Ira Patil was one of the first children to be part of the Cambridge Early Years programme at Sanjay Ghodawat International School (SGIS) in Kolhapur, India, where it was introduced in 2021-2022. Her mother says Ira enjoys learning and has made good progress.
When Ira Patil joined Cambridge Early Years stage 2 (age 4 to 5), she knew only letter sounds and could read only a few two-letter words. With Cambridge Early Years, she began by reading sight words and books with colourful illustrations, which enabled her to build her vocabulary and her interest in reading.
With the help of the facilitator, she started reading stories with three- to four-letter words. By the end of her Cambridge Early Years 3 class in Academic Year 2022–2023, Ira had become a good and confident reader who could read short stories.
Pritee Ashish Patil, Ira’s mother, talks about her daughter’s experiences
'It is too difficult to put into words the wonderful experience our daughter and we as parents have had of Cambridge Early Years at SGIS. Our daughter is very happy on the Cambridge programme.
'Like most 3 to 5 year olds, my daughter doesn’t tell me much about her activities at school but thanks to the daily updates we receive from the teachers, we see pictures of Ira’s happy, smiling face as she joins in activities with her friends. All the teachers and the headteacher are always available to answer our questions.
'In addition to expected activities, the early years classes have acted out and recited stories, and performed multiple stage dances and dramas in front of parents and the rest of the school. Supporting them to do this at such an early age has made the children confident speakers. My daughter is also being taught to be polite.'
'In terms of progress, we have seen a lot of positive changes in Ira since Cambridge Early Years has been introduced, including cognitive skills development and fine motor skills development.
'Ira is confident in performing all given activities. We have seen her become a competent learner and she is now a fluent reader.
'Apart from academics, Ira has also developed a keen interest in sports and she has shown tremendous improvement in this area.
'Cambridge Early Years is a lot of fun and our daughter has enjoyed taking part in all the activities. We, as parents, really appreciate the passion of the teachers in teaching Cambridge Early Years and how this is being transmitted to the children.'