Day nurseries

The Francke Foundations run three institutions for pre-school children: the day-care nurseries "Amos Comenius", "August Hermann Francke" and "Maria Montessori". Nearly 400 children between the ages of 8 weeks and 6 years are looked after by over 60 professional staff. The Foundations have since 1998, when they took over the first nursery, been continuing August Hermann Francke’s tradition of adopting a particular social and educational responsibility towards children. Francke saw in the education of children the best way of improving people and society as a whole. In the Francke Foundations of the 18th century this education began as a rule with childen from 10 years of age. In the early modern period kindergartens had not yet been invented. The first day nursery in the Francke Foundations was opened in 1946.

The institutions have consciously chosen names rooted in educational history. Amos Comenius (1592-1670) was one of the spiritual founding fathers of childcare outside the family home. August Hermann Francke (1663-1726) recognised the extraordinary educational significance of childhood and youth for later life. Maria Montessori (1870-1952) along with Friedrich Fröbel (1782-1852) put early childhood education on a theoretical basis. The day nurseries belong with the after-school centre for primary school children and the Children’s Creativity Centre "Krokoseum" to the five institutions administered by the of the Francke Foundations. Currently, the pedagogical profiles of the three day nurseries are being developed along the lines of a common concept.