The Kindergarten and Pre-kindergarten at Doukas School "speak" two languages (Greek & English) with the constant presence of two teachers (Greek-speaking and English-speaking) daily in class. The aim is to develop the child's cognitive potential in a bilingual environment, where he/she will become familiar with both languages and cultures, strengthening the research skill and critical thinking.
In addition to the bilingual day-to-day operation of the classroom, καθημερινά English is also taught as a separate subject. Children develop their language and communication skills, become familiar with the English language code and enhance comprehension and perception abilities.
Our Kindergarten is the only school in Greece that has received the certification of the Global Schools Program. Through this program, the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals are systematically and experientially approached, preparing citizens for a better world.
The Global Schools Program is an initiative of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network that supports UNESCO's Global Programme of Action on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The vision of the program is to create an environment where every student is equipped with knowledge, values and skills to respond effectively to the greatest challenges of this century and to shape a sustainable world for all.
This program is implemented at Doukas School with the collaborative approach between kindergarten teachers and other educators, in order to cover all educational objectives through interdisciplinary projects per sustainable development goal.
Our main educational framework is the Holistic Pedagogical Approach, which is an innovative theory in Education. This approach considers that Students have a set of heterogeneous characteristics and guides them to achieve their own goals and improve their weaknesses. It aims at the multifaceted development of personality as it considers that learning stems from experience, emotions, moral and social education.
According to the Holistic Pedagogical Approach, our Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten approach 4 thematic areas:
•Child and communication (Language, ICT)
•Child, self and society (SEL, Social Sciences)
•Child and science (STEM)
•Child, body, creation and expression (Arts, Wellness and Health, Physical Education, Digital Skills-Coding & Robotics, Drama, Music)
In the Computational Thinking course for preschool education, designed by our School's Computer Science Teachers, children create their own programs without using screens or other devices. With games in the open space, innovative teaching practices of problem solving are applied. Robotics, concepts of computational thinking and logic, and of course experiential learning through play enhance 21st century skills, such as creativity, teamwork, analytical, synthetic and critical thinking, innovation, communication skills, etc.
The social, creative and expressive skills are enhanced through play, together with the exploration, experimentation and interaction it offers.
Through experiential activities, we develop oral communication, reading, written expression in Language while in Mathematics, we help children apply the test and control method experientially, "translating" their experiences into mathematical concepts.