Latest news with #playbasedlearning
Zawya
23-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Crayons Nursery breaks ground in Nad Al Sheba
The purpose-built centre will welcome children aged 45 days to five years with a bilingual, play-led approach inspired by global best practices. Dubai: A new chapter in early childhood education began in Nad Al Sheba 1, Dubai, as Nalapad Investments and MVK Holdings hosted the groundbreaking ceremony for Crayons Nursery. Crayons Nursery will be a progressive learning centre following all the best practices in early years pedagogy primarily focusing on the EYFS curriculum. This purpose-built early years centre will open its doors to young toddlers in May 2026 & the FS1 and FS2 intake from September 2026. The ceremony, held at the nursery site, was attended by government officials, education leaders, investors, media representatives, and families. Chief Guest Mr. Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, Chief Executive Officer of the Knowledge Fund Establishment, graced the event. Crayons Nursery is designed to accommodate 200 children aged between forty-five days and five years. The campus will offer a bilingual programme in English and Arabic, and provide a nurturing space that fosters joyful learning, creativity, and emotional development. Crayons Nursery reflects the founders' continued investment in high-quality education that supports families and communities across Dubai. 'Every child deserves a beginning where their curiosity is honoured and their individuality is nurtured,' said Mr. Abdulla Nalapad Ahmed, Managing Director of Nalapad Investments and Chairman of Credence High School. 'Crayons Nursery is our commitment to families in Dubai. It is a space where children will be encouraged to explore, express, and grow in a caring environment. We are building more than a nursery. We are shaping the early years of tomorrow's innovators, leaders, and change-makers.' 'We are committed to contribute meaningfully to Dubai's long-term plan for a diversified and knowledge-driven economy, in line with the Knowledge and Human Development Authority's (KHDA) Education 33 transformative vision, aimed to position the emirate as a global hub for education and innovation. Crayons Nursery reflects the kind of forward-thinking, learner-centric approach that lays the foundation for academic excellence, cultural empowerment, equitable access, innovative practices and personal development from the very earliest years,' he added. Mr. Sameer K. Mohamed, Managing Director of MVK Holdings and Governor of Credence High School, added, 'Families today seek more than just a preschool. They want a place where their children feel safe, inspired, and celebrated. Crayons Nursery brings together leading pedagogical practices from the EYFS, Montessori, and Finnish models within a thoughtfully designed campus. Our vision is to create a centre where children can thrive emotionally, socially, and academically. This is the beginning of a larger journey to bring Crayons to more communities across the UAE.' 'Crayons Nursery creates a safe and enriching space where children fall in love with learning at their own pace. By celebrating curiosity and emotional well-being, the nursery aims to cultivate confident, kind, resilient learners, and as a process making the children ready for the school,' he added. The educational philosophy at Crayons Nursery is guided by the belief that children learn best through joy and exploration. With the motto 'We Explore, We Imagine, We Bloom', the centre's approach integrates structured development tracking with free play, music, nature-based activities, splash zones, and role play. Educators will work in close partnership with parents to support each child's unique learning journey. The Nad Al Sheba campus is only the beginning. The founders of Crayons Nursery envision a network of centres across the UAE, each designed to provide the same standard of care, creativity, and learning. This is not just an educational development. It is the beginning of a new way to nurture potential from the very first years of life. About Crayons Nursery Crayons Nursery is a purpose-built early childhood education centre developed by Nalapad Investments and MVK Holdings in Nad Al Sheba 1, Dubai. Serving children aged 45 days to 5 years, the nursery integrates EYFS, Montessori, and Finnish education frameworks into a bilingual, play-led programme. Crayons Nursery places strong emphasis on emotional development, creativity, and curiosity-led learning. It is the latest addition to the group's education portfolio and reflects their commitment to inclusive, high-quality education in the UAE.
The Guardian
11-06-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘The impact has been profound': the headteacher bringing play back to the classroom
When Tina Farr visits the year 2 classroom at her Oxford primary school, she can feel the changed atmosphere since play was put firmly back on the curriculum. 'When I walk in there, I just feel the energy. The children come running up with things they have made, there is always a shop on the go so they will be pricing up something or finding change. They are always working together,' the headteacher says. It might not seem radical to see six- and seven-year-olds busy in a world of imagination, but in the majority of primary schools it is not how children this age learn. Play-based learning – letting children move around, interact with friends, make up games and explore within loosely guided activities – usually stops when they leave reception. Lessons then become desk-based, focused on reading and writing. Farr had long championed the value of play, working hard to bring it into breaktimes through the Opal play scheme. But the eureka moment for the school came when her year 2 teacher suggested incorporating play-based learning into her lessons – extending it beyond reception. After reading the Department for Education's guidelines, Farr realised she had the freedom to decide how to deliver the national curriculum. 'It says we are free to arrange the school day any way we like – it actually says that at point 3.4 in the national curriculum. 'Teachers would recognise what we do as learning, but we do it through play. For example we might explain money and maths to them with a PowerPoint then they move on to games and play on that theme, it doesn't take any more planning than the standard approach.' With play-based learning in place for her year 1 and 2 children, Farr then looked at where else she could change any practices that weren't working. 'There is so much that we can do within our current system. We just think we can't. If a practice isn't aligned with healthy child development, why are we doing it? The school's year 5 children – aged nine and 10 – were struggling to sit still in a cramped room so she removed all the furniture. 'Children are shamed for needing to move their bodies in cramped classrooms,' she says. 'So we took out all the tables and chairs and decided to let them sit or lie or stand where they liked. It wasn't expensive, it was almost free as an experiment.' She added beanbags, comfy chairs and lap trays, as well as a high desks for children to stand at. 'The impact was immediate and profound particularly for the neurodiverse learners. Children now choose where and how to learn, relocating without permission when needed. A class once struggling with attention is now calm, focused, and engaged.' One of the year 5 children said: 'I like flexible seating. I find it very calming. A normal classroom is a bit overwhelming. I like that you don't have to sit at a table but can sit anywhere. I prefer a spinny seat because it makes less noise when you turn your chair around. You can choose who you sit with during the day.' And according to the teacher: 'Their self-regulation has improved immensely. They are much calmer and can have space from someone if they wish. They settle down to work much more readily, and I have more of an opportunity to see their level of engagement which has been deep.' Farr believes the outdated system needs to urgently change. 'If a time traveller arrived from Victorian times into a school they would recognise it immediately. But the world has changed and what we know about the brain has changed. We have the neuroscience to know children learn through play.' In June the school sailed through its Ofsted inspection. 'The inspector was great and really understood our play based learning. They didn't question it and they wrote us a lovely report.' Farr's message for other professionals is that her approach can be replicated. 'It's blown my mind how engaged the children are. It's phenomenal,' she says. 'Don't call our school progressive or maverick. We are teaching the national curriculum but through play.'
