The U3

In our U3, a total of 48 children are cared for in 4 groups of 12 children each. The U3 section is located in the back part of our building, separate from the Kindergarten, and has its own outdoor area.

This allows us to offer the children the protected environment that they need at this age.

Offering high-quality care is very important to us. U3 work is relationship work. Each group has four early years educators who are supported by educational assistants and trainees. Our early years educators devote individual attention to each child, they take the child’s needs into consideration, and they support the child’s stages of development.

Each group has its own group room with a directly adjoining washroom (with a changing table) and a sleeping area. Two groups each share one dining area. The convenient room arrangement helps the children with transitions over the course of the day and reduces possible stress.

The daily or weekly routine is clearly structured and ritualised in the U3. This gives the children a sense of security.
Once the children have arrived, each group starts the day with a morning circle. Each child is greeted. Singing together and simple finger games help the children to feel comfortable; it calms the group, and it promotes listening to and being considerate of each other.

After breakfast following the circle, the children are free to play and explore their environment by trying things out, each child at his/her own pace. The early years educators provide activities, such as creative/sensory activities, to the children; they do gardening with the children, or they do active games. Excursions to nearby locations are also offered.

We offer the children three meals: breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack. Our meals are healthy, varied, and prepared with high-quality ingredients, mostly organic.

One of our three central concepts is our bilingualism. In addition to German, English is a further daily language here. Based on the idea of “one person – one language” (immersion method), there is an early years educator in each group who exclusively speaks English with the children.

In addition to physical activity in our large, well-equipped exercise room with different obstacle courses and games, early musical instruction is another central element. Along with the daily singing and rhythm activities, a qualified music educator from the Neu-Isenburg school of music visits each group once a week.

It’s important to us that each individual child gets settled in well. The child should have sufficient time to get used to the new environment. That’s why we plan at least four weeks for this, based on the Berlin model. How this period is structured depends on the individual child.