Bebegarten: A Play Based Inquiry School

Find out why this family loves Bebegarten!

Parent Name: Kat Lau
Child Name: Everly Lau
School Location: Bebegarten, Wong Chuk Hang

How did you first hear about this school?
Funnily enough, when Bebegarten first opened it’s doors, my husband and I took our first child, Aiden for a school visit. At the time, we were living in West Kowloon and although we loved the school, it was too much of a trek to get there. Fast forward a year later, we moved to the island and through various friends’ glowing remarks of the school, we decided (without any persuasion!) to move Aiden from his current playgroup to Bebegarten. After his sister was born, we signed Everly up for their Crawlers playgroup and she’s been attending since!

What factors played into your decision to send your child to this school?

• The entire environment was warm and I loved the community feel they create for both the students and caregivers
• The class sizes are small which enable a smaller teacher to student ratio, aka more focused attention
• The facilities are beautiful, the wooden structures for play, creative learning centres in the classrooms, comfortable coffee lounge area for the parents etc.

Did you take a tour of the school before making your decision? What were your first impressions?
Yes, we took a school tour initially when the school was open. We had the chance to have Mr. Shaun, who was then the drama teacher, now head of school, take us around. He was friendly, informative and helped us with our questions.

Our initial impressions was this place would be a great nurturing environment with plenty of opportunities to learn new skills and a great place to start our children’s education journey. We also loved all the wooden structures in the open play area as well as the wooden play pieces inside the classrooms.

How did your child adjust to the school? Did the school take any special measures to help with the settling in process?
Everly really enjoys attending Bebegarten. Since she started in the Crawlers class, she has always gone with either myself or my helper to the class. As the class is accompanied until they are 2 years old, her transition into Bebegarten was smooth. I also found that her teachers were patient, kind and lead the class well. There was never a time Everly was not head over heels over her teachers!

What in your opinion are the three greatest strengths of the school? 

• They truly believe in the philosophy of play based learning. The classrooms are set up with multiple centres that spark the curiosity of the child based on the theme of that month and through play, the children learn whatever objective it was that month they needed to learn.
• The teachers are wonderful. They manage the classrooms so well, especially since we’re talking about babies and toddlers who have a small attention span. They’re extremely qualified and professional. They make a child’s first experience of “school” a truly pleasant and fun one.
• Bebegarten hosts several talks throughout the year that pertain to the development and interests of the children. These talks help parents navigate different topics in education as well as other related subjects.

How does the school include parents in the community?
There are always opportunities for parents to get involved from bake sales to raise money for charity to volunteering in the classroom. You will always see parents around the school being involved in some shape or form. One of the most memorable events for us was having our kids bring in baked goods and seeing the joy in the faces of the students buy the sweet treats and having it go to a memorable cause. The whole school raised a significant amount!

How does the school keep you informed about your child’s progress?
Every week, the teachers send out an online weekly update of what the children are learning in class that week. In the newsletter they’ll inform parents of additional activities that can be done at home to reinforce what they’re learning in the classroom. They will also send pictures of what the class is up to that week.

In addition to the weekly letters, there is also a parent teacher conference where the teachers will let you know how your child is doing and what areas need more support. I found these meetings to be extremely helpful and also endearing as I learn that both my kids are doing well and the teachers are picking up on cute quirks that I know!

What is the number one thing you’d miss if you transferred your child to another school?
The entire school community, the teachers and the beautiful campus… I can’t pick just one!