Celebrating 40 years in the community!
With a play-based curriculum and family-led separation, we enable your children to learn, play, and grow.
As a modern co-operative playschool, we no longer require classroom duty and welcome all levels of familial involvement.
LEARNING THROUGH PLAY
LEARNING THROUGH PLAY
The Beaches Co-operative Playschool is a non-profit, community-focused preschool. With a play-based learning curriculum, children are invited to fully explore their innate curiosity in a safe and nurturing environment. Family-led separation is a cornerstone of the co-operative school. For 40 years, the preschool has been providing quality child care for the Toronto Beaches & East York communities.
A Modern Co-operative
As a modern co-operative, where we recognize and appreciate there is a spectrum of time and contributions families can make. We no longer require "duty days", or dedicated time spent in the classroom. The contributions to the co-op range from a few hours a month (washing toys, for instance) to a few hours a week (serving on the executive committee).
Community is important to the school, and we invite all kinds of families and welcome levels of co-operative contributions.
Classes
2018-2019
LITTLE LEARNERS
Our youngest class, welcomes children as early as 18 months to a safe and well-structured environment to begin exploring the world around them.
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Tuesday and Thursday
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9:00AM to 11:30AM
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18 Months to 2 ½ Years
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Class Size = 14
$295/ month
BIG ACHIEVERS
Our toddler class for preschool children from 2 1/2 to 5 years of age, is full of as much fun and excitement as the kids themselves.
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Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
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9:00AM to 12:00PM
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2 ½ Years to 5 Years
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Class Size = 24
$390.00/ month
KINDERGARTEN PREP
Our Kindergarten preparatory class is for our oldest children with a play-based kindergarten curriculum that focuses on language and math skills.
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3 Flexible Afternoon Options
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1:00PM to 4:00PM
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4 and 5 year olds
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Max Class Size = 18
Prices range between $270 to $650/ month
PROGRAMMING
Learning Through Play
We offer a play-based learning curriculum for preschool children from 18 months to 5 years old.
What is Play-Based Learning?
It is our belief that through play, young children are more inclined to explore, identify, negotiate, take risks and create meaning. Children who engage in quality play experiences are more likely to have well-developed memory skills, language development, and are able to regulate their behaviour, leading to enhanced school adjustment and academic learning (Bodrova& Leong, 2005).
There is a strong link between play and learning. Children are naturally full of curiosity and explore this curiosity through play. When kids are playing, they are open to new experiences, creating the perfect time to learn. Play teaches our children how to solve problems, develop interpersonal skills, self expression, and how to recognize numbers and letters. All of these skills form the foundation for learning.
Activities & Special Events
Free Play
Available for every class: painting easels, sensory bins, Play-Doh, puzzles, books & reading corner, toy shelves, dress-up materials, fine motor skill development areas, and both teacher- & child-directed craft experiences.
Circle Time
Coordinated group time for songs, stories, finger plays, creative movement/dance and games.
Gross Motor Skills
Secure outside playground with jungle gym, sandbox, push cars, playhouse, and toys. Indoor equipment includes riding toys, tricycles, basketball net, balls, hula-hoops, bean bags, bouncy balls, parachute and more.
Outdoor Play
A real differentiator for our school, we offer a large, fenced-in playground that is equipped with safe climbing structures, toys and other things for our children to explore.
Imaginations at Work
Our curriculum includes creative and engaging stations that encourage our children to exercise their creativity with roll-up-their-sleeves experiences.
Halloween
We celebrate this fun holiday (and others!) and take the kids trick-or-treating at school! Additional play stations are seasonally themed to ensure the children have a rich experience.
Bowling
Fortunate to have access to a vintage bowling alley, our annual Bowl-a-thon is always a fun event for the children, parents, and teachers.
Graduation Day
After a year of learning and growing, our children are provided a graduation experience that is as much fun for the children as it is for their caregivers and families.
Why us?
Why Choose Beaches Co-operative Playschool for your child?
The Beaches Co-operative Playschool is a great option for families who are looking for a more enriching option for their child’s early education. Here’s why we have been a pillar in early childcare since 1978, standing apart from other preschools in East York and the Beaches area:
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A strong sense of community is at the foundation of the school. Deeply rooted in our special beaches neighborhood, we are also a little community of our own
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Play-based learning enables learning AND lets kids be kids
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Our teachers are qualified, well-educated and compassionate educators
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We no longer require duty days in school! Parental participation is important to the school, without the requirement of classroom duty. We invite parents to join our morning welcome circle, and give to the school community in ways they are able.
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Family-led separation is a cornerstone of our philosophy, allowing the child and caregiver to transition at their own pace
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Outdoor space is key to letting kids play and explore! We offer a year-round, safe and fun playground for our students
"We switched from a more 'traditional' preschool
We switched to BCP a few weeks into the school year last fall, from a more “traditional” preschool. My daughter seemed to have quite a lot of trouble fitting in with the teachers/program at the other school, according to the head teacher; however, since we would just drop our kids off and they would disappear into the classroom until the end of the school day, I never got to see firsthand what her issues/challenges were. Happily, from our first day at BCP I was encouraged to stay and be involved in my daughter’s preschool education."
"My son loves the playschool! And I do too!
When we first started, it offered the best possible opportunity for me (the mom) to slowly pull away, allowing him the chance to adjust to being away from me (which he hadn’t experienced before). My son looks forward to going to playschool everyday, and speaks of the teachers, students, and the students’ parents fondly."
"This was a great find for me and my daughter.
The play-based curriculum fits perfectly with our family’s belief in experiential learning. And the family-led separation and family participation was also important since we were new to the area, with no support system. Thus my daughter’s attachment was very strong and a traditional drop-off would have been very difficult for us (and for any teachers involved)."