Transforming Our Community Through Work And Play!
Apple Playschools is an early childhood educational center that offers outdoor immersion and Spanish immersion programs. At our Ann Arbor facilities, we seek to provide progressive early education for a better world.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to the United Way of Washtenaw County for choosing Apple Playschools to be a recipient of a generous grant from their 2024 Opportunity Fund, which will greatly support our professional development efforts.
Our Programs at a Glance
Green Apple Playschools
Green Apple Garden Playschool is an outdoor immersion program serving kids aged 6 months - 6 years.
Both the Green Apple Lower School and Upper School are in northwest Ann Arbor, on Miller Road.
Manzanitas Playschool
Manzanitas Playschool is a Spanish immersion school serving kids aged 6 months - 6 years.
Manzanitas is located on Packard Road on the south side of Ann Arbor.
Apple Scouts Camp
Apple Scouts is a nature immersion program that serves kids aged 5 years and up.
We offer camps on school breaks and in the summer! Registration for the 2024 year is open now!
Our Mission, Vision, & Values
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![Two children are outside at a picnic table playing with wet mud in a bucket, one child has blonde hair and light skin tone, the other has black curly hair and a dark skin tone.]()
Our Mission
We embody inclusion, innovation, and environmental stewardship in entrepreneurship and education in order to make a more equitable world.
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![A group of Manzanita's students play and dance outside, while two Maestra's, one medium-light skin tone, and one medium skin tone, are shown dancing next to them]()
Our Vision
An equitable world where all people are respected as capable, competent, and empowered citizens of the planet.
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![Two children, one with blonde hair and one with light brown hair, both light skin tone, sit on stumps and are actively engaged with the book, "Ruby Finds a Worry", that a teacher with glasses and light skin tone is reading.]()
Our Values
Our social justice branches are at the core of our approach to education, employment practices and our community outreach.
Respecting Authentic Childhood
Global Citizenship
Equity & Inclusion
Environmental Education, Stewardship, & Justice
Collaborative Community Involvement
Testimonials
“We have mutual trust, the school and I. I believe in them and them in me and this creates a powerful foundation for growth.” - Manzanitas Teacher
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“My degree is in Secondary but since working at Manzanitas I keep choosing early childhood everyday. In secondary, perhaps I could make more money but when I started doing practicums it felt so solitary, so dull, so unconnected in contrast to what I had experienced at Apple Playschools. I want to be a first year teacher in a school where I feel supported and that is why I chose to stay at Apple Playschools. I know my co-teachers, administrators, and even the other schools in our system have got my back in something as hectic and terrifying as being a first year teacher. In early childhood education I find joy, comfort, and community that keeps me wanting to come to work the next day. At Manzanitas specifically I see a way of teaching that reflects the culture I grew up in.
I have seen the school grow with me. From getting healthcare to making efforts to provide translations for my coworkers, I see my school’s commitment to us. We have mutual trust, the school and I. I believe in them and them in me and this creates a powerful foundation for growth.”
“… An environment where love for nature, respect, and empathy rules” - Admin Staff Member
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“In my nine years working for this organization, I've been experiencing many changes and things that I consider impossible. However, I've also seen the tremendous support we give to families and children and the difference we make in this world, believe it or not. We are living in difficult times, and everything seems upside down. When we provide our children with an environment where love for nature, respect, and empathy rules, it is a way to show them that there is still hope out there. I believe this is what we do here and the main reason for me to stay during all these years. I chose not to become a mother, but I've seen Apple Playschools' children as if they were mine. I hope we can continue to BE THE CHANGE this world needs.”
“…The loving environment, the commitment to nature and diversity, the willingness to meet children where they are" - all of that has remained constant.” - Green Apple Parent
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“I’ve had two kids attend Green Apple from infancy to kindergarten (and onto Apple Scouts!). During our time, the loving environment, the commitment to nature and diversity, the willingness to meet children where they are - all of that has remained constant. In particular:
The commitment to embracing the outdoors. My kids were always coming home covered in mud, with their pockets full of leaves; at four, they could give me gardening advice and tell me the names of plants.
How they approach gender. My son could wear a dress to school - he could be one of several boys wearing a dress - and it wouldn't be a big deal. If my daughter's best friend was a boy, no one would talk about him as her "boyfriend." In preschool, they understood how to talk about pronouns.
The way kids are respected as people. This is harder to put into words, but I think a lot of adults condescend to children, treat them as adorable but ultimately dumb. I think at GA the teachers really listen to the kids. This can mean everything from a teacher being willing to baby-wear my crying daughter for most of the day to a different teacher patiently waiting for my son to tell her something back when he was struggling with a stutter. I feel like this also comes out in the play aspect - it feels like my kids learned a ton at GA but in a way that respected their preschool interests and abilities. They were met where they were at - not with flashcards and drills and sitting - but through playing and experiencing the world and experimenting.
There's a lot more I could say but overall we are so grateful for community of teachers, families, and wonderful friends."
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