Anna H.

      I had a son and daughter go to CHUP who did both the 3s and the 4s programs.  And although they are very different people, both entered Kindergarten confidently and excelled in their classrooms.  They made friends quickly, developed a good relationship with their teacher and stayed toward the top of their class academically.  Their personal strengths were nurtured at CHUP as well.  This meant that by the middle of Kindergarten my son started moving into the 1st grade class for reading (now in 2nd grade he goes to 3rd grade for both reading and math).  My daughter who excels socially has been commended for her ability to mediate conflict amongst classmates, something she definitely learned at CHUP, and is also reading now half way through her Kindergarten year.  The pre-math skills they learned at CHUP also meant that many of the tasks and activities they did in the first half of Kindergarten were familiar to them even if not completely mastered yet.

      My son completed the 4s program prior to the extension of the day and addition of lunch, and he did struggle moving a bit into a full day program for awhile.  This worked itself out eventually, but we were pleased to see our daughter have less of a struggle with that – something I attribute to those changes in the 4s program.  She had the practice of eating lunch at school as well, which was very helpful.  I think this ability for parents to input into the program and for the program to make minor shifts while remaining true to its core of learning through play, is amazing!  My children never struggle to have ideas or questions, and their teachers consistently report that they are eager to learn.  CHUP prepared them to work independently and was an amazing launch pad for elementary school.

      Besides my children’s experiences, my own experience as a CHUP parent prepared me to be involved in my children’s education.  Working with other parents to fundraise, or chatting with teachers about possible field trips, or the principal about wider school policy does not feel foreign to me at all, because I was encouraged to do those things at CHUP.  Parents are the most important factor in a child’s education and I’m so thankful that CHUP taught me ways of being involved that would benefit both my child and their school community.