East Bay Preschool Guide

Always Learning and Growing has been leading small groups of kids on outdoor learning adventures in the Berkeley area for the last 3 years. These forest school classes offer children ages 3-6 yrs experiential learning with opportunities for the development of physical and social skills. After school classes for 6-8 yr olds too.

Berkeley Rose nurtures the imagination with a media-free childhood. As in a cozy home, cooking, home-care, painting, sewing, puppet plays, stories, singing, rhymes, verse, movement, crafts, and free play provide for the children a gentle, stress-free experience of school.

BCSO is a family-first school combining child-centered learning through creative play with parent enrichment that extends developmentally appropriate learning deep into the home. BCSO cultivates a committed community that offers families a bedrock of support, knowledge-sharing and friendship.

CCC is a play-based cooperative preschool. Based on the principles that children grow and learn best through play, a major goal of the developmental program is to focus on appropriate social interactions. CCC is committed to the ideals of anti-bias and non-exclusionary play.

Curious Explorers Academy is committed to spirited learning, growth, and development of preschool children. They empower young students to ask insightful questions and explore in a fun, safe, child-centered environment.

The East Bay German International School is a dual-language immersion school offering preschool through high school programs. The early childhood program is based on early immersion principles, focuses on social-emotional skills, and uses free and guided play to teach and inspire.

The EB preschool revolves around children (ages 2 to 4) as intrinsically curious and active learners. They are project-centered and play-based, taking inspiration from Montessori tasks and Reggio project approach. The children are immersed in French language and culture, approximately 80% of the day.

ECPC is a play-based parent cooperative with a goal to provide a happy, safe, and supportive environment that contributes to children’s emotional and social development. They believe children learn best through self-directed play, and they provide experiences to suit the varied needs of growing children in an indoor/outdoor space.

EBI’s pe-kinder Spanish immersion program provides a nurturing learning environment where students explore their environment through play. Rooted in the International Baccalaureate (IB) with Reggio Emilia influences, our youngest students are engaged in learning and socio-emotional development.

Ganeinu Preschool is a Reggio-inspired, Jewish preschool located in El Cerrito. This small, nurturing, home-based program gives every child individual attention and the families create a beautiful community. Since "Ganeinu" means "Our Garden", they strive to create the optimal conditions for every child's well being and growth.

The JCC’s award-winning Preschool is a play-based, nurturing place for early childhood education. Each day includes group activities, music, art, and team projects as well as individual, creative exploration.

KSS is the oldest Spanish immersion program in the Bay Area using the best elements of play-based and academic-themed curriculum that prepares kids to succeed socially, emotionally and academically. Additional locations in Oakland, Walnut Creek, and San Jose.

KLA Schools of Walnut Creek is a Reggio Emilia-inspired preschool that believes in the infinite capabilities within each child. Every classroom offers low ratios, highly qualified teachers, and intentional experiences supporting your child's development. Serving children as young as 3-months all the way through Kindergarten.

Sensory play-based preschool using evidence-based multisensory approaches to foster learning. Designed by an occupational therapist (OT), the space inspires exploratory play. The team provides enrichment for cognitive, social and emotional growth, while instilling the value of community responsibility in children.

Little Roses Preschool offers an inspiring play-based curriculum, nestled in the heart of small town Crockett. Play engages the whole person, awakens curiosity and leads children to wonder about themselves, one another, and the world. This one-classroom school is limited to a stable group of 12 children.

MCPC is a vibrant community of 25 families who celebrate both their differences and commonalities in a diverse, inclusive school. As the oldest cooperative preschool in Oakland (1933), MCPC emphasizes social-emotional learning through creative problem solving and conflict resolution — all while providing a joyous free-play preschool experience.

Founded in 1981, Montessori Family School offers a dynamic and spacious Montessori program with open-air interactive projects including art, music, science, Spanish, math, language arts, and much more. Contact them for a tour. Now enrolling for 2020 and 2021.

Oak Grove Learning is a recently opened 18 month - Kindergarten academic Montessori curriculum educational environment. The focus is to ensure that all children connect with each other and the materials in a loving, safe and supportive setting. See the 510families Spotlight on Oak Grove.

Prospect Sierra’s transitional kindergarten is designed for four- and five-year-olds who are ready to learn by doing. The program is designed to help students to develop empathy, find joy in learning, and cultivate strong pre-academic skills.

Rockridge Little School has three Oakland neighborhood schools for children ages 2-5. Their goal is to bring forth the passions and curiosity already within each child by introducing ideas and concepts that inspire. Bright classrooms filled with materials to engage and support. Also 5918 Taft Ave.

Shu Ren International School is an inquiry-based, 100% Mandarin immersion program from early childhood (2 years old) to Grade 6 focusing on three critical components: inquiry-based learning; multilingual and multicultural education; and development of the whole child.

Step One School has a forty year history of dynamic, thoughtful, and innovative early education that speaks to the whole child. This vibrant community gives children the healthy foundation they need to reach their full potential as learners and human beings.

The Children's Workshop Oakland is a small, Reggio-inspired, play-based preschool fostering social, emotional, intellectual, and physical growth through sensory exploration and child-centered project work. Conveniently located in the Grand Lake area of Oakland with a full-day, year-round program for children ages 2-5 years old.

The Montessori program's core curriculum includes practical life, sensorial, language, literature, art, music, mathematics, and French/English or Spanish/English language immersion. TRIS provides students with a high-quality education in a multicultural environment designed to create compassionate, capable, confident, creative individuals.