Summary
Contact Info
Kiddie Kampus Co-op Preschool
1711 2nd Street
Alameda
, CA
94501
www.kiddiekampusalameda.org
Tel:
(510)-521-1218 ext. 5303735
Director:
Michelle Carnahan
Momlovesrent@aol.com
Admissions Director:
Jenn Balaian
General Approach to Learning
 |
Play-based with some structure |
|
| Predominantly teacher-led instruction |
|
Co-op |
Application Information
| Deadline for applications |
Rolling |
Key Statistics
| Student/teacher ratio |
4:1 |
| Age cutoff for enrollment |
2 years and 9 months |
| School year |
Year round program |
| Summer Program |
07/2008 - 08/2008 |
Kindergarten Placement
Parent Ratings
| Parents at this school would recommend this school to other parents. |
|
| Quality of teaching |
|
| Development of social skills and work habits |
|
| Home-school connection |
|
| Parent community |
|
| Discipline |
|
| Facilities |
|
| Health |
|
| Safety |
|
| Handling of separation |
|
Survey Information
Number of parents surveyed:
9
Director survey: Yes
Savvy Source survey: Yes
Parents who send their child to this preschool also like the following preschools:
General Info
Basic Stats
| Student/teacher ratio |
4:1
|
| Average tenure for teachers |
5 yrs.
|
% of teachers with:
| - Teaching credentials |
100%
|
Transportation and Drop-off Policies
Transportation
Dropoff Procedure
Features of the Preschool
| Provide a kindergarten and elementary school program |
No
|
| Affiliated with a religious institution |
No
|
| Teach religious concepts |
No
|
| Some experience serving children with special needs |
No
|
Accreditation, Membership & Awards
| Accreditation by the National Association of Young Children |
No
|
Other Accreditations
Facilities
| CONDITION OF FACILITIES RATING (4.7) |
|
| Building, bathrooms, hallway |
|
| Classroom equipment and furniture |
|
| Outside play equipment |
|
Facilities Include:
| Classrooms (with bathroom attached) |
|
| Classrooms (with kitchenette attached) |
|
| Music room |
|
| Art room |
|
| Library |
|
|
Playground
|
|
Director's Comments
Question to director: Do you have any additional thoughts on what parents should consider when looking at your school? Is there any advice that you would like to provide to prospective parents?
Do parents like to work with children and be involved in day-to-day operations of a co-op?
Do they have sufficient time to commit?
Come and experience the magic of Kiddie Kampus, a garden where you and your child can grow together.
Parents' Comments
Parent #1
The head teacher of Kiddie Kampus is amazing.
Parent #2
small size and large teach/parent:students ratio. love that it is cooperative school. it has great emphasis on free play and art based. great outdoor play space
Parent #3
The teachers are both exceptional. They run the class smoothly and treat every child with kindness and respect. The community has also been wonderful to be a part of. A Coop preschool is alot of work but is worth it. My family has been incredibly enriched by our Kiddie Kampus experience and I recommend it highly.
Parent #4
Our school allows children to gain independence and confidence in socializing with lots of other kids and adults.
Parent #5
At a traditional school (Montessori or other) children learn data. At a play based school children learn 'to enjoy learning' by actively observing the world around them and by learning to respectfully interact with each other. Play based pre-schools, I believe, are not for parents who want their children to be airtight deposit boxes of information. Certainly, most taught-taught children will outdo most of our school's children at spitting out memorized information. Research does show that by the 5th grade, however play-based taught children are very much engaged and their curiosity is still running strong while the taught child's interest/performance has decreased.
Parent #6
The one problem with cooperative preschools is parents who do not understand the high level of participation needed to be a member of a coop. Every family has to 'pull their weight' for the school to run smoothly. Luckily, we currently have a wonderful group of families who are enthusiastic about our daily explorations and learning. They are also willing to pitch in with running/managing the school and maintaining its policies.
School Philosophy & Day in the Life
School Philosophy and Mission
The mission of Kiddie Kampus Parent Cooperative is to offer pre-school age children and their families a dynamic, hands-on early childhood program which is play-based and arts-rich.
Our emergent curriculum takes its cues from the children's interests and honors their natural intelligence and imagination.
We provide a full spectrum of developmentally appropriate activities that address all learning styles, evoke young children's curiosity and nurture a lifelong love of learning. We offer inviting playstations and educational resources that enrich individual growth, encourage exploration and creativity, and expand knowledge. Our activities include dramatic play, music, movement, gardening, recycling, open-ended art, storytelling, nature study, outdoor games, languages, cooking, science, math, literacy building games, self-help skills, and a year-round study of world cultures and traditions.
We believe that the best learning comes from intrinsic motivation. Here, parents and teacher work closely together to help children make wise choices, to offer guidance, model positive anti-bias behaviors and help children peaceably resolve conflicts.
Parents who participate at Kiddie Kampus are the backbone of our program and appreciate the opportunity to get fully involved in their child's preschool experience.
At Kiddie Kampus we provide a safe, nurturing environment that works with the whole child - socially, emotionally, cognitively and physically. We know that once motivated, each child, a unique individual, can grow to his/her fullest potential, lovingly nurtured by caring parents working closely with a professional educator.
Typical Day-In-The-Life At This School
All children ages 2.9-5 years arrive at 9am.
At 9:15 the young Pandas come inside for circle and music, then return to the playground.
At 9:30 the Lions come in for circle, which incorporates activities to develop pre-K literacy skills and encourage critical thinking and more advanced problem solving.
The Lions remain in the classroom for a 40 minute free play period while the Pandas play outdoors.
All reconvene at 10:15 for potty, hand washing and snack.
After snack, the two groups gather for stories, then switch.
At 11:30, the Pandas go outside and working parents clean the space.
The day ends with a closing circle and dismissal at noon.
Quality of Teaching
Teachers Are:
| OVERALL RATING: (4.4) |
|
| Full of energy and seemingly happy in job |
|
| Patient and affectionate with children |
|
| Talks with children and listens carefully when they are talking with him/her |
|
| Praises children for accomplishments and good behavior |
|
| Provides feedback on what my child does during the day |
|
| Shares insights on my child that are helpful and accurate |
|
| Identifies my child’s strengths and weaknesses |
|
| If necessary, provides additional support to my child during pickup and drop-off |
|
| Resolves disputes quickly, calmly and fairly in a manner that allows children to learn from the dispute |
|
| Notices children who are not on task and/or engaging with other children appropriately and quickly reengages them |
|
| Manages the energy level of the children so that all children feel safe and able to learn |
|
| Provides additional support to a child when s/he is clearly failing in her/his efforts |
|
| Strikes the proper balance between active and quiet play for children |
|
Director's Comments on Individualized Teaching
Parents' Comments
Parent #1
Our school is a parent cooperative, meaning we have a different set of parents assigned to work in the school on each day of the week. The parents rotate between art, exploration, outside, and snack duties. Our families attend monthly meetings for in-house training on a wide spectrum of ECE topics that reinforce consistency within our loosely structured play based program. Our families come from all over the world and are encouraged to explore not only their multicultural heritage but also family hobbies and parent's profession are shared with the students. Our high level of parent participation allows us to take the children on monthly fieldtrips and undertake large projects like our beautiful vegetable garden and wildflower plots.
Parent #2
Because our school is a co-op with only one teacher/director, we all engage with the children as our teacher's assistant.
We are all required to meet before the beginning of school to go over the day's activities and for instruction from the director. Our input is highly welcomed and, as a community, we encourage one another by drawing on every individual's strength.
Many of us are educators and many more work in areas that significantly enhance the level of care our children receive. I am a high school teacher of foreign languages.
Our school has college level instructors (currently about 4), we've had learning specialists who specialized in early childhood development, nutritionists, trained health care professionals to mention a few. We also count on the expertise of an amazing carpenter who readily fixed a major dry-rot problem in our main play structure on short-notice, quickly, and for a fraction of what our school would have had to pay if we'd hired someone. We have musicians--boy do the kids appreciate a good percussionist! Horn player! etc...
We are a diverse mix and we all thrive on the mutual respect we give each other as we know that we all stand to gain from each other.
Our lack of training at the professional level is balanced by our ability and willingness to learn from the workshops we demand from our director at meetings. She is a paid expert and we constantly remind her to make us better helpers in this area. It makes her job easier, we can help our children better and it helps us see things from a different perspective.
Parent #3
Our teacher clearly loves being with children and is incredibly creative and fun in her interactions. My daughter loves her!
Parent #4
The teacher handles situations with authority and kindness.
Home School Connection
Home-School Connection
| OVERALL RATING (4.4) |
|
| Conducts an open house at start of school year |
|
| Conducts a parent-teacher meeting at start of school year |
|
| Conducts regular parent teacher conferences |
|
| Provides summary of child’s learning at end of year |
|
| Provides guidance on developmental goals for the following year |
|
| Provides guidance on best Kindergarten and elementary schools |
|
Director's Comments
We do this via the following avenues: conferences (formal and informal), newsletters, parent education trainings at General Meetings, postings of local services and thematic curriculum on Parent Boards. We do however provide Kindergarten readiness workshops and information to parents.
Separation
|
|
-
Pre-entry meetings with parents at school
|
|
-
Extra staff dedicated to handle separation
|
|
-
Parents in classroom early on
|
Director's and Parents' Comments
Director's Comments
We start with the parent accompanying their child, then gradually weaning them from the parent as they start to integrate with the school community and bond with individuals. Children need the assurance that the parent will return and that they will not be abandoned. They also need to bond with another caring adult.
Parents' Comments
Parent #1
We allow our parents to stay at the school for as long as it takes for their child to feel comfortable on their own. Our students start through-out the year so the teacher and working parents are able to focus on each child's individual adjustment period. We have 3-5 parents working each day and one is assigned to help the new child adjust and adapt to our program.
Parent #2
Although we are a 'PLAY BASED school', Kiddie Kampus actively TEACHES children to be curious explorers of the world around them. Most of our four year old students, for example, will readily explain experiments/activities they have done that were lots of fun (and educational): gardening, counting in different languages, art projects, learning their ABC's in more interesting ways than just memorizing the good old abc song, learning about music by observing and dancing to live music, finger painting/story making, learning about different cultures--trips to Chinatown, pinata making, black history month, etc... . Most importantly, our kids learn by doing, putting to use ALL their senses--getting their fingers and bodies into the lesson and not just tracing letters or gluing ready-made cut-out 'projects'. Our school is as diverse as our community is and each parent brings their own professional and lived experience as their contribution and template for 'lesson plans' they wish to share with the community.
Parent #3
Because this is a co-op, you get to know the other families and kids in a way that you just can't in other environments. And your child gets to know the other parents and kids in a way that they just won't in another school. People are really supportive of each other.
Parent Community
| COHESIVENESS RATING (4.4) |
Parents:
Modes of Communication Between School and Home
Discipline, Health and Safety
Discipline
| OVERALL RATING (4.1) |
|
| Parents at this school, on average, believe that conflicts between children:
are handled extraordinarily well in a way that not only gives me confidence in the safety of my child but also reassures me that my child (and his/her peers) are learning the early skills needed to socialize effectively with one another
| |
Overview
Director's Description of Approach Toward Discipline
We will be using positive reinforcements that focuses on teaching children appropriate social behavior and encourages a positive sense of self. We define "appropriate behavior" as behavior that is safe to one and others, behavior that is respectful to one and others and actions, which create positive results. We will convey this to the children by having three rules. "You must be Safe, Kind and Clean."
Director's Response to a Sample Discipline Scenario
Description of how teachers handle the following scenario: Child A and Child B are good friends and usually play together. One day, Child A decides to play with Child C and tells Child B, 'I don't want to play with you today. I'm playing with Child C instead.'
Young children get possessive when it comes to sharing their special friends. Jealousies flare and children often feel rejected or unloved by the one who was closest to them. A caring adult can intervene to clarify the situation, assure the child that friendships can expand, and offer options: 'You can join this special group and see your friend in minutes, let's set the timer. You can help me until your friend is ready to play.'
Parents' Notes on Discipline, Health and Safety
Parents' Comments
Parent #1
The snack is nutritious, organic and tasty, with input from the families welcome. the cleaning supplies are nontoxic and the class is cleaned daily. toys and facilities are continually being upgraded.
Health
| OVERALL RATING (4.9) |
|
| Temperature and overall air circulation is comfortable |
|
| Healthy and nutritious snacks are provided
|
|
| Toys and furniture are cleaned regularly |
|
Food Allergies
Medications
Safety
| OVERALL RATING (4.6) |
|
| Screen and identify all visitors
|
|
| Parents may not bring sick children to school where they may infect others |
|
Ages, Schedule & Tuition
Ages, Class Size, Days & Tuition
| Ages |
Class Size |
Days |
Tuition |
|
From
2 years
9 months
to --
|
24 |
Mon 9am - 12pm
Tue 9am - 12pm
Wed 9am - 12pm
Thu 9am - 12pm
Fri 9am - 12pm
|
$255/Month |
Extended Care
Notes on Schedule and Extended Care
Notes
Children attending 3 days a week- $193/month
Children attending 4 days a week-$254/month
Children attending 5 days a week-$315/month
Calendar Year
School Year
Summer Program
Kindergarten Placement & Tips
Parents' Admission Tips
Advice from Parents to Prospective Parents on Admissions
Parent #1
We applied to start our daughter in the summer program.
Parent #2
I expressed my genuine interest in being an active member of the community.
