It is possible to start kindergarten at the Big Bear House at the beginning of the school year in August and at the start of the second semester in February. 

Age-related cutoff dates for admission to the Big Bear House are as follows:

• Children who are four years old by July 31st enter the voluntary kindergarten year as of August.
• Children who are four years old by January 31st may enter the voluntary kindergarten year as of February.

The entry/ or transfer depends in each case on our space availability in the various classes.

Every child entitled to kindergarten must also meet the following requirements:

• the child no longer wears diapers and goes to the toilet independently
• it shows a good attention span even on its own (without constant encouragement)
• they can sit still and listen for a certain amount of time
• it no longer needs a nap

The playful use of multiple languages takes advantage of young children’s talent for learning them – in our case, learning both German and English. To give the children a solid foundation, half the lesson blocks are taught in German (incl. Standard German), the other half in English. Each person teaching in a particular language must have a native-speaking background in that language. Our basic rule is “one person one language”, and each particular lesson is taught entirely in one language. This helps children to learn more quickly, efficiently, and above all: correctly.

Cognitive learning ability depends very much on physical exercise, which underpins the longterm success of each child in reaching her or his own maximum potential. A healthy body energizes the brain, promoting better concentration and resilience.

This is why our lesson plan always includes gross motor exercises, with daily physical activities on the playground and outdoors – these are guaranteed components of our program. Furthermore, the schedule of the kindergarten class includes a weekly sports lesson in a large gymnasium with equipment. The allocation of the gymnasiums by the municipality can lead to the fact that children of the mandatory kindergarten are obliged to attend the corresponding day. Our program also features regular outings devoted to physical activities, in both summer and winter.

The Big Bear House is a neutral institution that makes no value judgments about the way of life reflected by the children and their families. Furthermore, the Big Bear House is not attached to any pedagogical ideologies and is solely committed to the kindergarten Curriculum 21.

The protection of religious and psychological integrity is fully guaranteed, and religious commitments will be respected as long as they do not conflict with the guidelines of the mandatory kindergarten program (e.g. mandatory lessons, physical education, etc.)

The Big Bear House kindergarten is not an integrated facility and can only admit fully capable children who satisfy the requirements for attending regular kindergarten. The Big Bear House cannot supervise children with disabilities or who have deficits outside the norm. The teaching staff can be consulted in advance to decide if admission is possible. If the teaching staff notice unusual difficulties during regular lessons, they will discuss this with the parents and suggest a consultation with the relevant school counseling services of the home community. Even if the parents decline such consultation, the Big Bear House still retains the right to terminate the childcare agreement if the relevant teaching staff have concluded that the child needs supplementary special care that is not available at the Big Bear House.

There are no classes at the kindergarten Big Bear House for 11 weeks in each calendar year. In pedagogical terms, this extended vacation time is recommended for every kindergarten, because children need more variety and recovery time than adults do. Nonetheless, the Big Bear House also guarantees a full child-care schedule during its class-free weeks, since parents cannot take as much time off as their children.

Except for the spring holidays, the school holidays correspond to the Cantonal Zug holiday schedule for public schools. The spring holidays follow the Easter holidays (Holy and Easter Week respectively). The summer holidays end 2 weeks before the cantonal Zug summer holidays, i.e. the start of a new school year is directly after our company holidays.

Of these 11 weeks, two weeks coincide with the company’s annual holiday periods: one week from Christmas to New Year’s Day, and another week in summer. Bridge days are added to the vacations, which are considered company vacations.
The remaining 9 weeks are occupied by special programming with an essentially leisure character, without a schooloriented agenda. This means having theme weeks and project weeks with fun and games as the main focus. Such programming takes place partly in the regular kindergarten facility, and partly in other locations.