Between Two Trees Pre School

We are deeply inspired by the Reggio Emilia schools and believe that each child is competent and capable, and eager to form relations with the world. We believe that through the project approach, we are able to increase a child’s ability to investigate ideas and co-construct knowledge, skills and concepts actively in the learning processes of language and visual arts, mathematics, physics, as well as life skills such as relationship building, self-awareness and confidence. The exposure to small and large group work allows children to learn to collaborate and communicate in the learning process. To prepare the pre-schooler for meaningful and confident experiences in formal education, we interweave focused and exciting enrichment of languages and math within the emergent curriculum (a curriculum that builds on the interests of children).

Our highly qualified teachers are equipped with skills and abilities to formulate a constantly evolving curriculum that is tailored to each child’s needs and progress. We advocate for extensive documentation as a means of negotiated learning (as opposed to teacher-directed learning, by having children determine their learning goals and processes) as well as a form of curriculum development. Our documentation methods include video and audio recordings, teachers’ observations and photography. We value interaction and learning in small groups as we believe this provides opportunities for individual and group learning.

We believe that learning is a lifelong project and we want to make children’s ideas, hypotheses and theories visible. We believe learning can come about by their discussing, reading, drawing, dramatising and documenting their ideas. Learning by doing is of great importance, and revisitation of ideas and experiences are emphasised.

We strongly believe that the environment is the third teacher and a large part of our work is to create a space that speaks to each child. Our teachers value an environment that is aesthetically pleasing, provocative, challenging, encourages relationships and communication and provides for movement and individual space.

Our school environment offers a variety of spaces – spaces that are small and large, inside and outside, high and low, public and private and quiet and loud.

Our spaces offer possibilities of ownership – even when the children are not around, you have a sense that the space belongs to them, from the work exhibits that are in progress, their names and pictures, their messages to one another and their family photographs. All these provide a sense of their personalities, values and preferences.

Above all, our spaces provide a sense of belonging for our children and show their links between themselves as individuals and their worlds – their friends, their group, their school, their families wherever possible, their community.

Our outdoor spaces provide learning opportunities with basic materials such as water and sand. Play is an important concept in our school and we embrace play opportunities that work with our Singaporean weather!

A precious space in our school, the art studio is stocked with exciting and amazing materials that come in useful with project learning. Our school artist is always an inspiring resource, and is on hand to work with the children as well as with our teachers in curriculum and project planning.

B2T started its own edible gardening curriculum in 2014, and took part in Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution programme! We plant vegetables and fruit with our children, and introduce to them the concept of “farm to table” from an early age.

Each classroom is outfitted with spaces that promote small and large group learning. They offer learning opportunities with basic materials such as paint, clay, blocks and literacy instruments.