Nature's Edge Child Development Center

Nature's Edge Child Development Center is a preschool in Long Beach, California. It is a small preschool with a stated bigger purpose: working closely with children and families. The center's guiding idea is that the child is the curriculum, meaning teachers plan the classroom environment around each child's own development, culture, interests, skills, and needs, and post weekly lesson plans in the individual classes. Play is treated as powerful and the classroom itself as a teaching tool, from how it is organized and furnished to how it is enhanced. The program is play-based and Reggio-inspired, introducing children to TK and kindergarten learning through play at their own pace. Meals are provided. The center holds a rating of 5.00 from the customers who have reviewed it.

The staff are early childhood specialists who have completed or are working toward AA, BA, or MA programs in Early Childhood Education. Each staff member completes 21 professional development hours annually, and the center provides ongoing workshops and professional development. All staff have prior experience in the field, are CPR and First Aid certified, and many belong to the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Staff are fingerprinted and cleared by the Department of Social Services and the Department of Justice before their first day. Director Jayanthi Wimalaratne, known as Ms. Jay, has been involved in the childcare community for over 30 years and earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees in Early Childhood Education at California State University, Long Beach, after study at Long Beach City College. She has worked directly with children, parents, and community agencies, beginning as an assistant teacher in Los Angeles.

The center sits on East 7th Street, about a third of a mile from Rose Park and from the post office on 4th Street. Burbank Elementary School and Willard Elementary School are each about four tenths of a mile away, and Carroll Park is roughly the same distance.

Families describe the teachers as kind, professional, and attentive, with daily feedback on each child, and describe lasting friendships and a connected community of parents. For Long Beach families looking for a play-based preschool, that combination of a small setting and a long-tenured director is what the center is known for.