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235 Hope Road, Tinton Falls, NJ 07724  /  732.542.4777

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Constructing Creativity, Curiosity and a Love for Learning

Our Early Childhood Education program (ages 3-5) is designed to give children the essential building blocks they need to fulfill their own potential. Learn more today!
Ranney’s Early Childhood Education program is dedicated to cultivating a thirst for learning and curiosity that will last a lifetime. It is in these early years that our children begin to develop an independence and confidence that will prepare them to assume the roles of leadership as they move from one division to the next. Starting with Beginners (age 3), a strong partnership is established between school and home, always welcoming ongoing communication and participation in the learning process.

We believe children are individuals who grow and develop at their own pace. Therefore, the Ranney curriculum has been designed to support each stage of a child’s development, offering a menu of learning experiences that are differentiated to provide each child with a comfortable “stretch” to their learning. Deeply experienced teachers in the Early Childhood Education Center create goals for each child, exemplifying our mission–promise that every child is known and valued. These goals, which are shared with parents, identify student capacities, potential and challenges and are scaffolded to meet grade-level standards, ensuring that our youngest Ranney students experience the tradition of academic rigor within a caring and comfortable learning environment.

All-year-long learning opportunities
At Ranney, we focus on building confidence in our students with a variety of opportunities both during and after school. Our students are always encouraged to express their ideas and thoughts to the community in creative and meaningful ways. Early Childhood and Lower School students (age 3- Grade 5) are offered afterschool programming as part of their tuition through Ranney Plus, a program that includes activities such as cooking, ballet, book and nature clubs, computer programming and science exploration. In Kindergarten, children also have the opportunity to sign up for afterschool sports, such as golf, fencing and soccer. The curriculum and teaching philosophy have been specifically designed to support each stage of a child’s development, recognizing that no two children develop
at the same rate.

Ranney School also offers year-round learning for full-time enrolled Beginners and Pre-Kindergartners as well. These students are invited to stay at Ranney during the summer months as part of their school-year tuition to experience Ranney’s Summer Programs. In addition to Day Camp, children can also participate in our summertime academic programs. With this year-round approach, students are able to enjoy learning in a fun way—and all in one place, where they are familiar with their surroundings and feel comfortable in a safe environment. From
our summer Interactive Preschool Adventures, where children learn about symmetry, magnets and architecture in a hands-on and creative way, to our Kindergarten Readiness program where children get an introduction to the academic portion of our curriculum, our Early Childhood students are stimulated all summer long in their “home away from home.”

Building healthy bodies while building healthy minds
When students begin their educational experience in our Beginners program, they immediately experience what it means to be a Ranney Panther by participating in various activities throughout campus. One of the many draws for Ranney families is the students’ access to our state-of-the-art athletic facilities and our beautiful 25-meter indoor pool. Beginners participate in physical education classes every other day, where gross motor activities develop loco-motor skills and fitness through a variety of games that often support classroom learning in the fun context of physical education. Our physical education faculty plays a significant role in modeling and teaching the value of teamwork and collaboration. Students participate in swim classes and are introduced to the pool in a warm and welcoming way. Once they are comfortable, swim instructors spend time discussing water safety and allow the children to move at their own pace. By the time students leave the Early Childhood Building and go on to first grade, approximately 95% of them can swim without assistance.

Communication in three world languages
Starting in our Beginners’ program for 3-year-olds, students in Ranney’s Early Childhood Education program are exposed to three different languages in a given year. Spanish, French and Mandarin Chinese are taught in trimesters, helping young students develop their listening and speaking skills in real-life situations. Through the use of thematic units, children also explore other cultures. As they grow into Kindergarten, students learn vocabulary such as colors, body parts, days of the week and months of the year—all while gaining a better understanding of where in the world these languages are spoken.

“Starting world language instruction at age 3 sets the stage for higher level proficiencies in the five C’s: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons and communities,” explained Lower School World Language Teachers Jeanette Cordero (Spanish), Nancy Rosenthal (French) and Ping Zhang (Chinese). “Children who start their language learning in early childhood demonstrate certain cognitive advantages and possess the capacity to develop near native-like acquisition.”
Parents have the opportunity to observe first-hand the outcomes of the enriching curriculum as their children perform songs in all three languages at special events throughout the year, such as Grandparents’ & Friends’ Day in the fall and Parents’ Day in the spring.

Students take these skills with them into the Lower, Middle and Upper School divisions. Once students enter second grade, for example, they choose to study one of the three languages more deeply. When they cross over to the Middle School, they can elect to continue studying their chosen language or switch to a different language. Ranney students in all three divisions have received national recognition for their excellent performance in French and Spanish, demonstrated by their scores on the country’s national world language exams.
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Ranney School

235 Hope Road
Tinton Falls, NJ 07724
Tel. 732.542.4777
Our mission is to know and value every child, nurturing intellectual curiosity and confidence, and inspiring students to lead honorably, think creatively, and contribute meaningfully to society. 

We envision Ranney School as a nurturing learning community, in which families, faculty, alumni, and all of Ranney’s constituents collaborate to know and value every child, foster individual talents, sustain powerful connections between children and adults, and graduate resilient, globally-minded citizens.