Our Program

El Jardín Parent Cooperative Preschool is a bilingual program committed to helping parents encourage their children’s holistic development with a special emphasis on first and second language development. “Formal” instruction (circle time) offers contextual support for all vocabulary presented, allowing children to learn meaning visually as they experience new words orally. For children who already speak Spanish, the program provides support and validation to using Spanish, while increasing vocabulary and understanding of concepts. There will also be plenty of opportunities for them to develop a growing English vocabulary through their interactions at the preschool. Hearing both English and Spanish spoken by children and adults in the preschool environment will encourage those who are learning either one as a second language to be comfortable expressing themselves either in their first language or the one they are learning.

We are a cooperative, which means our parent members participate directly in running the preschool.  Members help by serving in leadership positions, holding support jobs, raising money for classroom supplies, and by working in the classroom.  Parent members are registered students of the Watsonville/ Aptos Adult School and participate in classroom activities and night meetings as students of the Adult School.  Parents attend night meetings and seminars to further their understanding and knowledge about their children and parenting skills.  Parents in the classroom serve the children as active listeners, observers, and facilitators of play and conflict resolution.

For our children we are committed to offering a wide range of developmentally appropriate activities and nurturing the ‘whole’ child.  We support social and emotional growth by facilitating and modeling problem solving skills.  Children discover and learn through play and social contact with others.  Children are free to explore a variety of materials and build skills through paint, clay, collage, water, sand, musical instruments, blocks, manipulatives, carpentry, outdoor equipment, gardening, cooking, and dramatic play.  We work toward building a solid foundation in language arts, pre-math, and science objectives.