The Beansprouts Difference
The Beansprouts Difference stems from preserving our core beliefs: impassioned teachers, an involved and collaborative school community, diverse and rich curricula for each age group, and thoughtfully constructed classrooms that belong to the children. We work to uphold these things and, when they come together, the result is a well-rounded, unrivaled preschool experience.
We strive to create an involved and supportive community, united by a dedication to the care and growth of our children.
We make sure that our curriculum is ever evolving and changing to better suit the demand of the classroom, and the individual children within it.
Our classrooms provide routines that promote independence and exploration, provide both structured and free time, and involve all aspects of a child’s development through hands-on experience.
Teachers are trained to guide classrooms, serve as mentors to the children, and help create lesson plans that are responsive to the personalities, learning styles, family background, and formative experiences of the class.
THE BEANSPROUTS DIFFERENCE
Community
A truly successful preschool experience begins with a partnership between home and school. To enroll in our program is to become a part of the Beansprouts community. We host gatherings to allow our families and teachers to connect with one another even before classes begin. During the beginning of the school year, Beansprouts teachers visit the homes of every child in their new classes, helping to establish a strong home-school connection.
We also welcome the participation of parents and other family members in the classroom, whether it be for a birthday celebration, or simply reading a special book to the class. This is just a small example of the breadth of our community - at Beansprouts, we are ever growing and evolving to better understand the gifts of each child and the needs of each family.
Teachers
The Beansprouts staff is our school’s most valuable asset. We are proud to have teachers who have worked at Beansprouts for over 10 years, and our executive educational staff for over 20 years. Our teachers are trained to guide classrooms, serve as mentors to the children, and help create lesson plans that are responsive to the personalities, learning styles, family background, and formative experiences of the class.
We pride ourselves in the fact that our teachers are lifelong students as well. We frequently hold one-on-one meetings between teachers and educational directors, as well as group learning sessions among teachers. Having our teachers work together is an integral component of the Beansprouts culture, ensuring that we are always building upon successful in-class experiences, and merging our individual experiences into one meaningful collaboration.
Classrooms
We are dedicated to providing a rich preschool curriculum in classrooms where children can still be children. Each classroom reflects the personalities, interests and gifts of the children who occupy that space. We also understand that for most children, this is their first time in a daily environment outside of their own homes. Our inviting classrooms are created with these things in mind. The walls of Beansprouts classrooms are decorated with the children’s own art, as well as some family photos, to inspire confidence and self-affirmation that is significant in their development.
Free, open-ended play, including time outdoors, is important in providing a balanced day for the children. As an extension of our classrooms, Beansprouts offers the largest single yard space in Park Slope – as well as a handful of other private outdoor spaces to ensure that the children can grow and play in an open, green space every day.
Curriculum
Exceptional schools take time to build. For that very reason, we make sure that our curriculum is ever evolving and changing to better suit the demand of the classroom, and the individual children within it. We offer a meticulous, theme-based approach that allows a flexible class schedule – one that is designed to support the idiosyncratic development of the children, and challenge each child academically.
At Beansprouts, our curricula are living documents. Too often you see schools roll out set curriculums for entire programs, but we’ve experienced that this methodology is inherently flawed, and that lesson progression should function on a class by class basis. Our teachers and curricula are responsive to the personalities, learning styles, family background, and formative experiences of each individual child.
Our Education Director, Caryn Klein-Cardieri, has been a member of the Beansprouts family for over 30 years. Her education and experience (BA in Early Childhood Education, an MS in Special Education, an SAS in Administration and Supervision, and an SDA in School Leadership), combined with the education and experience of our founder and Director, Sue Weinstein (BA and MA in ECE) come together to create an unprecedented understanding of the needs of the classroom, a complete and unique curricula, and of a growing school.