{"582346":{"#nid":"582346","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Teaching Tech\u2019s Littlest Learners","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech is primarily thought of as a place for higher education, but in two places on campus, there are learners of a much younger age.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ETech is home to two child development centers that serve Tech families and those in the surrounding community. The R. Kirk Landon Learning Center and The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus @ Georgia Tech are early education centers, managed by Bright Horizons, that offer high-quality child care right on Tech\u0026rsquo;s campus.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe centers are in two different locations, about two blocks apart and both just off 10th Street, but operate somewhat jointly. Both serve infants through pre-K age, and they work together to find space to enroll children. Both offer full-time care (with The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus also offering part-time care in its two- and three-year-old programs), and both have immediate availability.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;We want to dispel the misconception that we\u0026rsquo;re always full,\u0026rdquo; said Erica Watson-Grier, director of the R. Kirk Landon Learning Center. At one time that may have been the case, she said, but since the opening of The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus in 2012, the two centers have been able to provide early learning for many more families.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EStill, it helps to plan for care as early as possible. Shalitha Lawrence, director of The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus, encourages parents to tour both centers as soon as they know they are expecting a child.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFor expectant parents, exploring child care options may be overwhelming. Lawrence and Watson-Grier suggest touring their centers, but also recommend that, no matter where parents enroll their children, they should expect high-quality care. R. Kirk is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), meaning it has lower teacher-child ratio, as well as parent involvement programs; The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus is in the process of receiving the same accreditation.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Learning begins at infancy,\u0026rdquo; said Watson-Grier, who has a background in early child education and has been with R. Kirk for three years. \u0026ldquo;We don\u0026rsquo;t only educate children, but also serve as a resource for families in educating their children.\u0026rdquo;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe centers also partner with families by offering an open door policy, meaning parents can stop by to see their children during the day at any time.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ELawrence acknowledges that finding high-quality care at an affordable price is hard, particularly in the Midtown area. Both R. Kirk and The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus are proud to offer more affordable care than other nearby centers, while maintaining a high-quality curriculum and experience.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EAll Bright Horizons centers use an emergent curriculum, meaning teachers design lesson plans and learning experiences based on the interest of the children \u0026mdash; so no two centers are doing the same thing on a given day. Being at Georgia Tech, both centers also incorporate STEM activities into their curriculum, and teach math and science at all ages, including infancy.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;It may not be math and science as you have seen it before,\u0026rdquo; Watson-Grier said.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ERight now, the R. Kirk Landon Learning Center has immediate availability in its toddler and preschool groups, and The Children\u0026rsquo;s Campus has space in its two- and three-year-old groups. Both directors encourage Tech families to visit the centers, even if they are not yet parents.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;We really want parents to come and fall in love with the environment,\u0026rdquo; said Lawrence, who has worked at both campus centers and been \u0026nbsp;with Bright Horizons for 14 years.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nOne upcoming opportunity to do that is at a Fall Festival on Oct. 28, from 4 to 6 p.m. at\u0026nbsp;R. Kirk. Representatives from both centers will also be at the upcoming Benefits Fair on Nov. 2 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EBoth centers also offer summer camp programs for children ages 4 (rising kindergarteners) through 8. The campuses follow the Atlanta Public School calendar and also offer camp programs for fall break, winter break, and spring break, with daily and weekly rates.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ETo learn more about both centers, visit \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/brighthorizons.com\/georgiatech\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003Ebrighthorizons.com\/georgiatech\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETech is home to two child development centers that serve Tech families and those in the surrounding community.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Tech is home to two child development centers that serve Tech families and those in the surrounding community. "}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2016-10-10 17:57:07","changed_gmt":"2016-10-24 16:32:29","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2016-10-10T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2016-10-10T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"582347":{"id":"582347","type":"image","title":"Bright Horizons Staff","body":null,"created":"1476122368","gmt_created":"2016-10-10 17:59:28","changed":"1476123052","gmt_changed":"2016-10-10 18:10:52","alt":"Bright Horizons staff","file":{"fid":"221995","name":"GT Admin 1.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/GT%20Admin%201.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/GT%20Admin%201.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1857280,"path_740":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/GT%20Admin%201.jpg?itok=n_In9pf0"}}},"media_ids":["582347"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/brighthorizons.com\/georgiatech","title":"Bright Horizons at Georgia Tech"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"1259","name":"Whistle"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"37711","name":"child care"},{"id":"3944","name":"parents"},{"id":"3423","name":"employees"},{"id":"172384","name":"early learning"},{"id":"172385","name":"child development"},{"id":"36821","name":"Bright Horizons"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:kristen.bailey@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EKristen Bailey\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}