Building Foundations: Discover The Arcanys Early Learning Foundation and Their Mission to Revolutionize Early Childhood Education
The Arcanys Early Learning Foundation (AELF), founded in 2012, is dedicated to transforming early childhood education within the underserved communities of Cebu City, Philippines. In the urban poor communities of Cebu City where AELF operates, education often takes a backseat to survival. Families face daily struggles just trying to make ends meet, parents work long hours or unstable jobs, while children are often exposed to unsafe environments involving violence, drugs, or even child labor. In fact, only 19% of Filipino children aged 3–4 are enrolled in child development centers, a stark figure that reflects how difficult access to early education can be for low-income families.
The Arcanys Early Learning Foundation was created to respond to these challenges. Their learning centers offer children a safe, supportive space to build critical early math and logic skills—skills that serve as building blocks for lifelong learning. But the work that AELF does doesn’t stop at the children. Recognizing that conventional educational access is limited and often secondary to survival needs, AELF empowers parents to become their children’s primary educators. They work closely with parents, coaching them to become their child’s first teacher and strongest advocate. This unique approach, blending evidence-based teaching with real-life parenting wisdom, aims to prepare children for school and foster deeper parental engagement, ultimately unlocking their full potential. In doing so, AELF helps families build habits that nurture learning at home and plant the seeds for long-term change—breaking the cycle of poverty, one child at a time.
AELF implements the ChildUp Early Education model. Can you explain the key principles of this model and how it fosters early math and logic development in children, while also actively involving parents in the learning process?
The ChildUp Early Education model is guided by five key principles:
- Newborns are ready to excel at anything: From birth, children have the innate ability to learn and succeed in any area.
- Talent is made, not born: Every child’s potential can be nurtured through consistent learning and support.
- Parents as role models and first teachers: Parents are the first and most important educators, guiding their children through early development.
- The goal is to be school-ready: Focus is on preparing children for school, ensuring they have the foundational skills needed for academic success.
- Games are great early learning tools: Play-based learning is central to the ChildUp approach, making education both engaging and effective.
AELF applies these principles by combining evidence-based teaching with a strong focus on parent-child interaction. At the core of our approach is MATHnimals, a set of 110 two-sided educational game cards developed by ChildUp. These cards are designed to teach foundational math and logic concepts such as counting, patterns, comparisons, and sequencing through engaging and age-appropriate games. Rather than placing children in traditional classrooms, we coach parents to become active participants in their child’s learning journey. Through regular sessions at our learning centers, parents learn how to guide these playful activities at home, reinforcing cognitive development while strengthening the parent-child bond. This blends decades of real-life parenting wisdom with innovative learning strategies backed by research from our partner, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. This model is rooted in a simple but powerful idea that young children are capable of learning far more than we often assume, and that parents play a central role in unlocking their potential not only in order to create the conditions for long-term academic success for their children, but also to provide an avenue for deeper parental engagement.
Understand how AELF is creating sustainable change in Cebu City by empowering parents and children through early education by visiting their website: https://www.arcanysfoundation.org/.
Become a vital partner in building a future where every child has the foundation for lifelong learning by supporting AELF. Your contribution directly empowers families in underserved communities by providing access to crucial early education. To directly support their mission and make a difference, please consider making a donation.
