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Oakland, CA
Narnia Preschool

Parents at this school would recommend this school to other parents.

Review this preschool

neighborhood: Redwood Heights / Skyline / Ridgemont ·  Telephone: (510)-531-5546 ext. 1  · Website: www.narniaps.com

• Summary
• General Info
• School Philosophy
  & Day-in-the-Life
• Curriculum &
  Teaching Approach
• Quality of
  Teaching
• Home/School
  Connection
• Discipline,
  Health & Safety
• Ages, Schedule
  & Tuition
• Application &
  Admissions
• Kindergarten
  Placement&Tips

General Approach to Learning

	Play-based
	Play-based with some structure
	Predominantly teacher-led instruction
	Montessori
	Waldorf
	Co-op
	Reggio-Emilia

source:

Director's Comments

Our focus is to encourage children to learn through play. Some structure is provided to guide them through out their day, within this structure there is some flexibility to accomodate the child's need. In addition, a weekly balanced curriculum is carefully planned to motivate children to explore and learn.

Social Skills & Work Habits

OVERALL RATING (5.0)
This school has increased my child's:
Ability to listen and follow directions
Ability to sit still for longer periods of time
Ability to be a part of a group of children
Self-sufficiency and independence
Awareness of others’ feelings
Cooperation with other children

source:

Curriculum and Teaching Approach

	PLAY-BASED	PLAY-BASED WITH SOME STRUCTURE	MOSTLY TEACHER LED	NOT FORMALLY IN CURRICULUM	CONDUCIVE ENVIRONMENT
Language					Yes
Oral language	-			-	n/a
Nursery rhymes, poems, songs	-			-	n/a
Storybook reading	-			-	n/a
Emerging literacy skills	-			-	n/a
Cognitive Development					n/a
Math and number sense	-			-	Yes
Time & space	-			-	Yes
Sci. reasoning/physical world	-			-	Yes
Music	-	-		-	Yes
Visual arts	-		-	-	Yes
Physical activity	-			-	Yes
Other subjects taught	The schoool has a strong emphasis on art, music, movement, creative drama and storytelling.				n/a

source:

Director's Comments

There are different stations throughout the classroom- dress up, reading, art, blocks manipulative areas and so on. This is balanced with some more structured times which include storytelling, creative drama and music. As the children get older, we do some work prereading, writing and math activities to be sure they are prepared for acceptance in the kindergarten of their parents choosing.

Parents' Comments

Parent #1
I don't know that I can answer these questions accurately, but in general the teacher would lead certain activities, such as music and story-telling, but the kids could participate in various ways and were not required to participate. Other activities were set up but not required, though children were generally encouraged to participate, and there were usually a few choices.