Urban Toddlers‎ Child Development Preschool

We are a team of education professionals who wish to raise the standards of early childhood education in Cairo. We aim to change Cairo’s early education landscape by bringing a new perspective to the preschool experience. We will provide a fresh, new approach to this vital stage in your child’s development. At Urban Toddlers preschool, we are influenced by a number of early childhood curricula that guide our practice. We apply many aspects of progressive curricula that we think fit well with our cultural identity and social needs.

We use the British Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum and the Birth to Three Matters curriculum as our manual for planning. We use “Letters and Sounds” phonics program and “Abacus” to teach literacy and numeracy aspects, respectively. We make age/development appropriate adjustments when needed, based on children’s needs and readiness. Reflecting Egypt’s multi-ethnic and multi-lingual heritage, Urban Toddlers offers classes in both English and French as well as daily Arabic instruction.

Children between the ages of 18 months and 4 years are accepted at Urban Toddlers. We have a limited number of spaces and therefore acceptance into the preschool is on a “first come first served” basis. An entry interview with parents is required prior to student acceptance.

Once enrolled into Urban Toddlers, you and your child will be invited for an Orientation Day so that you can get more acquainted with the preschool. We believe parents should be actively involved with their child’s education and this Orientation Day will allow parents to meet each other and become familiar with the preschool’s philosophy. Each family will also receive a comprehensive Parent Handbook with all the necessary information for you and your child to familiarize yourselves with the exciting new world of Urban Toddlers.

At Urban Toddlers we emphasize the development of the “whole child”. We follow the theoretical perspectives of Jean Piaget, who believed that children learn best when they build understanding through direct experiences with people and objects in the world around them. Children are encouraged to “construct” their own knowledge by pursuing their personal interests and goals, guided by trained adults.

We encourage children to explore, ask and answer questions, solve problems, and interact with classmates and adults as they make their choices and plans. During this process they engage in teacher- and child-initiated learning activities in 6 child development content areas. Within each content area are “key experiences” that foster developmentally important skills and abilities.

Teachers use a variety of documentation methods, such as cameras and observational notes, to track children’s progress and development. Every child has a term report. The report shows where the child is at in regards of different learning objectives in various areas of learning. In addition to the report, each child has a portfolio binder, including things like work samples, quotes from the child and artwork. This allows parents to follow up their child’s progress in school and have a narrative of their learning experience. Children take great pride in their portfolios and it helps foster concepts like self assessment and evaluation.

In the Reggio Emilia curriculum, the environment of the school is seen as the third educator after the teacher and the parent. At Urban Toddlers we believe that the whole preschool environment should be inviting and attractive. Classrooms are divided into centers where various developmental aspects are emphasized. Materials are accessible to children and there is always a variety of games, toys and activities for children to choose from.

We believe in multi-sensory learning; children learn more by touching, seeing, smelling, tasting, and exploring. Educational reformer John Dewey believed that learning is a social activity that is intimately associated with our connection with other human beings; our teachers, our peers and our families. We use the British Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum and the Birth to Three Matters curriculum as our manual for planning. We use “Letters and Sounds” phonics program and “Abacus” to teach literacy and numeracy aspects, respectively.

Our staff is composed of highly trained professionals, who are specialized in early childhood development and education. Our teachers have all been selected for their training, experience and their sensitivity to the varied needs of individual children as well as their talent and readiness to learn. We offer continuous in-house professional development for our teaching staff; reading groups, peer observations and workshops for teachers throughout the school year. We encourage our teachers to invest in their professional development by taking recommended courses in Early Childhood Care and Development. Some of our teachers are native English and French speakers.

Suburban Toddlers is located in 6th of October – Mall of Arabia (New Extension).