So, last Fall we were at a family dinner party, and my husband and I were conversing with this other couple we had previously met but had not gotten the chance to chat with. When the topic of where our kids went to school came up, we told them where our older children went, and when we mentioned that our little guy is at Bing, the husband all of a sudden started making one comment after another as he tried to paint a very negative picture of Bing. He told us that our son is just a guinea pig, that he is being used as a lab rat by Stanford, that all they really do is get dirty playing in mud. Then adding that he is happy that his daughter’s name never got off the Bing wait list. We felt that the gentleman totally disqualified our Bing experience, making it hard for us to have a dialogue on the topic, and try to explain why we think that Bing is a fantastic nursery school.
Bing may not be for every family, or every child in a family. However, if you meet my little one and see the excitement and curiosity with which he faces the world, you will fully understand why we drank the Bing koolaid and feel that it is a great place for our son to grow, explore and be curious. Of course, there are quite a few nursery schools in Palo Alto and surroundig areas that are wonderful, but Bing holds a special place in our hearts, and knowing the 50 year history of Bing, even makes us more happy that our son will be one of over 10,000 children who have walked through Bing’s door .
Wednesday evening I attended a wonderful chronicling of Bing’s story narrated by Christine Van De Velde, who is a former parent, author and also in the process of writing a book about Bing’s history. The very dynamic story kept me captivated and made me truly appreciate what an amazing opportunity my little one has been given to attend such an amazing nursery school. A wonderful school that has crafted the gold standard of early childhood education, as part of Stanford University.
Much credit has to be given to Edith Dowley, the very dedicated visionary who came 50 years ago and helped shape the nursery school model. Edith Dowley was instrumental in helping to create an environment that was focused on the overall development of the child, while leading with the premise that play is essential to proper development.
Edith had had quite a journey as she moved from the East Coast to the West Coast and from the field of journalism to where she had her true calling: early childhood education. After her very successful run with the Kaiser Child Centers, in the Portland ship yard, in the 1940s, her move to Palo Alto and introduction to Stanford helped solidify her as a pioneer who would help crystalize Bing as a leader in the field of play based learning.
She helped shape Bing to be what it is today, and her three main principles never quivered even through the test of time: treating every child as an honored guest, giving children the gift of time, and supporting the child’s freedom of movement.
We were introduced to Bing while still in NY, before our big move to Palo Alto. We knew that it would be very challenging for our son to get into Bing, as many people had mentioned that getting your child in is practically like winning the lottery. My husband and I gambled on the idea, and, even while we were trying our utmost to get our little guy settled into a child care or nursery environment, we still kept his name on the extremely long Bing’s wait list, with the hope that one day he will be given the opportunity to experience Bing.
Although we were not sure that he would meet the criteria of what they were looking for, yet we were cautiousy optimistic that he would get in. After all, I think that he is a perfect candidate for Bing: he is curious, spirited, strong willed, loves to play, have fun. He is just that special kid that dances to the beat of his own drums. It also helps that he is an under represented group that Bing may be looking for and we were hoping that he woud help balance the pool of students. Of course, you just never know what the admissions department is looking at for any given year. We had him in a bilingual Montessori program, but, thankfully, it did not work out for him, at this particular program which I explain in this post, and there was no plan B and we were just keeping our fingers crossed.
Sure, we were extremely pleased when he got accepted and felt relieved that he would finally be in an environment where his personality would be validated.
Bing has truly mastered how to make each child feel equally special. Children are greeted with respect as soon as they walk into the classroom, and this attitude continues till they say goodbye and leave. This type of interaction with the children offers them a sense of confidence and the feeling that they are honored guests at Bing. During pick up, I am amazed at how the teacher’s use of positive language helps me see my son’s efforts and behavior in such an extremely positive light. They are all highly qualified, trained and exemplify the fundamental philosophies of Bing. They guide the children, but give them the freedom to choose whatever they want to engage with.
I often marvel at how he moves from one project to the next one and how everything that in his classroom is carefully selected and positioned, even the name tags with the identifying icons. He is encouraged to explore his environment, touch, play, figure things out, be curious and, if he wants to spend his entire afternoon at the water table, or the sand box, then that is fine as well. His seven teachers are engaging, encouraging and co explorers as he navigates his way through the magical place that is Bing.
So, to the man at the party, I am sure that you may have your uninformed opinion about Bing, or maybe you are still a little bitter that your daughter did not get invited into Bing’s program. But that does not give you the right to ridicule our choice, belittle my son to rodents, as you ignored me giving you our whole perspective on Bing. Sure Bing is a fantastic research school as part of Stanford University Department of Psychology and Linguistics. He could have been a bit more diplomatic in his perpective, and not try to use this a negative.
My heart is in place when my son wakes up every day asking to go to Bing, and I see results each time he makes a beehive to play with whatever his heart desires. I see how proud he is of his creations and how much effort he puts into building, learning to take turn, role playing, or sharing his thoughts at the snack table. I see how much he wants to share and how great he works on putting things together with friends or by himself. I enjoy his retelling of the stories that they read at Bing, the songs he sings and musical instruments he tries to imitate. I love that he is able to identify things by their proper names, ask a million question and most of all, just be himself. As a parent of three, I can truly see the Bing difference.
Maybe if that man had given me the opportunity to speak and not continue to speak rudely over me, (something he would have learned if he had gone to Bing), I would have simply told him that the world would be a much better place if every child had the opportunity to go to Bing.
If you would like more information about Bing, visit Bing at https://bingschool.stanford.edu/
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