We LOVE Cottage! It is a magical, one-of-a kind preschool where our daughter spent 2 wonderful years. Although she is now in Kindergarten, we will always be a part of the Cottage family.
I'll start by saying- if you're worried that a less structured preschool won't prepare your child for a more structured elementary school environment, there's no need to worry! My daughter is thriving in kindergarten, even though she attends a traditional public school. In fact, her teacher has told us that she does a wonderful job staying on task and following directions the first time they're given, and she plays beautifully with her classmates. Thank you, Cottage!
OK, now more specifics about Cottage - first of all, it is a true community. When your child attends Cottage, your child is not the only one who joins this family; you do, too. It is the most compassionate, loving, unconditionally supportive community of incredible teachers and parents that you could find. As a parent, I grew just as much as (if not more than) my daughter did during our time at Cottage.
Second, because social-emotional development is at the core of the Cottage approach, children are never shamed or given time-outs; they are supported in learning how to find healthy ways to express their difficult feelings and how to successfully resolve conflicts (instead of having adults "solve" problems for them). And it is all done with complete acceptance and without any judgement - even if your child *spits in another child's face* (which my daughter actually did!), you won't find a single teacher or parent judging. Instead, a teacher will kneel down to the kids' level, make sure no more spitting is going to happen, help your child use her words to express what she's feeling, and then help the two children develop a solution to their conflict. Later, the teacher will even check in with you and help you process your feelings around the incident. It doesn't get better than that!
And that brings me to the AMAZING teachers. I can't even explain how talented and phenomenal these teachers are. They really know each child and love them for their uniqueness. My daughter felt so safe and happy at Cottage, and I know that one of the reasons is that she was truly seen and appreciated in all her quirkiness. The Director of Cottage is also incredible - she is completely grounded in progressive education, always available to parents for questions or support, and really sets the tone for a respectful, child-led approach.
Next, I know that "play-based" has become a bit of a buzz term lately, but Cottage is TRULY play-based. This is not about "learning games," which isn't really play-based learning. This is about children being able to engage in free, self-directed play, and to learn through that play. Instead of the teachers telling the children what they will play or how they will learn, the children decide how they will play, and the teachers follow their lead and support their learning through self-direction. With the guidance she received at Cottage, my daughter developed an amazing sense of self-efficacy. Don't worry about your child learning the alphabet etc.! In line with Cottage's child-led approach and emergent curriculum, they really understand that children learn best when they are met at their level of interest/need/readiness. Even though there was no structured academic instruction, my daughter entered Kindergarten exactly in the range of academics where she was expected to be. Healthy social-emotional development actually lays the groundwork for cognitive development!
Finally - yes, the actual building doesn't look like a traditional school, but that's great! It looks like a home, which is perfect, because that's what it really is. Also, the outdoor space is phenomenal!
The bottom line is if you want your child to get to run around in a beautiful outdoor space all day, learn based on their own unique interests, develop the ability to successfully resolve conflicts and express themselves in truly healthy ways, and be truly happy, then Cottage is the preschool for you! read more