FWCS Magnet Schools Series: Early Childhood Centers

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In my first post of this series, we talked about New Tech Academy as a magnet school option for intermediate to high school age children in the Fort Wayne Community Schools (FWCS) district. This week, I figured we should take a few steps back and talk about an option for another age group: early childhood development centers. FWCS operates two of these early childhood development centers: Bunche Early Childhood Center and Whitney Young Early Childhood Center.

Bunche Early Childhood Center is a magnet school that specializes in providing an education based on the Montessori method of instruction for children pre-kindergarten through kindergarten, which are typically ages 3-6. This approach to education was developed by Dr. Maria Montessori, which “values the human spirit and the development of the whole child—physical, social, emotional, cognitive.” A Montessori education includes multiage groups that encourage peer learning, uninterrupted blocks of work time, and guided choice of work activity.

Bunche Early Childhood Development Center is an American Montessori Society accredited school, which includes a Montessori-certified staff and the inclusion of Montessori and supplemental materials to further the education.

For more information, click here or contact them at 260-467-4790. They are located at 1111 Greene Street.

Another magnet option in the FWCS system is the Whitney Young Early Childhood Center. This magnet school is also for pre-kindergarten through kindergarten children, but features the fine arts. This school approaches education inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy, created by Loris Malaguzzi, which stresses the importance of a positive environment to cultivate both intellectual and social advancement for young children.

As a magnet school featuring fine arts, Whitney Young prepares children for continuation in studying fine arts in other magnet programs by offering a variety of options, from visual arts to music and theater, which includes classes funded by the Fort Wayne Ballet and lessons given by the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

The Whitney Young Early Childhood Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

You can contact the Whitney Young Early Childhood Center at 260-476-8950 or click here for more information. They are located at 1026 E Pontiac Street.

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