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Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K)

HKA students are capable, confident, compassionate and creative and our Pre-Kindergarten  programme promotes independence and natural curiosity. 

HKA’s Pre-Kindergarten programme is part of a clearly defined continuum of learning which offers coherent development from the early years through to Grade 12 graduation. As a three programme IB World School we see the potential in every child and our personalised, inquiry-based early childhood curriculum nurtures foundational skills for 3-5 years olds in: Language and Literacy, Numeracy, Motor skills, Emotional regulation, Collaboration and Problem-solving within the IB Primary Years Programme framework.

The Primary years programme - early childhood at HKA

The IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) forms the foundation of our early childhood education at HKA, inviting our youngest learners to dynamically inquire about themselves and their world. For our Pre-K classes, this journey begins with an engaging, inquiry-based morning session designed to nurture natural curiosity, agency, and foundational social skills.

For families looking to start this journey even earlier, HKA also offers an interactive playgroup. This programme provides toddlers with a gentle, joyful introduction to the rhythms of a "big school" environment, easing future transitions and building early community connections. Across all these early years offerings, our approach remains innovative, adaptive, and future-focussed, ensuring even our littlest learners begin to see the ways they can impact, influence, and actively participate in the vibrant world around them.

To offer families greater flexibility and deeper student engagement, we are thrilled to introduce Maker Atelier, an optional afternoon after-school programme. This creative extension allows Pre-K students to continue making meaning as learners through hands-on building, tinkering, and artistic exploration that beautifully complements their morning units of inquiry. 

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Afternoon session: The maker's atelier Playgroup

COMMUNICATING WITH CONFIDENCE

Language skills bloom in the early years, and our language-rich programme encourages every child to flourish. Pre-Kindergarten teachers lead their classes in English and an early childhood Mandarin-speaking co-teacher collaborates to infuse Mandarin into the programme throughout the day, as well as during dedicated Mandarin sessions. Every interaction with both adults and peers provides an opportunity for students to learn through language, whether listening to a read aloud, describing a piece of art they are creating or chatting to classmates during community snack. In addition to classroom libraries containing regularly updated collections of English and Mandarin books, our Primary School library offers an incredible range of books curated to spark a love of literacy and learning in every child.

English Language Reading
Pre-Kindergarten English reading skills focus on building foundational literacy through phonological awareness, alphabet recognition, print awareness, and oral language development. Key milestones include recognising letters and sounds, identifying rhymes, understanding that print carries meaning, early reading skills, comprehension understanding and expanding vocabulary. These skills are cultivated through daily child-led and adult-led reading and book use, songs and rhymes, role play, predicting and discussing stories, as well as weekly ‘reading buddy’ activities with older students and regular library visits, setting the stage for formal reading in Kindergarten.

English Language Writing
Pre-Kindergarten English writing focuses on emergent writing, where children transition from drawing and scribbling to understanding that marks on paper represent spoken language. Pre-K skill development includes; mastering fine motor control (pencil grip), recognising and writing their own name and uppercase letters, and understanding that English writing moves left-to-right and top-to-bottom. Teachers use hands-on activities like using playdough and child-safe scissors, tracing, and drawing to help students develop the necessary hand strength and muscle control. Students apply their skills through book making projects where their stories come to life and have meaning for them and their peer audience.

Chinese Language
Pre-K classrooms are a dual language environment with the teachers leading in both English and Mandarin throughout the day. Chinese language development is focussed on communicating through listening and speaking with children becoming comfortable to express themselves confidently and recognise some foundational Chinese characters. Students are exposed to Chinese characters in their environment and play, and enjoy daily Mandarin Circle Time, during which they engage with stories, games, songs and rhymes.

Grounded in the most current research about the many ways in which children learn, our purpose-built Sai Kung campus offers captivating indoor and outdoor environments that engage all the senses. Our early childhood classrooms, common areas and kitchen are flexible in design, inviting children to lead their own exploration of concepts and ideas in numerous breakout spaces and with a wide range of materials.

Our outdoor playscapes offer developmentally appropriate challenges to extend children’s physical, social and cognitive learning. An organic garden, adventure playscape, mud kitchen, sand pit and water features contribute to an inviting, environmentally friendly and aesthetically pleasing environment. In each of these spaces, children are encouraged to immerse themselves in creative physical activity and diverse sensory exploration, developing problem-solving skills as they interact with nature and one another, learning through both quiet and active outdoor play. 

Early childhood LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

LIFE AT HKA: EARLY CHILDHOOD STORIES

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Small Creatures, BIG Stars! 🐛🐝 A Mighty Applause for our EC Performers!

What an absolute spectacular run! Our Early Childhood students completely dazzled audiences this week with their magical musical production, "Mega Mighty Minibeasts". 🎭✨

After a wonderful, high-energy performance for parents yesterday, our little stars took to the stage once again today for a special student viewing session, sharing their talents with their fellow Dragonflies.

Behind those bright smiles, colorful face paint, and amazing costumes was weeks of incredible dedication. Our youngest performers have been working hard in learning catchy songs, mastering complex stage choreography, practicing their cues, and discovering what it means to collaborate as a cast. Seeing their confidence shine on the big stage is a true testament to all their hard work and grit.

A massive congratulations to the entire cast and creative team! You may be mini, but your talent is truly mega! 🎶

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