IBM announces childcare center partnership in Bangalore

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IBM today announced the launch of a first-of-a-kind Childcare Center in Bangalore, India, under its pioneer $50 million Global Work/Life Fund. The announcement entails a special partnership between IBM and 'Your Kids R Our Kids' - a pre-school & daycare centre recognized by the India Ministry of Elementary Education and US accredited to teach early childhood with diploma. The Childcare Center will integrate IBM's technological expertise and 'Your Kids R Our Kids' domain expertise to make high-quality early learning programs available to the youngest learners, who are instinctively drawn to technology as a source of education and fun.

 

Commenting on the launch, Kalpana Veeraraghavan, Asia Pacific Leader for IBM Global Work Life Fund said, "We understand the challenge men & women in IT face while navigating between work and family life; hence, our goal is to enhance the childcare environment of our employees through such initiatives as this. We believe providing a head start to our employees' children on academic & holistic development will, in turn, enable IBMers to enhance their productivity & career success within the organization. This alliance will help us amalgamate 'Your Kids R Our Kids' expertise with our technological leadership to offer an all-encompassing package to the children, as well as working parents."

 

Elaborating on the partnership, Bharat Kapoor, Director - 'Your Kids R Our Kids' said, "We are proud to collaborate with IBM on this extraordinary program and are looking forward to providing the children hands-on experience with technology, thereby increasing their opportunities for success as they begin elementary school.'' 

 

Following are some examples of the types of activities the child care center will undertake to give a head start to children on academic & holistic development:

 

• The Infant program (3 months -12 months of age) reinforces gross motor & cognitive skill activities.

•  The Early Toddler/Toddler program (ages 1-2 years) will concentrate on fine motor skills, cognitive skills, socialization & communication skills. Nurturing, positive feedback, interaction with others, language skills etc are crucial to the learning process at this stage.

•  The Pre School program (ages 2-4 years) will prepare them full steam for a mainstream school. There are seven activity based learning centers core to this program which include: Book Nook, Block Buster, Art Adventures, Discovery Centre, Dramatic Play Area & Math Manipulative Area.

•  The Nursery & Kindergarten program (ages 4-6 years) recognizes that the children will soon be entering formal schools with a wide range of expectations academically & socially and will provide a foundation meeting those varied expectations.

•  The After School Program (3-12 years) will offer a repertoire of enriching age appropriate activities to strengthen what children learn during their regular school hours, such as full homework assistance, creative writing, music, dance, gymnastics etc. 

  

The centre will operate from 8 am to 7:30 pm, five days a week twelve months a year. Well balanced and nutritious lunches, morning & afternoon snacks coordinated by a registered dietician are offered. A registered nurse & pediatrician are on call at the centre as well. The centre can be reached at www.ykrok.in

 

IBM's Global Work/Life Fund was formed in 2001 to develop and support work/life programs in communities where its employees live and work. We believe it is one of the first funds of its kind to address such employee issues globally. While the fund centers on a variety of work/life issues, the primary focus is on dependent care programs that will help employees and their communities respond to the child and elder care responsibilities of working families. The fund is managed in cooperation with WFD, Inc., a leading consultant in work/life issues, based out of Boston, USA.

 

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