19 minute read
Featured Preschool Profiles
PRESCHOOL PROFILES California Crosspoint Academy
CALIFORNIA CROSSPOINT ACADEMY Pre-school to 12th Grade
CCA takes learning very seriously, and our academic record speaks for itself. 100% of our grads go on to college or the military. Founded in 1979, our academics rank among the very best in the nation with graduates accepted by UC Berkeley, UCLA, Yale, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and West Point.
Our small high school classes, 20 Advanced Placement and Honors courses, and 7:1 student to faculty ratio make for an intimate, creative, and collaborative learning environment. With “Access to Opportunities” for all students, individuals are encouraged and challenged to try a new sport, participate in performing arts for the first time, run for student government, and start a new club that matches their passion. Our formative grades provide a multi-faceted experience preparing our students to enter our high school programs seamlessly. Middle school students are introduced to high school level academics, foreign language acquisition and extracurricular activities. Elementary and preschool students learn character development as well as academics in a well-rounded and welcoming setting. Creative and technology resources motivate all our students through hands-on classroom activities, outdoor education, and field trips. Our highly qualified faculty, 60% of whom have Master’s or Ph.D.’s, are not simply instructors, but tutors and mentors for our student body. California Crosspoint Academy is often described as family. We care about and care for one another. Life-long student relationships develop through eight team sports for boys and girls, student led clubs, and class trips both domestic and abroad. Walk through the halls, talk to our people, and you will quickly realize there is something special here. We seek to minister to the entire student and develop young people to be academically strong as well as spiritually and emotionally healthy. Our motto “Transforming Lives for the Glory of God” and our mission to fully equip students to discover God’s will and purpose for their individual life create this foundation.
Stats for the CCA University Preparatory Program: • 100% of our grads go on to college or the military • 90% accepted into 4 year colleges • Average class size 15-18 (high school) / 20 (K-12) • Scholarship program available To learn more or to schedule a visit, contact us at www.crosspointacademy.org
The East Bay German International School (EBGIS) is a dual-language immersion school offering preschool through ninth-grade programs. Its integrated curriculum features project-based learning and an international perspective. Small class sizes allow EBGIS teachers to nurture and support each student based on their unique needs. The EBGIS Early Childhood Program employs a play-based and project-oriented approach widely used in Germany. The highly trained and experienced international faculty uses early immersion principles to expand children’s communicative competencies in German and English. In-class projects are developed by an interdisciplinary team based on seasonal rhythms and students’ interests. A pre-academic curriculum including language, intercultural studies, science, mathematics, music, movement and art is taught in an engaging and developmentally appropriate way. Social and emotional skills development infuses every school day. EBGIS prioritizes in-person instruction with rigorous health and safety measures. Touchless check-in/check-out, regular handwashing at newly installed touchless sinks, and frequent access to an array of outdoor play spaces are just some of the adaptations maximizing the safety of students, staff and families. No prior knowledge of German is needed for admission to EBGIS Preschool or Kindergarten. Students acquire German by immersion through daily routines, activities and interactions. Teachers nurture language development through intentional conversations, visual materials, gestures and modeling. EBGIS preschoolers and kindergarteners – more than half of whom do not speak German at home – transition successfully to the EBGIS grades program. EBGIS accepts preschool students beginning at 24 months of age. The regular school day runs from 8:30am to 2pm with drop-off beginning at 8am. Extended day options are available until 6pm. The spacious and centrally located campus features large modern classrooms with ample natural light, a bilingual library, and generous indoor and outdoor play spaces. The preschool program includes a dedicated mini-campus adjacent to the main school campus. Register for an Open House or Online Information Session at https://www.ebgis.org/admissions/visit-us. Private tours are also available upon request. Contact admissions@ebgis.org
PRESCHOOL PROFILES Challenger School
IN 1960, WHILE TEACHING In a public school, Challenger School founder and CEO Barbara Baker became alarmed that her first grade students had received no academics in kindergarten, wasting the best years for establishing a foundation for learning. Barbara decided to leave the comfort of the public schools and started her own preschool where she could teach phonics to children before they went to public school. “I figured that if they learned phonics in preschool, no one could take that away from them.”
In Barbara’s first class, there were only six paying students. Two years later the tiny preschool had grown to 100 half-day preschool students with 100 students waiting for admission. Today, Challenger School educates more than 10,000 students annually.
THINKING SKILLS Challenger School teaches students early on that they are responsible for their own learning and for their successes. Challenger’s emphasis on independent reasoning skills–so rarely practiced in today’s world–results in their students’ extraordinary academic performance.
POISE AND CONFIDENCE Challenger students regularly speak and perform before their peers, teachers, and parents from preschool on. Challenger graduates often point to these experiences as the basis for success in college and the workplace. BREATHTAKING RESULTS On national standardized tests, Challenger K-8 students consistently average well above the 90th percentile. This means that Challenger’s average student outperforms nine out of ten students who take that test. Challenger School offers preschool through eighth grade and operates a total of 27 campuses in five western states. For a location near you, visit ChallengerSchool.com.
Our mission is to prepare children to become selfreliant, productive individuals; to teach them to think, speak, and write with clarity, precision, and independence; to lead them to recognize and value their individuality and unalienable rights; and to inspire them to embrace challenge and find joy and self-worth through achievement.
Coastline Christian Schools
Coastline Christian Schools was established in 1979 and provides a comprehensive K-8 Christian education along with a K-8 Mandarin language program. Coastline Christian Schools is fully accredited by the WASC and ACSI. One size does not fit all, and one teaching method does not suit every lesson or student. Our teachers pay close attention and develop caring relationships with our students, allowing for the adaptation of curricula to meet the social, emotional, and educational needs of everyone. Students at Coastline Christian are enriched by athletics, volunteer opportunities, class trips, and other extracurricular activities. While our school is known for its academic focus, our desire is to help students from varied cultural backgrounds grow in a positive and caring community. CCS equips its students spiritually, academically, emotionally, socially, and physically so they can serve God, their families, and their community with compassion, resilience, innovation, and leadership.
1629 Carlson Blvd Richmond Annex, CA 94804 510.526.7847 www.nomurapreschool.com
WINNER
Welcome to Nomura Preschool.
Nomura Preschool is a nurturing environment for children ages two to five years old, serving Albany, El Cerrito, Berkeley, Richmond, Hercules and other East Bay families since 1964. Our dedicated, experienced preschool teachers provide a balanced program that includes age-appropriate academics, enriching art and music, creative free play and stimulating physical activities. We are open year round and conveniently located near I-80, I-580 and BART Please contact us to learn more about the application process.
975 North San Carlos Drive Walnut Creek, CA 94598 925-933-0666 www.sevenhillsschool.org
The Seven Hills School
Serving preschool through 8th grade in the East Bay since 1962
Our Reggio-inspired Early Childhood Education program serves the youngest learners at the school and begins the foundation for what it means to be a lifelong learner. In the ECE program, we attend to the intellectual, physical, social, and emotional needs of each child. Our focus is on the development of the whole child through an environment that encourages inquiry, within a malleable process of learning. We instill positive values from the earliest age–integrity, cooperation, respect, and responsibility–and give students the skills to thrive in an evolving world. Sign up for a tour on our website and see our community in action!
Escuela Bilingüe Internacional
Escuela Bilingüe Internacional (EBI) offers a PK-8 multilingual, international education that inspires students to engage with a changing global world with both character and empathy. As an International Baccalaureate (IB) certified school in the heart of the East Bay, EBI's program is designed to prepare students to actively engage with a changing world. At EBI, Pre-Kinder to grade 8 students learn in an immersive Spanish language environment, where they begin their journey of cultural awareness and develop fluency in a language other than English. With the addition of Mandarin in grade 3, students expand their cultural and linguistic competencies. Graduates of EBI are fully literate in both Spanish and English and have basic conversational skills in Mandarin. EBI’s Language Acquisition Track in the Middle School allows students with little to no Spanish background to also engage in an immersive Spanish language environment through accelerated Spanish language classes and electives to develop their fluency. Engage. Be Global. Inspire. EBI students have an astute awareness of their role as members of the global community. From that awareness, our students are positioned to transform the world. EBI develops students with a lifelong love of learning, which translates into a lifetime of opportunity. Dr. Paola Clark, EBI’s Head of School, understands the value of language immersion education and the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, as an alumna, educator, administrator and IB examiner. EBI is one of four independent schools in the United States that provides a PK-8 IB education in a Spanish-English immersion program and the only one on the West Coast,” said Dr. Clark. “We often hear that the world is becoming a smaller place as a result of globalization. I firmly believe that as the world continues to become smaller, EBI becomes bigger, stronger, and more relevant because of its mission and core values.”
We invite you to join us on an upcoming tour, Information Session and Diversity Reception. You are also welcome to join our free Spanish Story time (Cuenta Cuentos) every second Saturday of the month, one of our many enrichment courses or participate in one of our summer camps. We look forward to meeting you soon! Sara Varela-Acevedo admissions@ebinternacional.org
PK to Grade 1 | 410 Alcatraz Ave • Oakland • CA • 94609 • 510-653-3324 Grades 2 to 8 | 4550 San Pablo Ave • Emeryville • CA • 94608 • 510-652-7094 www.ebi.school
490 Golf Club Road Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 925-687-5321 www.cilmontessori.org
Choice in Learning Montessori
Welcome to Pleasant Hill’s first intergenerational preschool! We use the Montessori philosophy to educate the whole child from ages two through six. Through interactions with our elderly friends next door at Choice in Aging, our children learn to respect the dignity of all human life.
We have created a place where children and families feel safe, welcome and supported. Our purpose is to educate the young child in the spirit of Montessori while at the same time challenging the child to become part of a global environment governed by mindfulness toward young and aging alike.
Come by and visit!
8115 Fontaine St Oakland, CA 94605 510-430-1322 www.oakgrovelearning.com
Oak Grove Learning
Oak Grove Learning is an exciting new school providing a whole-child, Montessori curriculum for children 18 months through Kindergarten. Children are provided breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack to support building a strong academic foundation.
Oak Grove is set in a warm and nurturing environment that supports and encourages children to delve deep into their activities and projects throughout the day. Spanish instruction is incorporated into the weekly curriculum for each child. Oak Grove hopes to instill a spark inside of each child that will inspire a love of learning that they carry with them through life.
Multiple Locations Throughout the Bay Area www.stratfordschools.com
When you embrace social and emotional development, the extraordinary happens.
At Stratford, high expectations yield extraordinary results. We start early with an intentionally balanced curriculum that challenges students and accelerates achievement. Our ever-evolving, STEAMbased (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) curriculum ensures students develop the diverse set of problem-solving skills and creative talents they’ll need in today’s world. Our passionate teachers cultivate a nurturing and fun classroom environment, where children feel safe and eager to try new things. Beyond the classroom, we help students discover and define their passions through a variety of extracurricular activities, personal development, and enrichment. This carefully orchestrated approach prepares students to become tomorrow’s creative problem-solvers, imaginative innovators, and confident, insightful leaders. Learn more by visiting www.stratfordschools.com!
Parents Press
BEST OF 2022 2022
WINNER
2226 Encinal Avenue Alameda, CA 94501 510.521.0595 x1 www.thechildunique.org
The Child Unique Montessori School
OUR MISSION is to create a warm, supportive environment, that fosters creativity, curiosity, self-confidence and independence within a diverse community. We empower students to become compassionate models of peace and advocates for social justice. We are seeking parents with a commitment to create the safest school community possible. Our school has created a nationally sought after Covid-19 precaution protocol to create the safest way to interact with our children and families. Take a virtual tour and see what we have done.
– Join us!
1009 Heinz Ave. Berkeley, CA 94710 510-809-0641 www.eb.org/visit
Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley is a preschool to 8th grade international school located in Berkeley, California. The school's immersion model means students are exposed to a foreign language, French, for the majority of the day. Students learn different subject matters in both French and English and are able to draw parallels and points of similarities learning in two languages. Students benefit from an incredibly diverse community and evolve into respectful and caring individuals. New students enroll in Preschool (age 2), Kindergarten, Grade 1 and 2, or attend our Middle School International Track Starting in Grade 6. At Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley, we believe that when students see the world without borders or barriers, they can confidently and capably seize any opportunity. To schedule a tour, register online at www.eb.org/visit For more information, please contact Admissions office: admissions@eb.org or call (510) 809-0615
1273 N. Livermore Avenue Livermore, CA 94551 925-455-8021 www.vmschool.org
Valley Montessori School
Valley Montessori School is the largest notfor-profit, and only triple accredited school in California. Established in Livermore in 1976, it is a nationally recognized, model Montessori school for children 18 months through 8th grade. Accreditations include: the American Montessori Society (AMS), the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). VMS is a certified California Green Business making it one of only two schools in the Tri-Valley with this distinguished honor. The six acre hilltop campus boasts an Edible Schoolyard, complete with a vegetable garden, sustainable chicken coop and fruit orchard providing endless practical life opportunities, plus snacks for the classrooms. Montessori education and experiences open the world to children developing engaged, responsible, respectful and empowered citizens with an appreciation that learning is for life.
4101 Park Blvd Oakland, CA 94602 510-214-6711 www.lespetitsfrancophones.org Les Petits Francophones provides a French immersion preschool experience in a safe, joyful environment that recognizes each child's uniqueness and fosters growth, exploration, movement and connection to each other and the world.
Our curriculum offers a balance of child initiated activities as well as teacher lead activities to allow each child to prosper academically and developmentally using his or her preferred styles.
"We absolutely love les Petits Francophones!! Not only is it an amazing environment, curriculum, small student to teacher ration, perfect blend of learning through creative play, and supportive community of parents.". - Mikaela T.
Rockridge Montessori School
Rockridge Montessori School is celebrating 34 years of education, community and achievement! The curriculum and teacher experience ensures each child enjoys the wonders of the specialized activities and projects at school. Set in a warm and nurturing environment that supports each child's stage of development. Our program focuses on the whole child ensuring a life long love of learning. We offer an infant/toddler program for children 12-24 months of age as well as a preschool and kindergarten program. Visit our website for a virtual tour today!
KSS Immersion Preschools – Give Your Child the Gift of Multilingualism KSS Immersion Preschools specialize in Spanish language immersion programs for preschoolers in the San Francisco Bay Area including Albany, Oakland, San Jose, and Walnut Creek. Children ages two-six (2-6) can enroll in these programs and improve their learning outcomes in a safe and compliant setting. Language immersion preschool offers lifelong benefits and proven to increase cognitive development and academic readiness. Plus, nurturing instructors not only facilitate children’s emotional and social development, they also provide them with a culturally rich perspective that translates to confidence at school and in life! As student’s progress through their classes, they are well-prepared for kindergarten and empowered to be unique, confident individuals. Give your child the gift of multilingualism by calling 877-442-2555 to apply or schedule a tour. Visit our website at ksspreschool.com
2125 Jefferson Ave | Berkeley • 510-841-8899 540 Sands Dr, Bldg B | San Jose • 408-508-6259 www.shurenschool.com
Shu Ren International School
…Go Beyond the Ordinary Shu Ren International School derived its name from the Chinese proverb, "十年树木,百年树人 It will take 10 years to grow a tree, but a lifetime to cultivate a person’s potential.” Shu Ren is committed to delivering an enriching and engaging environment that focuses on three critical components: Inquiry-based learning, multilingual and multicultural education, and development of the whole child, which we believe are essential to navigate an increasingly complex and ever-changing world. Shu Ren…The Importance of Cultural Fitness Shu Ren’s vision is committed to empowering students to become internationally-minded critical thinkers and lifelong learners. Through our engaging, inquiry-based environment students reach their full academic potential and become caring, multilingual, and culturally literate global citizens. Now Accepting Applications for Preschool – Grade 5. Learn more at www.shurenschool.com.
925 Village Center, Suite 2 Lafayette, CA 94549 925-962-9177 www.vivaelespanol.org
Viva el Español Language Academy
Viva el Español is a national leader in early childhood Spanish language education. We believe that learning a foreign language in the pre-school and elementary school years is an essential part of a child's education and development. The Viva el Español Spanish immersion program is based on activities that encourage learning through active participation, including music, movement, role-playing, games, stories, arts and crafts, cooking and cultural activities. Students grouped by level of proficiency rather than strictly by grade level.
Happy Days Learning Center
Happy Days Learning Center is a year-round preschool and school-aged children's program. Our nurturing environment provides developmentally appropriate play and learning activities for children ages 2 to 11. At Happy Days Learning Center we have been providing a quality educational experience to the community for more than 30 years. Our goal is to provide a warm receptive learning environment, to stimulate curiosity within the younger learner, to encourage and foster each child’s uniqueness and to facilitate an acquisition of a healthy self-concept. We believe that play is a child's work.
3650 Dimond Ave, Oakland 5201 Park Boulevard, Piedmont 510-531-8566 www.therenaissanceschool.org
The Renaissance International School
Beyond the Expected
The Renaissance International School (TRIS) is a Montessori school with campuses in Oakland and Piedmont for students age two years old through middle school.
Our faculty and student body are a diverse, international community representing numerous countries, ethnic groups, and religions. We teach students to be independent thinkers who conduct their own research, and are proficient communicators. There are many ways that each student learns best, and we are flexible and creative in addressing students’ individual learning styles. In addition to the full substance of a traditional curriculum, our program includes exceptional visual arts and music programs, outdoor education, and international travel. In our language immersion program students become fluent in reading, writing, and speaking English, French, and Spanish under the guidance of native speakers.
Locations in Albany and El Cerrito 510-778-4560 www.littlelambbilingual.com Email us: admin@littlelambbilingual.com
Little Lamb Bilingual Preschool
We are a Chinese immersion play-based preschool, in the Albany-El Cerrito area, serving children 1.5 - 5 years old to thrive cognitively, physically, and most importantly, socio-emotionally, by providing a loving and nurturing environment. Our Chinese-immersion program helps your child lay down a solid foundation of mandarin Chinese at the best age. Our structured play-based curriculum enables children to learn most and fastest through their "hands-on" playing and exploring experiences based on their own pace with their unique strengths, interests, and learning styles. Our philosophy is that we believe children will thrive through the whole child development, love, handson play, and family-school partnership. Now accepting enrollment applications for the 2023-2024 school year!
