This school is absolutely amazing. We attended here before moving further south and honestly my…read morechild entered Kindergarten in our new town so well prepared. He reads fluently and is just so well-adjusted socially and emotionally. I completely credit the teachers and staff at FVAM. They took a shy somewhat nervous kid and really did wonders with him. Your child would be in excellent, caring hands at FVAM. Cannot recommend them enough! PS most people don't know, but they do early education (toddlers) and summer camp too. Enjoy!

My children attended FVAM for 4 years and we loved every minute being there. The teachers are all…read morevery dedicated and the curriculum is top notch. They deeply understand children and how they grow and develop, and they are amazingly in tune with each child's individual learning growth. From art, to science, to math- the teachers are just the absolute best. I know other families who moved, switching their children out of FVAM, and into big city fancy schools and they were sorely disappointed, noting that FVAM is really a special and unique place. We have since moved as well, and we are so sad to have left FVAM. If you are looking for caring, engaging teachers that understand your child, and a hands-on environment that includes outdoor experiences like gardening, nature exploration and animal interactions (butterflies, ducks, and other small critters), this is your spot. We love FVAM!

My son, now 10 years old and finishing 4th grade, attended all three years at Avon Nursery School -…read moretheir 3's, 4's, and pre-K programs. The Director, Joan Parks, has become a family friend for life. The staff who work with her have been the teachers there for years. This is a team of educators who truly find preschool care and education to be their calling. This team of teachers gets to know each child very well, and they truly love the kids they teach and care for. The program is a wonderful balance of educational play, hands-on exploration, art appreciation, life appreciation, love of cultures from all over the world. My son still remembers all the steps in the water cycle. He still remembers how they taught him about animals and nature. By the time he was headed for kindergarten, he was beginning to sound out short words. Although there is an academic component, it's not imposed on the kids, and they're truly taught at their own pace and interest level. We are still friends with the families who were part of the ANS community when my son was there, and he is still good friends with some of the children from his time at ANS. Truly, you could not dream up a better environment for your child. I can't say enough about Avon Nursery School and its staff. It's a very special place.

In our experience, sending our child to Renbrook for Pre-K was unfortunate. There were two Pre-K…read moreclasses that, to us, appeared quite segregated, with most minority students and teachers in one class and others in the other. This gave us the impression that the school lacks diversity. Throughout the school year, our previously happy and outgoing child became increasingly miserable, to the point of not wanting to go to school in the mornings. We all felt a significant amount of stress. At the time, we weren't aware that Renbrook does not require formal qualifications for their teachers. It seems that individuals who were formerly teacher's aides or camp counselors are employed as teachers, without any formal education or training in child development or education. This contrasts with local public schools, which typically require a master's degree in these fields. In our view, based on what our child shared, these unqualified "teachers" seemed unable to connect with our child and perhaps others, resorting to strict discipline methods such as yelling, time-outs, and a lack of affection or support. As parents, we were repeatedly pressured through emails and phone calls to use time-outs at home to make our child easier to manage in class. The classroom environment seemed overly strict for four-year-olds, who were expected to sit still in a circle for extended periods and were not allowed to wiggle or make noises without being labeled disruptive. Any attempts to communicate with the school about how well-behaved our child was in other settings were dismissed. We felt blamed as parents, with the school insisting that the problem was with us or our child, never them. It appeared that children of teachers and wealthy donors were given preferential treatment, allowed to misbehave without consequence. Our child noticed this difference and expressed that the teachers only helped certain kids, not her or some of her friends. There seemed to be a bias, with boys being excused for inappropriate remarks or physical transgressions, while girls were expected to remain quiet and compliant. This made us feel very concerned. Based on conversations with other parents, it seemed that families who were not part of the teachers' or donors' circle were often advised to seek psychological evaluations and treatments for their children. This gave us the impression that the frequency of children in therapy at Renbrook was notably high. We never had the opportunity to meet the school counselor, as she was part-time and unable to attend a meeting we hoped she would join. When we attempted to discuss our concerns with the head of the school, we felt that our concerns were again dismissed, with the suggestion that the issue lay solely with us and our child. This was not supported by a subsequent elaborate professional evaluation, which found our child to be highly intelligent and emotionally healthy. Throughout the year, most of the school's communication centered around fundraising and monthly donation requests, with little focus on the educational details of our children. The events were more akin to social gatherings, featuring heavy drinking by some participants and the formation of cliques among parents at golf or social clubs. Notably, Renbrook does not offer tuition refunds if you decide the school is not a good fit and wish to transfer your child during the school year. This made the school year seem long and needlessly difficult for us. Things immediately improved when we enrolled our child in a different school for summer camp and kindergarten, where she now feels respected, supported, and welcome. We are very pleased with this change, and she has returned to being her happy, outgoing, curious, and well-behaved self. Lastly, we have noticed that Renbrook tends to respond to negative reviews by stating they have no record of the student attending, particularly in response to anonymous reviews. We assure you that we did send our child there, regardless of whether Renbrook acknowledges our email address.

Renbrook is by far the best private school - and better than most public schools - in the area…read more It's worth a look for any child between the ages of 3years old and 9th grade. Small class size, diversity, traditional and creative school curriculum and individual attention from teachers is the norm, not the exception.

Great teachers, involved community, and thoughtful educational programming for parents and…read morecaregivers. We've had a positive experience with the toddler program - all of the teachers and staff has been wonderful and our kid went from big tears at drop off to running in with open arms to greet her teachers and friends. Extremely kind and patient staff is so great at answering all our questions.

Cobb School has been the greatest gift to our family. Our son joined lower elementary as a…read moreMontessori transfer student and has been thriving. We are investing in his formative school years rather than saving for college because the outcomes of authentic Montessori education are well documented, and the proof is in the pudding -- he is happy to go to school each day, his academic progress is evident, and his love of learning has never wavered. The staff are genuinely caring and enthusiastic about maintaining optimal environments that support the development of each and every child. It is really beautiful to witness. An absolute gem in Simsbury, CT!

This place was fun and I don't even have kids…read more We are at the age where our friends and siblings are having children but my wife and I are not quite there yet. That said, I was invited to a children's party place a while back that kind of made me not want to rush into the children thing. This place was named something like Wall-E-Weasle. In short it consisted of noise, chaos, crying children, greasy tables and horrible pizza. I know there is hysterical blindness but if there is such a thing as hysterical sterility this place will give it to you. After experiencing this I wasn't too exited to get an invitation here to my nephew's pirate birthday party. I decided to attend as he would have been disappointed and actually had a good time. The kids had fun along with most of the parents as they were allowed to be involved also. The party lady was pretty awesome and kept the energy level high without the chaos and the pirate decorations were cool and creative. I would highly recommend and the best part of the experience is that I can have kids again.

From the owner: Creativeworks for Children offers classes and birthday parties for children in Avon Ct. Birthday…read moreparties are available in over 40 different themes. Summer camps are also offered. Children's classes include music, dance, art, preschool enrichment, gardening.cooking and more.

This is a review for parents looking for a bridge between now and full day Kindergarten. The Gift…read moreof Time class at the Children's Center was recommended to us by two different teachers. Our son has a late Fall birthday. He's in the 4s program at Trinity Nursery School (2.5 hours X 3 days), which we love, but we're confident that he'd benefit from an extra year (3 hours X 5 days) at a different school to help him transition to full day kindergarten. So we scheduled a visit to see The Gift of Time class last week - and enrolled our son immediately. The instant we walked into this school, we knew it was "the place." We had already visited three other schools and none of them compared to this one. The playground is spacious and set against the woods. The various play structures are unique, there is a large community garden for the children, and there are nature trails on the property. You're immediately greeted by this awesome outdoor space. Then the school itself has a great vibe. All of the rooms are bustling with happy kids. It's play-based learning, but efficient and highly-organized. Some of the classrooms are loft-like spaces with giant windows overlooking the woods. Honestly, my husband and I were blown away. One of the guided activities happening in the Gift of Time room that we witnessed (and our son participated in) was the building of a 400-year-old English village with found objects in the classroom (giant blocks, bricks, large cardboard, etc). Each of the huts had a pretend fireplace and kitchen, there was a farm, garden and pasture. It was imaginary play on a whole other level and all of the kids were super into it, and so were the teachers. Needless to say, we were sold. We are super excited to send our son there next year. The Children's Center offers a warm and happy school experience for kids as young as 2. I assure you this place is not typical - it is so unique. Please visit for yourself - their website is still a work-in-progress - you have to see The Children's Center in person!

A fantastic preschool! Two of my children have attended The Children's Center for their pre-school…read morecareers and my third will be starting there next year in their new two-year-old program! All of the teachers are experienced, loving and dedicated to teaching the young children how to grow emotionally, socially and intellectually!

We were new to the area and researched a few places for our future preschooler. CCNS has been part…read moreof the community for a long time (1969). They offer programs for children ages 3-4. It is play based learning with optional parental involvement. My child just graduated and enjoyed his time at Canton Community Nursery School. The teachers were great. The classroom was nice; it's organized with all types of toys. There were fundraisers throughout the year. I enjoyed getting updates on the SeeSaw app on what the kids were doing in class. My child has learned quite a bit. I highly recommend and would definitely put my child there again.

I went to CCNS back in the '80s, and now my older son is there and my younger will be attending…read morenext year. The community-oriented feel, incredible dedication of the staff, and openness to parent involvement make CCNS a really special place. My son has developed amazing friendships through the school and so have I! It's a great mix of play-based learning and preparing children for future success in school.

Our two year old son has been at Goddards for 5 months. We have been very happy with the school and…read moreteachers. The school is clean, safe and provides many activities for the children's development. We have worked primarily with Miss Tia, Miss Denise and Miss Tanya who have been absolutely wonderful and caring. They were instrumental in helping our son overcome separation anxiety when he started and have all been very supportive. Our son has become very attached to all of them.

Not a school that I recommend. My 2 children went through…read morethis school. My oldest was there for 3 years and youngest for 2. My older one did fine, no problems. The teachers and directors were always super sweet to us. But when my younger son was 2 years old the school had no idea how to handle age appropriate negative behaviors. Some 2 year olds can be challenging but instead of trying to help, they instead tried everything to get us to leave the school and transfer him out. I would pick him up every day and his diaper and pants would be soaked and I would ask "how come no one changed him?" And consistently I would get the answer "he refused." Ummm a 2 year old refused to change their diaper and you are ok with that? Same thing with food. He would not be given his lunch but everything was thrown out daily. Their attitude towards us changed completely. No more sweet, helpful teachers and directors. It was just a very uncaring situation when a child becomes a little challenging. But if your child follows all their rules and never gives any problem (like my older one), they will do fine. We switched my younger one to Joni's down the street (I was hesitant because the building was older and cramped and I hadn't known much about that school). But I am so thankful for the switch. He did amazing and he thrived there with their love.