ABOUT PLAYFUL LEARNING studio
OUR VISION
Playful Learning is a method of early childhood education that artfully weaves together play with learning.
We bring education to life through our in-person preschool studio, online teacher and parent lounges, and hands-on learning materials—carefully curated for the youngest learners—and the families, teachers, and schools who care for them.
Playful FamiliesPlayful SchoolsPlayful World
our story
Playful Learning was founded by award-winning educator and author, Mariah Bruehl in 2008, as an online resource for children, parents, and teachers.
With the goal of bridging research and practice, Playful Learning Studio opened its doors in the spring of 2015 in the village of East Hampton, New York. We provide young learners with engaging in-person preschool programs utilizing our proprietary, play-based curriculum and methods.
Our innovative early childhood curriculum and hands-on experiences are developed in-house by our team of educators and implemented daily in our highly-curated early childhood classrooms and gardens.
Once curriculum has been vetted in our studio it’s made available to teachers and schools worldwide through our online membership, professional development, and hands-on classroom materials.
Having merged both in-person and online worlds, Playful Learning shares the curriculum, research, and development taking place in our preschool studio with teachers, schools, and community organizations, interested in creating play-based programs, through our online membership and materials.
This process creates an ongoing cycle of teaching and learning where educators are consistently collaborating on, improving, and reflecting on their practice—as well as how to adapt it to meet the needs of individual students and communities.
MEET OUR TEAM
Mariah Bruehl
Founder & CEO
Jacki Schulze
Studio Director
Mary Brady
Studio Associate Director
Megan Payne
Primary Lab Head
Teacher
Deanna Iwanyckyi
Primary & Beginner Lab Assistant Teacher
Kate Walker
Primary Lab Assistant Teacher
Isabella Facendola
Toddler & Beginner Lab Head Teacher
Arlene Pizo
Toddler Lab Head Teacher