World Children’s Day on September 20th
In Germany we celebrate World Children’s Day every year on September 20th. This day focuses on the individual needs of children. No person is like the other. Everyone is equipped with special skills and has gained personal experience. In this election year, Das Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk and UNICEF Germany are particularly pressing for children’s rights to be anchored in fundamental rights. As an educational institution, we agree with that. Especially during the corona pandemic, it has become clear that children’s rights are repeatedly ignored. In addition, what is really good for children and what they think and want is often neglected or not considered at all.
One way to give every child a good feeling in everyday school and kindergarten life by being included in the group works if you perceive and include each child with his/her individuality. “With the pedagogical concept of inclusion, you have to see and understand the needs of each individual child very precisely. Every person is individual and should also be able to bring this individuality into the group. Everyone is a natural part of it,” says Katharina Ehrenfried, head of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School kindergarten.
About the Berlin Cosmopolitan School, Preschool and Kindergarten
The Berlin Cosmopolitan School is changing the traditional way schools and kindergartens work with different approaches to learning in the areas of nature and environmental protection, sports, new work, culture, dance, music and art and much more. The aim of the independent school, preschool and kindergarten is to bring all students along according to their abilities.
“When school motivates, everyone learns more” is the conviction of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School. Regular outdoor learning, sports activities and competitions, digital projects such as robotics, internships from grade 6, music-making from kindergarten age, dance clubs, bilingual education and much more help the children to discover and develop their own preferences and abilities.
Important concerns of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School, Kindergarten and Preschool are social justice, equal opportunities in education and a balanced community. The school regularly awards scholarships to students and accepts refugees. Through its established network and internationally trained staff, the educational institution has the opportunity to explore new educational paths for every age group.
The Berlin Cosmopolitan School was founded in 2003 as a non-profit organisation by Yvonne Wende. In 2004, the first bilingual (English-German) kindergarten and preschool opened for Berlin-Mitte with 18 children. Shortly after, the primary school started and most recently, in 2009, the accredited bilingual Gymnasium of Berlin Cosmopolitan School 01P22. Since then, the number of students has steadily increased. Approximately 1,000 students from all over the world are now being taught on the Rückerstraße and Invalidenstraße campuses. The kindergarten has grown to a number of more than 300 children between the ages of 1 and 6.
In 2013, Berlin Cosmopolitan School was accredited as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, first for primary school and also for the Gymnasium. The IB Learner Profile is about developing children and young people into lifelong learners. The school and kindergarten use primary experiences to design lessons.