The second Green Grass Nursery opened in 2021, providing an Arabic and English bilingual programme in a homely and natural environment.

The story so far...

The first Green Grass Nursery opened in Jumeirah in 2013, under the leadership of Arwa Naccho. The second branch, Green Grass Nursery Al Manara, opened eight years later, in 2021. 

The approach of Green Grass Nursery Al Manara differs to its original sister nursery, in that the Arabic language has been made a priority, with a completely bilingual programme offered (Arabic and English). 

What about the curriculum?

Green Grass Nursery Al Manara follows the UK’s Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework. This is a popular choice in UAE nurseries and focuses on the development of seven core areas: communication and language, physical development, personal, social and emotional development, literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design. This approach promotes learning through play, and a balance between child led and adult lead activities. 

Unusually for an EYFS setting, Green Grass Nursery Al Manara splits the children’s time between English and Arabic. Teachers of each language work in pairs, swapping over between two classes halfway through the session, so that children are exposed to both languages daily, as part of their play-based activities. The nursery has also been carefully labelled with signage in both English and Arabic throughout, providing a bilingual language-rich environment. 

What about the environment and facilities?

The nursery is in a converted residential villa with a sizable garden, situated in a quiet side street in Al Manara area. It makes good use of the modest space it has, with six classrooms and a range of indoor and outdoor learning and exploration facilities (including a vegetable patch, tricycle track, mud kitchen, role play area and gym). The setting provides a home-from-home feel, warm and welcoming, small enough to provide a sense of familiarity between families and staff.

Classrooms are on the smaller side, but with this comes the benefit of smaller numbers of children in each class. With a variety of shared spaces accessible outside the classroom available also, this need not be a major concern to parents. Each classroom has direct access to nappy changing, toilet and handwashing facilities, all at the appropriate height for the children using them. 

The nursery garden is home to some pet tortoises and chickens, which are likely a particular draw for some children. These residents certainly add to the setting’s homely charm. 

What about the ratios?

Due to having smaller class sizes, Green Grass Nursery often exceed the minimum staff to child ratio requirements quite considerably, particularly in the older age groups, providing more individual attention than many other settings. 

What about the timings?

Green Grass Nursery Al Manara offers a variety of options in terms of days and timings: 3, 4 or 5 days per week and timings of 8am to either 1:00pm, 3pm, 4pm, 5pm or 6pm. 

What about the fees?

Fees are payable termly and vary slightly, due to the longer length of the summer term. Averaging across a year, they work out as 3,344AED per month for the minimum of three days per week, 8:00am – 1:00pm, and ranging up to 5,6771AED per month for the maximum of five days per week, 8:00am – 6:00pm. 

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