about us
Blue Oak Creative Schoolhouse is a Reggio Emilia inspired, Constructivist preschool on the west side of Los Angeles. We opened our first campus on Washington Place in 2011, followed by our second campus on Sawtelle Boulevard in 2018. Our third campus on 17th Street in Santa Monica opened in May 2021. In November 2024, we opened an extension to our original Washington Campus, allowing us to enroll children as young as 18 months old through transitional kindergarten.
We are a diverse learning community dedicated to the educational and social development of young children. Our program is inspired by the core values of the Reggio Emilia approach. Parents, teachers, and children work in close collaboration in a mutually supportive environment.
At Blue Oak, children connect social-emotional and academic concepts to real world investigations in the arts and nature.
The goal of Blue Oak is not to fill students with information, but rather to create lifelong learners with a passion for making their own discoveries.
"Our task is to help children communicate with the world using all their potential, strengths and languages and to overcome any obstacle presented by our culture"
-loris malaguzzi, founder of the Reggio Emilia approach
our philosophy and pedagogy
We believe that children are capable learners and should be given the freedom to actively construct their own knowledge. This image of the child fosters self-esteem, self-confidence, creative thinking, and trust within each child. The sense of trust is what allows children to freely express themselves, develop social-emotional competence, and challenge themselves academically. Our teaching staff balances opportunities for the development of both social and cognitive skills.
We believe that the early years of a child’s education serve as the foundation for their future academic lives. Knowledgeable educators and challenging materials inspire children to learn and research all of the learning domains. By combining an inspiring environment, engaging materials, and teacher attention to the particular needs of each child, Blue Oak supports broad developmental goals as well as specific learning outcomes for preschool age children.
Our low child to teacher ratio allows us to work with the children in small groups to observe and support their learning processes. This ratio also allows the teachers to spend time individually with each child on a regular basis.
The environment at Blue Oak functions as a “third teacher.” Indoors and outdoors, the environment supports curricular goals and is designed for children to explore hands-on. Every space provides opportunities for children to communicate, investigate their curiosities, and build relationships. Our materials are open-ended, and the children’s projects evolve from their interactions in the environment.
Teachers work with the children as facilitators of children’s explorations, short- and long-term projects, and problem-solving; there are opportunities for both child choice and teacher- guided instruction across all curricular domains. Through careful listening and observation, teachers discover children’s ideas and find out how to tap into each child’s learning modality. With a clear understanding of the children, teachers can create stimulating experiences that support cognitive, physical, and social-emotional well-being. To help make the learning process visible to the school community, teachers document the process of children’s work.
During their time with us, children will gradually deepen their understanding about the relationships among people and things in our world. Our unique combination of an academically challenging, emotionally supportive, and creatively stimulating environment provides our students with a solid foundation for the future. Curriculum is co-constructed with the children and their emergent ideas and interests guide our topics of investigation.
Are you an educator looking to learn more about our approach?
our explorations
our team
Deisi Nunez
Director, Atelierista
Lisa Perttula
Founding Head of School
Veronica Corral
Executive Director
our campuses
santa monica
campus
– Opened May 2021.
– Spanish Immersion program.
– Full-day preschool and transitional kindergarten programs for children age 2 years old and up.
– Space for 40 children per day.
– 3, 4 and 5 day per week schedules available.
– Toddler parent-and-me program Friday mornings.
– Children starting preschool at the Santa Monica Campus can continue at the same campus until graduation.
sawtelle
campus
– Opened in 2018.
– Full-day preschool and transitional kindergarten programs for children age 2 years old and up.
– Space for 40 children per day.
– Infant parent-and-me program.
– Toddler parent-and-me program.
– Children starting preschool at the Sawtelle Campus can continue at the same campus until transitional kindergarten.
washington
campus
– Opened in 2011. Zanja Extension opened 2024.
– Full-day toddler (18 months – 2 years old), full-day preschool (2 years old +) and transitional kindergarten programs. Gentle introduction to Spanish.
– Space for 104 children per day.
– 3, 4 and 5 day per week schedules available.
– Toddler parent-and-me program Friday mornings.
– Children starting preschool at the Washington Campus can continue at the same campus until graduation.
Interested in learning more?