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Kids World International Nursery FZCO, China Cluster, International City
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Review

Kids World International Nursery FZCO, China Cluster, International City

by January 27, 2016

Updated December 2016

Kids World opened its first branch in Al Nahda, Sharjah in 2004 and has grown to number two further branches, one in China Cluster, International City and a second at The Crest Executive Tower, Jumeirah Lake Towers, both in Dubai. A fourth is planned for opening in Jumeirah Village Circle in 2016-17.

The nurseries are developed by Lovita Tariq, Kids World’s flamboyant CEO, as a response to her perceived lack in quality Montessori nursery provision, and particularly a Montessori approach that is underpinned by traditional learning. It is in the combination of both approaches that she says offers the greatest benefit to children.

In the early days, as very much a pioneer in the sector, whichschooladvisor had some (inevitable perhaps) feedback about lack of communication and unanswered emails; the group found itself swamped with applications for places and as a young organisation was simply swamped.

Today whichschooladvisor feedback reflect a mature organisation operating at the top of its game on the ground and at Head Office. Impressively, a whichschooladvisor investigation in 2016 received an email response personally from the school’s owner within 24 hours of sending an enquiry from a prospective parent.   Parental feedback too on in-nursery provision itself has been uniformly good. On this basis whichschooladvisor reports positively on communication and provision within the nurseries.

Registration is relatively quick, requiring a photocopy of your child(ren)’s passport(s), residency page(s); birth certificate(s) and immunisation records together with 4 passport photographs.

Despite its declared mission to provide affordable nursery provision, fees are middle-high tier. For full half day provision parents need to budget for fees in excess of DHS22,000 per annum, although this includes a “uniform” and field trips. These can be reduced by reducing the time children spend at the nursery and are payable in instalments.

Provision is of a high quality and classes are small, around 12 children per member of staff. More importantly whichschooladvisor found staff that were consistently highly engaged, passionate, attentive – and fun; consistency of approach is not always easy when meeting the demands of children within a Montessori ‘play’ based framework curriculum centred on a greater degree of individual, child-lead play.

GEMS_INARTICLE  

A major USP is the shopfront locations of the nurseries in the hubbub of Dubai community and life; the intention was always to integrate children in society rather in separate, often closed off buildings. Despite the cost, it is a model Mrs Tariq will not change, believing with conviction that the benefits of a shopfront location to each child’s education are immense. The only trade-off with traditional, Tier 1 nursery provision, is the lack of outside playing fields and facilities, although these are designed to be compensated for in the Kids World combination of field trips and shopfront “bustle.”

The importance of this integration-founded approach is reaffirmed through genuinely fabulous, often inspirational, fieldtrips. For whichschooladvisor this sort of active approach clearly resulted in inspired children.

Classrooms themselves are divided into five areas, each brought alive with colour and children’s work as well as being themed to each of the core centres of the curriculum: Practical; Numerals; Language; Sensorial and Environment.

Since first opening each nursery now operates on a unique, “blended” Montessori-Traditional curriculum developed in the nurseries themselves. Montessori alone produced weaker results than a blended approach, particularly given the transient nature of Dubai life in which not all children are able to remain with the nursery through a full three-year programme of toddler, pre-primary and primary provision.

Within these groupings, activities are clearly structured and well thought out in four tailored teaching groups: Infant-Toddlers, Toddler, Pre-Primary and Montessori Kindergarten.

Learning uses the spectrum of traditional and Montessori approaches at this age including painting; sand play; traditional free play, storytelling; manipulative play; cooking; water; blocks; modelling and focus work.

Nursery provision is increasingly competitive and the landscape for prospective parents offers significant choice. Notwithstanding this, whichschooladvisor found in its inspections a successful, child orientated environment across all three Kids World nurseries currently operating in the group, all with good levels of staffing, inspired teaching – and happy children.

With primary school’s increasingly insisting on effective nursery education as a pre-requisite of entry, and increasing educational weighting on play-based education from an early age, whichschooladvisor found much to recommend Kids World to parents.

As with all nurseries, a visit is absolutely critical, preferably with your child(ren). Experience on the ground of the very different ‘feel’ of every nursery, parental comfort with teacher styles and curriculum – and each child’s sense that they will feel at home, is every bit as important at this age as it is later in each child’s education.

Go to the FULL REVIEW on WhichSchoolAdvisor.com

Details to consider
Type of school

Private, for-profit

Full WSA Review
Average Cost Per Year

One-time non-refundable registration fee: 500
Annual Fees (inc. uniform and field trip) - Girls: 22,125 + Bus fees (7:30am - 12:00pm)
Annual fees (inc. uniform and field trip) - Boys: 22,105 + Bus fees

Curriculum

Montessori-Traditional hybrid

Selective

No

Waiting list

Yes

Value Added

Not published

Number of Students

Groups of 12

Teacher to Student Ratio

1:12

Year opened

2004 (Founding branch)

Location

China Cluster, International City, Dubai
(Also branches in Al Nahda - Sharjah and The Crest Executive Tower - Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai)

Gender

Mixed, co-educational

Owner

Kids World Group

Admissions Telephone

+971 (0) 4 422 6867

Web Address
Attainment Nur SEM

100%

Attainment Pri SEM

NA

Attainment Sec SEM

NA

Attainment Post-16 SEM

NA

Progress Nur SEM

100%

Progress Pri SEM

NA

Progress Sec SEM

NA

Progress Post-16 SEM

NA

Arabic Native Primary Results (Native)

NA

Arabic Secondary Results (Native)

NA

Arabic Post-16 Results (Native)

NA

Arabic Primary Results (Add.)

NA

Arabic Secondary Results (Add.)

NA

Arabic Post-16 Results (Add.)

NA

Islamic St. Primary Results

NA

Islamic St. Secondary Results

NA

Islamic St. Post-16 Results

NA

Leadership

75%

Community

100%

Facilities

75%

Quality of teaching

100%

Student personal responsibility

100%

Quality of curriculum

100%

School Governance

NA

SEN Provision

NA

Strengths

• Unique hybrid blended Montessori-traditional approach
• Passionate, committed teaching
• Inspired children
• Shopfront locations offering children the stimulation and hubbub of Dubai life
• Very well planned curriculum across all nursery phases
• Cleverly designed, well thought out themed nurseries with free flow between each themes centre of learning
• Small class sizes and high teacher levels per child

Weaknesses

• No advertised specialist focus on children with Special Educational Needs [SEN] (although the owner emphasised to whichschooladvisor that, with parental support, she would go the extra mile to help all children if at all possible)
• Fees higher than the intended value mission statement would suggest, although, for whichschooladvisor, these are justified by the strength of provision
• Lack of outside play areas and facilities, including a swimming pool, will deter some parents

Rating
Our Rating
User Rating
Rate Here
Academic
B
B
Value
B+
A-
Languages
B
C+
Sports
B
A-
Arts & Drama
A
Teaching
A-
Communications
A-
B+
Warmth
A
B-
Differentiation
D+
B-
SEND Provision
D+
Scl Community
B
Scl Facilities
C-
Opportunities

• Whilst competition in this sector increases by the day, shopfront provision was pioneered by Kids World – and it delivers
• Parents are increasingly advised to build nursery provision into their educational planning as it becomes increasingly a pre-requisite of entrance to good primaries
• Nurturing environments, curriculum breadth and focus, imaginative and inspired free-thinking Montessori approach and a unique Kids World focus built on 12 years’ experience in the sector result in a good standard of nursery provision across all phases

B+
Our Rating
B
User Rating
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About The Author
Jon Westley
Jon Westley is the Editor of SchoolsCompared.com and WhichSchoolAdvisor.com UK. You can email him at jonathanwestley [at] schoolscompared.com
1 Comments
  • NIKKS
    September 20, 2016 at 2:15 pm
    Strengths

    Montessori approach

    Weaknesses

    Poor communication, zero transparency with parents, dominating administrator with aggressive approach, does not entertain parent queries with interest. Staff never has time to talk personally or over the phone with parent.

    Rating
    DifferentiationD

    Transparency and a welcoming attitude missing in the administrator and school staff.

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Academic
Value
Languages
Sports
Arts & Drama
Teaching
Communications
Warmth
Differentiation
SEND Provision
Scl Community
Scl Facilities