“Helped Create Such a Strong Community”
We moved here a year ago and found Brooklyn on Yelp. Joining the co-op preschool has been one of my best parenting decisions! Being part of a co-op has helped create such a strong community for me as a parent and my children. We have made life-long friends!!
Teacher Merry has been with Brooklyn for 10 years and she has taught me so much as both a parent teacher and a parent. She is so patient, kind and excited by the children. And the feeling is mutual!
The parent obligations are more than a drop-off preschool but not too much to be unmanageable. The jobs also help to create community (my job was to plan social events outside of school. It was awesome!) Additionally, the tuition discount compared to traditional preschools was huge (about 50% less).
We truly are so happy to have found Brooklyn and cannot recommend it enough!! – A.J L
“The More You Put In, The More Reward”
Brooklyn cooperative preschool has been a wonderful community to be part of. This is the first co-op our family has joined and unlike a “typical” preschool there is an obligation you will have and that is what makes a cooperative preschool so much more. With that being said, the more you put in, the more reward you will get. Simple. As for teacher Merry, I cannot say enough great things about her and the impact she has had on our sons life. If we were to have many more children we would not hesitate to join Brooklyn Coop again and again and again. – A.D.
“Teacher Merry is Amazing”
My kids have attended four different co-op preschools in the PCPO network, and Brooklyn is definitely the best one we’ve found. Teacher Merry is amazing, and we’ve made good friends with other families there.
The physical space is comfortable and supplied with everything a preschooler could want– indoor “treehouse”, art room, sensory table, woodworking bench, books, puppets, blocks, educational toys & games, and much more. The playground is also very well-equipped.
We like the healthy snacks that are included in the cost of tuition. We also enjoy the field trips and community events that happen throughout the year. My son adores Brooklyn! – Aurelia L.
“You know what’s great about this co-op? Everything.”
Let me start with Teacher Merry. Her passion, kindness, ability to teach while nurturing, redirect without shaming, and reach in to shine the light in the childrens’ eyes and heart are only the tip of the iceburg. And shine they do; the woman knows what she’s doing. Everything she does in the classroom relates directly to the development and abilities of children. These skills will shape how they will construe the environment they are in now, and every year after they leave the co-op. Children recognize authenticity when they see it, there is no need to look further if you are looking for a teacher for your small people. This is where I’ll throw in she was educator of the year in 2013 for PCPO organizations – but you’ll never hear that from her.
Next, I’ll tell you about the space. Holy guacamole. It’s clean, it’s organized, it’s well thought out and continually changing to accommodate the growth and development of the kids. There are three rooms with very specific purposes. One room has an array of weekly and sometimes daily activities that Teacher Merry carefully plans out and shares their developmental purpose. In the other two rooms exist plenty of hands on sensory experiences and art making opportunities. You want some glue, little one? Go at it. You need some paint? Go get it. A woodworking table? Heck yes. Under the watchful eyes of parent teachers and Teacher Merry, have at it. It made me nervous to see hammers and saws and nails (oh my!) just sitting out willy-nilly,(it’s not really willy-nilly, there are very specific boundaries for the woodworking table, to the untrained eye, however…) but it turns out children are receptive and willing to try out new things while being safe if just given the chance. Eye protection check! ear protection -check! here’s how you hold the saw, ready …. and….go!
The community is a community. There are ebbs and flows to every community. You get out of it whatever you put in. If you have the time and desire to be a part of the co-op, buy in wholeheartedly. It is work. There are different parents teaching every day, but that doesn’t mean the kids don’t see the same faces they see every school day at pick up or least once a week as a parent teacher. Maybe even at their friends’ houses at playdates. It’s a village. Sure, that sounds cliché, but also brilliant for the sort of community the co-op fosters. It’s for real.
If the idea of your child making his or her own decisions is scary, if having an award winning teacher running the show doesn’t sound great, if being a part of a community with backbone seems like too much work, if being a part of your kid’s everyday life and earliest education experience just isn’t your thing – then look elsewhere. If these things sound good to you, check out Brooklyn Co-op. When my daughter comes home at the end of the day, she is happy and so am I. There is no amount of money, no amount of naysayers, no way anyone could convince me that a happy 4 year old is anything less than perfect – glue smeared, paint covered, loved and smarter for it. Me and my girl. Making friends at the co-op – you’re invited too! – Katy L.