Principles of education

Our pre-school curriculum is based on the education framework system for preschool education and is also adjusted to English language schooling. The daily conversation in our preschool is in Czech as well as in English.

We guide our preschoolers through their pre-school studies according to our school’s philosphy, which is based on respect and good relationships. Our approach to students is non – directive, as we carefully prepare the children for their elementary school studies. We do so in an environment that enables the students to socialize with their fellow classmates and teachers, as well as promoting a positive approach to studying as well as leisure time. It is important to guide the students towards independence and an open-minded, friendly approach towards others, which includes the ability to resolve conflicts. We put an emphasis on positive motivation towards learning through experiential studying as well as the ability to learn from mistakes.

The concept of our pre-school was positively and extensively evaluated by the Czech School Inspectors (the complete report of the Czech School Inspection from February 2017 here).

English language with native speakers

The English department in our pre-school is taught exclusively by native speakers who are present throughout the whole day. Students are therefore able to learn English during their daily activities throughout their school day.

Based on our experience, we believe that children should start learning English in their pre-school years, as they are more prone to find joy in learning during their favorite activities and aren’t worried about making mistakes. Education at this age is spontaneous with the use of phonetic memory, as children tend to imitate sounds. This offers them a great starting point for pronunciation and ultimately, the understanding of a foreign language.

We teach English in cooperation with the rest of the pre-school programme. Our teachers work together on various topics through which our students build their vocabulary and gain general overview of the not just the language, but the culture as well.

Effective pre-school education in Czech language

At Magic Hill we certainly do not neglect Czech schooling. Our Czech teachers always speak their mother tongue with the kids, thus making them fully understand their bilingual environment. We aim to teach correct pronunciation along with a wide vocabulary while bringing attention to Czech traditions, culture and knowledge.

The overall concept of our pre-school focuses not only on language development and enriching vocabulary, but also on speech therapy, memory training, pre-maths orientation and preparation for reading and writing. Another essential part of the pre-school is developing the general working and social maturity of the students, which goes hand in hand with their motoric skills. We are also able to assist children with language and pronunciation problems through speech therapy.

Outdoor activities

As we focus on wholistic education, we organize our education into different themed projects. The beginning of each month introduces a topic through activities and games in both English and Czech and the rest of the month is themed around this topic. This benefits our students as they gradually gain a bilingual knowledge of these topics in an experientional way.

A key part of the daily programme takes place outside – we use our own large garden, the school surroundings, and our very own nearby school farm. This gives our students the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors and nature – they observe the seasonal changes in a real way, in nature. The availability of the school farm introduces our kids to the hard work of farmers – taking care of farm animals and growing various crops.

We regularly organize after-school activities (clubs), such as ceramics club, young-tourist clubs, flute club or swimming club. Every year we also organize School in nature trips.