A play-based, Reggio-inspired school and learning center, Highland Preschool uses the power of play to provide young people with the resources, guidance, and space to discover themselves as learners — for life.
Who We Are
Highland is a year-round play-based, Reggio-inspired school serving young learners ages 2–TK in preschool and Kinder-prep, as well as care by the hour via our reservation-based program. We maintain a small class size and use every bit of our lush 3/4-acre campus for education through exploration.
As a play-based and Reggio Emilia–inspired school, we believe that children are capable individuals with the ability (and desire!) to build their own knowledge. Our role as educators is not to simply give answers but to provide direction and resources so that students may explore their own hypotheses and interests. Our holistic approach to learning involves children, families, educators, environment, and community.
Our educators are fully accredited with child development training, CPR and First Aid certifications, and background check clearance. There’s more than two decades of experience on our leadership team alone.
Before moving to our Highland location, we served North County San Diego as a drop-in child care and education center.
We’ve watched our families grow and their children grow up, and we’re honored to have positively influenced their early childhood development.
Highland Preschool offers developmentally appropriate programming to suit your child’s educational and developmental needs, with both full-time and flexible care options. We provide year-round instruction for students ages 2-TK in preschool and Kinder-prep, and also offer flexible reservation-based care by the hour. Explore some of our program highlights below.
Our students learn by doing, and in the vegetable and herb garden, that means getting our hands dirty! We will learn where our food comes from, the importance of regenerative agriculture, and how to show appreciation for all living things. Planning and building began in March 2022 thanks to a generous partnership with Return Co.!
Potions, cupcakes, kitty food, roly-poly stew — our kiddos use their imaginations to cook up all that and more in our massive mud kitchen! Handcrafted by local artisan Carrie Minikel and restocked weekly with upcycled greenery from Communal Flowers, our mud kitchen invites kiddos to express themselves via dramatic play, building critical thinking and social skills such as empathy and cooperation.
Creativity takes many forms — all of which are welcome in our Atelier art studio and workshop. Our students express their creativity daily through sensory exploration and play and embark on guided projects each term that help foster planning, patience, and follow-through.
Come meet our menagerie of critters! Children care for and interact with our animals, learning short- and long-term responsibility while having fun with our chinchilla, tortoise, reptiles, and more.
