatrist and consultant to The Goddard School.

Infants…

• engage in play by responding to sounds, then by following objects and people with their eyes.

• demonstrate their memory by repeating an action that previously made you laugh.

• explore hand-held toys or rattles – turning them over, banging them, shaking them and maybe even tasting them.

• learn to roll over and sit up, creating choices as they discover how to move. They take aim at their own source of interest.

• learn self-discovery and motion when toys are placed within and outside their reach.

• want to examine objects as well as talk to them and follow your lead. Say, “clap,” with a smile on your face and your baby claps and smiles, too.

One-Year-Old children…

• play with water, smell a flower (which is not as easy as you may think) and recognize animals like the ones from their mobiles.

• join in the conversation with simple words and phrases and respond to “bye, bye” with an unsolicited wave.

• demonstrate their knowledge – pointing to any­thing you ‘name’ such as ears, even when they cannot see them because they’ve learned to trust their own experiences.

• play with you and imitate your actions. Watch them reflect your love with a doll providing “hugs and kisses” and ‘helping,’ the way you have guided them.

Two-Year-Old children…

• demonstrate independence to determine their limits as well as when and how to play.

• speak on a play phone and answer questions such as “Why?”

• solve simple puzzles, hold crayons in their hands, hum and sing as they play as well as join activities without prompting.

• enjoy using their imagination – pouring from one cup to another and manipulating play dough.

• begin to understand the concepts of sharing and waiting their turn.

• communicate in short sentences and demonstrate their personal understanding of the world while playing.

• can multi-task: they can sing and perform the motions to a song or converse while they paint.

Three-Year-Old children…

• ‘work’ while playing. They explore roles, feelings and ideas in an un­inhibited environment. They practice various emotions to determine how they fit into their personality.

• have a large vocabulary and under­stand the intonations of language.

• begin to connect the spoken word to written language and can orally retell a favorite story.

• are interested in cause and effect; and can identify colors, shapes, sizes and weights.

• play a role or game for long periods of time until they have exhausted their curiosity.

• need their space. Let them invite you into their play.

Four-Year-Old children…

• recognize how objects and people are the same and different simulta­neously; and can appreciate these attributes.

• begin to recognize concepts. For in­stance, taking a bath develops their understanding of water – floating, sinking, absorbing and dissolving.

• use their play experiences to develop identifiable knowledge – they can match by relationships and verbalize invisible con­cepts, such as time and calendars.

• no longer need to see or hold a toy to play; they can recall previous experiences and use their knowledge.

• can name instruments, move to the beat of music and sing along.

• have phonemic awareness and view the written word as magical – writing a word is play!

That’s why we’re so excited about a great event that’s being planned for October 3, 2010, in New York City’s Central Park.  At The Ultimate Block Party – The Arts and Sciences of Play, families will experience firsthand the vital role play has in learning.  Families can play, discover, cooperate, collaborate, have fun – and begin to understand how play builds important skills for learning.

The Goddard School is proud to be a sponsor of The Ultimate Block Party (UBP), which is the brainchild of a distinguished group of educators and childhood development specialists who have one important goal in mind:  spreading the word that children who build a strong foundation of social, logical and behavioral tools through play will be better equipped to learn and to lead in the future.

While the intent of the day is serious, the focus is on fun with activities ranging from the world’s largest game of Simon Says to sing-alongs and an obstacle course.  Check back with us to find out more about these activities, to discover ways that you can get involved and to learn about resources you can turn to for more information about the “whys” and “hows” of making play a priority for your child.