When it comes to milestone achievements, parents often worry whether their child measures up on the playground.
The Little Gym of Langley — a physical-based child development centre, located at 6233 200 St. — will soon be providing caregivers with documentation of their youngster’s physical, emotional and social development through its new Victory Skill Growth Tracker.
Aside from being able to obtain document proof of their growth, the ‘report card’ helps families celebrate and acknowledge the stepping stones that lead to their child’s accomplishments, both big and small, says the Little Gym of Langley’s owner Amarie Guild.
“While we know that parents will appreciate hearing about their children’s achievements, we also believe that meaningful learning is about the journey and not the destination,” said Guild, who is a mother herself.
Designed for children ages four months through 12 years, the Little Gym of Langley encompasses a wide range of programs, including: parent/child classes, gymnastics, karate, dance and sports skills development, plus extras like camps, Parents’ Survival Nights and birthday parties.
Fun is a big part of the program, however, learning units, designed to take children through a natural progress of physical, emotional and life skills are the core curriculum.
The tracker is an extension of the centre’s approach to skill development, notes Guild.
“The Victory Skill Growth Tracker allows our instructors to more easily track a child’s skill growth throughout the season and then talk with or send an email to the parent with document proof of their child’s improvement.”
Also a Grade two teacher in the Langley School District, Guild sees all-too-many children who enter the school system ill prepared.
“I think the change in full-day Kindergarten has been a challenge,” she said.
“It’s important to get children into pre-Kindergarten programs like ours so they do learn how to wait their turn, listen, line up and just be left alone... all of this stuff really encourages good behaviour for school and sets them up for success.”
Recognizing that every child is unique and “intelligent in their own way,’’ the intent of the tracker isn’t to cause a competitive learning environment or raise alarm.
“The reason I was attracted to the program is that it’s all about positive reinforcement,” said Guild.
“We want to celebrate each child’s success through three -dimensional learning – 1. Get Moving (physical development), 2. Brain Boost (emotional development) and 3. Citizen Kid (social development. While one kid may be excellent in balancing and co-ordination, another kid may have just had significant improvement in waiting their turn.”
Since taking ownership of the centre three years ago, Guild has seen a wide range of children leave the program more confident in their abilities.
“We have students here that aren’t necessarily people who would be included in a regular gymnastic program or soccer program because they have other issues, whether it be motor-skill development delays or a learning disability,” she noted.
Even Guild’s two daughters Olivia, 8, and Madelynn, 11, have benefited firsthand from the unique curriculum.
“They love it,” she said matter-of-factly. “They’ve been coming to the gym since my eldest was five. They’re both now planning higher-level sports and still want to come to gymnastics class once a week.”
Classes at the Little Gym Langley cost around $85 a month and run from September until June.
For more information visit www.thelittlegym.com.