KLA Schools to open new location in Horizon West

This fall, families in the Horizon West area will have a new option for early childhood education.

KLA Schools of Horizon West is the newest addition to the South Florida-based KLA Schools family. The roughly 2.6-acre campus is being built at 8185 Summerlake Groves St. in Winter Garden, and pre-enrollment is open now. The school should officially open by the end of the summer.

The early childhood education center offers developmentally appropriate programs inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy in an environment meant to inspire.

“With the Reggio Emilia philosophy approach, one of the things that is most important is that children are active participants and the protagonists in their learning,” said School Director Melissa De La Rosa. “They develop skills needed to explore ideas and interests, as well as express their ideas in multiple ways.

“We set up an environment that is aesthetically pleasing, but in addition it sparks their curiosity so children are constantly in an environment where they can inquire,” she said. “In terms of the learning process ... children often will create theories to make sense of the world around them, and the idea is they revisit those theories often — more than the teacher just imparting knowledge or giving an answer to them.”

KLA Schools serves children from ages 3 months to 5 years old, and also will offer before- and after-school programs for school-age children. And with the Reggio Emilia philosophy at the core of the curriculum, children are encouraged to formulate their own ideas, draw conclusions and convey knowledge in a collaborative learning environment.

According to the KLA Schools informational handbook, “educators facilitate brainstorming discussions and offer opportunities for children to express their ideas and motives.” The goal is for children to develop skills such as problem solving, collaboration, sharing and understanding cause and effect.

“That curiosity and love of learning is what’s going to take you through those years,” De La Rosa said.

KLA Schools is focused on a well-rounded education. This includes not only physical and cognitive growth and development, but also social and emotional. To help foster children’s developmental milestones, the Horizon West location will offer an art studio or workshop, a water exploration laboratory, children’s arboretum, playgrounds structured by age group and fields for extracurricular activities.

The program also values parents as partners in a child’s development and education, recognizing that parents are the first teachers.

“We want to offer a warm and nurturing environment where parents and children feel like they belong,” De La Rosa said. “We’ve gotten a very positive reaction from our families. …They want their children to be able to participate in a program that allows them to create and innovate and express themselves in many different ways.”

According to KLA Schools’ website, collaboration between teachers, parents and children is an integral part of the educational experience. KLA Schools believes that through these partnerships and collaboration with teachers and parents, children will benefit from experiencing many of the same principles at home that they do in school. This leads to them thriving through consistency.

“We know that our environment will be able to provide a one-of-a-kind experience for the children in our area — that there is joy in learning,” she said. “That’s what we want to bring back, that joy in learning and the lifelong love of (learning). We really want to celebrate (children’s) work and have an environment that’s warm and nurturing and sparks their interest and curiosity.”