Our Passion Project
Being born and raised in the island of Jamaica, I guess from first glance there weren't many things I found relatable in Poland. One thing that I felt then to now, is that I absolutely love working with kids. So when the opportunity presented itself 12 years ago to work as a volunteer in a daycare/preschool (part time), I was thrilled. I completely threw myself into the task and since then I’ve had the opportunity to work with kids age ranging from 1-18 years old; as an English/ Pre-school/Yoga teacher and Psychologist. These experiences have taught me a lot and combining that with the intuitive knowledge that I’ve garnered as a mom of an energetic/curious boy-the idea for Little Sprout Nursery was born.
I’ve seen first-hand how kids that are usually considered shy, withdrawn and reluctant to speak in English, after working for some time, have flourished into overly enthusiastic confident users of the English language. Now, while my ego would have a ‘field trip’ for me to say I was the main influencer for the changes in the kids, it wouldn't be accurate. It was rather a combination of my warm personality, organized materials (especially with very young learners), safe clean surroundings, playful learning and overall stimulating activities that were prepared in a kids friendly approach. A strong influencer was the fact that I spoke completely in English with the kids. Certainly I had to implement loads of physical animated gestures (that the kids found hilarious), pictures, drawings, songs (lost my voice too many times to count) and learning props (anything that would help them to understand-from puppets to pebbles).
On the basis of my experience, I’ve formulated the Total English Submersion program. With the right caretakers, stimulations, activities, props and fun, children are encouraged to grasp and use English language in a natural fluid way.
Terry-lee O’connor, Little Sprouts Nursery Director
