Our Programme
The joyful, child-centered, and inspiring atmosphere of our school promotes learning and assists in our vision of educating students to be articulate, confident, self-aware, highly-motivated, and respectful. At Brilliant Stars, we offer holistic education addressing the whole child. We focus on the development of children’s character, the development of their skills, and the joy of learning.
Our goal is to serve students and families who are committed to taking ownership of a new model of learning. At Brilliant Stars, we believe there are no bounds to growth and knowledge, and that children are able to learn much more than is often assumed.
Our Approach
Developing character and moral understanding in our students are at the core of Brilliant Stars education. We aim to educate the whole child, one who is brave, kind, truthful, hardworking, and gentle. Our students are taught to develop their intellect and character whilst also playing a contributing role within society as agents of change.
Every teacher at our school goes through in-house training followed by mentoring on our approach to bringing out the gems in each student. Although we have weekly allocated time slots designed specifically to address character development, we believe this needs to permeate every teachable moment. That is why we take every effort to find and highlight the character element in all the topics and activities our students take part in.
We pay great attention to addressing issues such as aggression, bullying, and profanity early before they have escalated. We bring youthful and enthusiastic teachers who act as role models for our students and who are trained to pay attention to the socio-emotional development of each individual child. As a result, we are reputed as a school with little manifestation of such issues.
We find that our conscious efforts and unique approach guide our students to develop their interests and explore their potential in a safe and loving environment. Through our approach, we find that our students investigate their own interests and expand their values rather than be guided exclusively by the consumer market.
We are inspired by the Montessori approach to further support the student's ability to learn. The Montessori pedagogy recognises that every child learns in a different way and at their own pace.
Maria Montessori defines hands as the instruments of ‘man’s intelligence’, hence we greatly support hands-on experiences and we deeply value the order of practical learning followed by theoretical learning. We also support the latest research which notes that curiosity, inner drives, and joy are the best tools for learning. Montessori highlights the requirement of every child to learn in different ways, at their own pace. Consequently, our teachers create a learning programme that is specific to the needs and interests of each individual child.
Our prepared classroom environments are specially designed to encourage children to actively participate in their learning and to be granted uninterrupted work, enabling deep concentration. Learners are encouraged to see topics not as separate subjects but as an integrated whole. We provide hands-on, real material experiences that appeal to all the senses thus nurturing “learning while doing” in a holistic way.
English is the language of instruction throughout the day. Classes are taught by mostly international and native speakers. English is our first language and our aim is that every student reaches fluency in both spoken and written English.
The extent to which we focus in the early years on language acquisition has prepared our students to continue their Primary and Secondary education in the Cambridge curriculum as native English speakers.
Mandatory Slovak lessons are provided throughout the week by Slovak teachers to all Slovak students to ensure that students achieve proficiency at the level required by the Slovak Ministry of Education, on par with Slovak schools. There is also an opportunity to learn an optional second language. Expats settled long-term in Slovakia can also make use of the Slovak language lessons. They have the support of teachers to gain more confidence as we believe language helps them feel part of the larger community.
Our goal is not to prepare students for exams and standardised tests, however, the feedback that we receive from alumni families suggests our students flourish in a variety of educational settings (including ones with rigorous examinations) after receiving a Brilliant Stars Education. We continuously revise the curriculum to ensure it remains relevant and on-par with current research.
Service
We aim to raise individuals who will be agents of change in our society. That is why we organise, and support many opportunities for all our students and their families to engage in service. We are always pleased to support the service initiatives of our students and parents.
Music
Music is accompanying the growth of our students from an early age and is at the core of our institution. With a large percentage of our students learning at least one instrument at Brilliant Stars, we have students playing cello, piano, recorder, guitar, and violin. Our numerous in-house events and engagement at conferences and other local events have meant that our students are not only able to share their musical talents with their peers and families but also utilise these opportunities to bring joy to others. As an educational space with many age groups and abilities under one roof, our older and younger students have the opportunity to support each other in their learning experiences.
Drama
Throughout the year, our students have numerous opportunities to get involved in drama and film. Activities range from workshops with professional directors and producers who accompany them through the whole process of a short film, writing scripts, directing their own short films, to co-writing and performing an end-of-year musical with their peers for their parents. Having many age groups, we are able to hold larger performances with each age group and skill set being utilised to their full capacity. We care about making sure our philosophy permeates all the activities at Brilliant Stars, which includes the songs our students sing, and the theater they play in.