Our Emergent Curriculum  

At Brooklyn Sandbox our early childhood educators make their plans based their observations of the children’s evolving interests and competencies rather than a predetermined planned unit of study. Our approach is inspired by that of the preschools of Reggio Emilia, Italy where children drive the curriculum. The teacher’s role is that of a facilitator rather than a leader of instruction. 

Daily provocations are planned open-ended activities designed to promote exploration, investigation, collaboration, and verbal interaction which in turns shapes thinking. Children form their own theories and test those theories and come away with their own conclusions. They learn how to learn. 

At Brooklyn Sandbox as children make meaningful connections to their world through imaginative play, their engagement deepens, is prolonged and becomes more dynamic. This then spurs growth across the five domains of early childhood development – social/emotional, cognitive, physical, language and adaptive (self-regulation). 

We leverage the social relationship as a backdrop to building empathy and emotional literacy. Our play-based, child-centered approach views the child-child interaction equally as important as the teacher-child interaction. 

Io Chi Siamo translates to “I am who we are.” Through group work, children expand their view of themselves in relation to their friends and thus come to understand the concept of community. We support them as they create their own classroom rules in order to have a safe play environment. Like language and behavior, social interaction is learned and is the primary work of a solid preschool program.

We integrate a strong arts program and all-weather nature-based play to further the development of the “whole” child. Art is a visual and symbolic language for children and helps to shape and express thoughts and feelings.   All-weather nature-play provides an important therapeutic way to foster healthy child development through outdoor play experiences. The developmental benefits of outdoor play are carried over into both the school and home.   

Our Programs

Video Tour

What Our Families Are Saying

My son was sad when he didn’t get to go to school during holidays, and spoke enthusiastically about his friends, teacher, and activities. We had two parent-teacher conferences that were very well prepared.”

Every response and interaction with the children seems so deliberate (in a great way), challenging and supporting them. I adore the innovative projects that I see them do each week, both in her projects but also the daily emails we get with photos.”

My daughter’s transition from her previous daycare into preschool was especially challenging but the teaching staff worked tirelessly with us to accommodate her needs (and ours) daily. We have seen her take enormous strides in her social and cognitive development in these short five months and have to give credit to the wonderful educators at Sandbox.”

Our daughter’s language skills, compassion and passion for learning have all increased from her brief time at this school so far.”