Besides this, I wondered what’s the difference compared with other kindergartens? What surprise might be waiting for me? With many expectations, I went to Magnolia to discover the campus.
When the kindergarten’s location is introduced as “at People’s Square, behind the Shanghai Grand Theatre”, you can imagine just how central the kindergarten really is. The interesting thing about the location is that Tomorrow Plaza’s modern building blocks the noise of Nanjing Road, yet at the same time, Jiangyin Road’s bird and flower market makes the environment more traditional and quiet. The one-way road also means less traffic on the street.
The city center location not only means easy access, but Magnolia is surrounded by a variety of cultural facilities, Shanghai History Museum, Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, Shanghai Nature Museum, Shanghai Grand Theatre, Shanghai Puppet theatre, etc. and all are often used by the kindergarten. In addition, children can walk to nearby People’s Park in just 10 minutes. Children can observe nature, the changes of seasons and participate in nature inspired activities and handicrafts. Near the gate is the double-decker bus, one of the many field trips children enjoy to explore and learn about the city.
Magnolia kindergarten enlarged their campus in 2021, from 1000 sqm to 3000 sqm. There are impressive outdoor areas for children to play.
The old villa looks very traditional and has a rich history. The new building has a lighter appearance with large open spaces and complements the rest of the campus.
The buildings have many stairs so children’s gross motor skills are always being developed. Children understand and obey the safety rules. So we feel assured about their security either upstairs or downstairs, or when they go on a field trip.
The two different building styles are linked together by the gardens and playgrounds.
Since the expansion, there are now three levels with different outdoor playgrounds.
The ground floor combines a green field and partially-covered playground area.
On rainy days, children either wear raincoats and boots to enjoy the weather or play in the covered playground area.
In the indoor gym, many activities are created by the teachers for gross motor development with high-quality equipment.
The second floor playground has a large terrace, with a lush green garden area. This sensorial garden allows children to explore the plants: by touching, observing and smelling the trees and flowers.
The various plants attract many birds and insects. The surrounding track has differing gradients and is enjoyed by the children to make riding the bicycles more challenging.
In the corner of the 2nd floor playground, the beautiful tree was retained and hosts an interesting climbing area.
The admissions teacher said “We hope the children will feel like they are climbing the tree.”
On the 3rd floor, we discover a large oval sand-pit and that each class has a small gardening plot to grow and care for their own plants or vegetables!
On the 3rd floor, we discover a large oval sand-pit and that each class has a small gardening plot to grow and care for their own plants or vegetables!
Carpentry
The carpentry workshop displays real, professional tools, selected for the special projects children work on. Even the youngest children in the kindergarten use the tools with guidance and safety instruction from the teachers.
Using the previous beams from the old building keeps the traditional elements for the renovation, preserving the link between the past and present.
Children’s Kitchen
The children’s kitchen faces the carpentry workshop.
All the equipment the set against wall, whilst the other side of the kitchen has floor to ceiling glass. The natural light in the room provides a bright and happy environment for the children to work in.
Children cook and bake regularly with the teachers assistance. In the kitchen they not only develop fine motor skills but also essential life skills!
Children learn to safely use the tools of the kitchen, beginning with simple tasks like washing fruits and vegetables, they progress to peel and learn different techniques to cut and make an assortment of dishes from birthday cakes to soups.
Art Studio
At the back of the 2nd floor terrace, a large art studio is housed. A variety of art materials are readily available for the children’s use.
Magnolia has a theme each school year. Each class will represent one element of the theme. Art teachers prepare for the beginning of the school year a classroom door decoration according to class’s theme name. Some of the previous decorations displayed in the room show the imagination children are encouraged to develop.
The school’s designer arranged a system to collect the rain-fall next to the art room. This system can be used to irrigate the whole garden, a nice activity for children to learn about sustainability!
Construction room
Children use this room for play and also to design and build in 3D, increasing their spatial visualization abilities.
Kitchen
The new kitchen’s large glass windows allow us to see what’s happening inside. All the food is freshly prepared on-site.
Children can watch the cooking process while playing, it’s an interesting experience to know how the snacks and lunches are made. The Chef and the school nurse work together to prepare a menu, which the class teacher sends each week in advance.
Wherever possible Magnolia kindergarten choose organic foods. For example, the milk is also an imported product.
There are 4 rotating year-themes which children are immersed in. Classrooms are decorated and field trip activities arranged according to the class name and learning topics.
Children’s handicrafts are displayed everywhere around the school. These displays give children a sense of pride in their achievements. Their work forms a part of the school’s decoration. At the same time, these works also stimulate the children’s spirit and creativity.
The submarine in the art studio is a good example of process art. This submarine was part of a stage decoration for the children’s end of year performance, usually done at a local theatre. Teachers first show their design structure pictures, then let children guess what it could be. Teacher’s use picture books and activities to introduce more about this “machine” to the children. After children understand more about the submarine, they choose different recycling materials to make the body of machine. During the building process, children develop their knowledge and art techniques. This is also a great team project where children collaborate and work together to achieve their goal. The children named the submarine “Ant Queen”. Children talked about what ants might need in their world: a bedroom, secret garden, a tool cabinet. They also wanted to show that the ants do all the housework as well: washing and hanging out clothes to dry. Teachers will always encourage children’s interesting ideas!
Nature and ecological education are principal educational philosophies at Magnolia Kindergarten. Children can be seen using a variety of recycled materials in their work, as they find ways to repurpose items.
Magnolia Kindergarten offers a variety of hands-on skill practice. The admissions teacher for example explained how children’s fine motor skills are developed in these activities, building hand-strength, essential as a pre-writing skill.
We discovered that there are no screens in the classrooms but there are plenty of books available in the classrooms and the two libraries.
Each day the teaching team take some photos to share the activities with the children’s families in an APP.
Regular field trips are also one of the important elements of Magnolia Kindergarten.
Field trips are arranged based on the children’s learning to offer some real-life experiences related to their at school learning. For example, during the learning topic ‘My city and transportation’, children may take the ferry and discover the famous buildings of the city at the bund.
In order to well understand the concept of “city”, our art team designed an activity. To show the underground and above ground city appearance. Children can visually see above ground structures; buildings, volcanoes, forests, etc. Underground, the city has the metro, gas line, electric line and buried treasures!
Magnolia Kindergarten intends not only to build children’s level of “knowledge”, but also ask children to open their minds and to express themselves as much as possible.
Study becomes more interesting when it can be seen and felt.
Class arrangement
Currently Magnolia has 4 French-Chinese classes and 11 English-Chinese classes. A week consists of 2.5 days of French/English teaching time and 2.5 days of Chinese teaching time. The French curriculum is the same as the French school and the English curriculum is EYFS, British national curriculum. Children are generally aged between 2-6 years old.
Magnolia aims to have 50% international families to create a diverse cultural atmosphere and hosts children of many different nationalities.
Magnolia offers 5 routes for the school bus, mainly in Jing’an district, Huangpu district and Xuhui district.
The admissions teacher told me that currently the younger classes are full but, they still have a few spaces in the older classes. Interested families can book an appointment to visit for a tour and see with their own eyes all of the wonderful things Magnolia Kindergarten has to offer.
On the way to the gates as I was leaving, we passed the two big Magnolia trees which are over 100 years old! These two treasured trees give more meaning to the name of the kindergarten. The trees are the symbol of Magnolia's spirit: growing, flourishing with vivid energy, just like a childhood spent here.
Magnolia is more than a school, it is the second home of the children. We invite you to visit us and discover all that Magnolia can offer to help you in making the right decision for your child's development.
Please scan the QR code below to complete the online pre-registration form. Our admissions team are always ready to greet you for an individual meeting and campus tour. We look forward to welcoming you to our community.
Contact: admin@magnolia-kindergarten.com
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Enrollment Contacts
Contacts Admissions
Claire: 19117388820
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Cici
18930253093
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