Bank Street Family Center

Preschool Classrooms

Accepting Applications for 2025-26

Preschool classrooms at the Family Center offer a dynamic and inclusive learning environment for children ages 3 through 5 years old. Our hands-on program encourages preschoolers to engage with their surroundings, interact with peers, and build a sense of community. Our curriculum builds from the idea that children learn by doing, and that active, experiential learning deeply supports children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development.

Preschool families may submit an application for general education or special education. Our fully inclusive setting means that all children share the same classroom, which research shows benefits children with and without special needs. Additionally, studies indicate that inclusive classrooms help children learn important life skills—like patience, compassion, and a range of communication strategies—as they learn among children with varied abilities. At the Family Center, our expert teachers approach learning from a developmental perspective and individualized activities to meet each child’s needs.

Both full-time and part-time programming options are available to suit each family’s needs.

How to Apply Request Application

Teacher and young child play with markers

Explore, Create, and Discover

Preschoolers at the Family Center explore in their classrooms and in other areas of Bank Street, as well as throughout our neighborhood in ways that ignite their curiosity and expand their thinking. In our classrooms, children create art, tell stories, dramatize their experiences, build with enriching materials, and so much more. Our teachers are always thinking through a developmental lens and we are committed to knowing each child in a deep and meaningful way.
View Daily Program and Sample Schedule (pdf)
Child and teacher do art activity

Preschool and Pre-K Programs

in the Family Center and School for Children
The Family Center at Bank Street College is a full-day, year-round childcare program for children between the ages of 6 months to 5 years. The program is fully inclusive and offers both general education and special education services in an integrated setting.

The Bank Street School for Children (SFC) is an ongoing school for children, ages 3–14 years old. Its preschool program is for children who are 3 years old by September 1 of the year of entry; its prekindergarten program is for children who are 4 years old by September 1. Children who join these programs begin their educational journeys by laying foundational relationships with teachers, friends, and families that serve them throughout their time at Bank Street School for Children.

SFC Preschool SFC Pre-K