Thom is the best with kids. I have known him for 20+ years and watched as he leads kids of varying…read moreages through Central Park - and places further afield. He is fun, well-respected...knows survival skills well - and is fine birdwatcher (and photographer too). He is a great dad to his own kids...so your kids will be safe with him...and they'll love him.

I really enjoyed and learned a lot on the first class. I've become so much more aware of my…read moresurroundings since then. The instructors are amazing and I can't wait to continue the training! Thank you very much!

My ten year old daughter just finished her first day at the UES location and she had a blast! She…read moreespecially loved the freedom she had to choose her own activities. "It was so cool that when I finished lunch I could go do whatever I wanted, I didn't have to follow a group like in other camps." Her favorites were the giant slip and slide, the film studio, and the game show at the end of the day. She also liked how she could always go get a snack from the counselor in the cafe whenever she was hungry. "There was fruit and goldfish and homemade yogurt things. It was great!" The setup of this camp allows children to really take ownership of their day, from what they choose to play, to when they eat a snack, to who they spend their time with. It is a very unique idea for a NYC camp, and it was the perfect place for my daughter. She can't wait to go back!

This is our first summer with Steve & Kate's and my 8-yr-old daughter and all of her friends really…read morelove it. I don't know about the other locations, but I think the person who runs this location (Mike) really goes above & beyond! My daughter loves all the activities and the counselors are all great. I've spoken to a bunch and they all seem to be college seniors or work in education (not the teenagers that some other camps seem to have). We didn't know what to expect since I couldn't find any reviews and didn't know too many people who went last year, but this has truly exceeded all of our expectations!

I truly appreciated all that Chef Toni has done for my son. He was in his shell for so long, I…read moredidn't think he was interested in much of anything. It had been months of him doing the most mundane things until he started cooking with Chef Toni. After the first class I saw his face light up and his demeanor improve drastically. Cooking excited him very much. The program changed his life and had a huge impact on the person he is becoming. He wants to own a restaurant someday!

My son Jeremy has been learning from Chef Toni for nearly five years.  He has come such a long way…read morefrom never having tried cooking to becoming an independent and creative aspiring chef.  He has had tremendous learning opportunities over the years, starting with break and summer programs. As he progressed, he joined her Sunday master classes where he learned independence in the kitchen. He also had an opportunity to volunteer at a charity catering event and to work with the younger students in a summer counselor-in-training internship. Chef Toni has provided just the right combination of encouragement and challenge. During the COVID crisis, he has taken inspiration from Chef Toni to do research of his own and make his own dishes. Working with Chef Toni has been a tremendous confidence builder for my son.

I absolutely LOVE Play On! My ten year old daughter has…read moredeveloped an infectious love of musical theater that has been passed on to her six year old little brother. At home, they put together the most amazing Broadways shows and we credit that to the love and humor that is part of the instruction and performances at Play On! We have seen our daughter literally grow up at Play On!, from her first after school class at age four to participating on the Saturday musical theater program and numerous one week summer camps. We keep going for more. The teachers are caring, thoughtful, and true champions of all of the children in class. They give their all, always.

We enrolled our 7 year old son Evan into this camp, and he discovered his strong love for musical…read moretheater. Highly recommend!

Budget programming for kids. Beautiful grounds, but they have no idea how to run a preschool and…read morecamp. My kid went to preschool here last year and camp in the summer. Other outdoor schools still manage to have music and art and learning activities. They do almost none of that here.

My son (almost 6) attended the ACT July Summer Camp '18. It was great and he (and I) LOVED it!…read more Wonderful counselors, staff & admin, kids & families, activities, and beautiful grounds. Every day he was happy and excited, and would tell me about his fun day. Thank you!!

Montclare is a very warm and nurturing school. My little daughter is thriving and learning so much…read moreat Montclare. The school has excellent administration and staff. The community is also wonderful and we got to know so many wonderful families through the school. Our family couldn't be happier!

My daughter flourished at Montclare. This is NOT a daycare. Its a school, and its run really…read morewell. The teachers are smart, creative and caring. The building is beautiful with lots of light and high ceilings, which makes for an open environment with lots of space and great energy. Theres lots of outdoor time on their roof playground and the kids are exposed not just to important academic basics but also dance & yoga, music art and and lots of support for learning both academic and social. And finally the administration is warm and very communicative. I feel as though I'm part of a community which has been key for both my daughter and myself. If you're looking for great pre-school I would highly recommend Montclare...

My two sons ages 5 and 9 attended two days of the French camp this week. It was great. The…read moreteachers spoke a lot of French to the children, and they did so many creative activities in two days (baked bread, made chocolate pudding, made chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, lots of art work, planted seeds which they brought home.) They both enjoyed camp. Drop off and pick up were organized and easy.

Similar to some other parents reviews here, we also had high hopes for this organization after…read moreattending a free mini day camp preview in November for kids who speak French (they said they have an 85% immersion program here). The camp counselors, Gabriel and Jennifer were nice and friendly and our kid had a great time. So, after that positive experience, we signed up for the Veterans Day day camp for the Manhattan location. The itinerary for the day sounds great though it looked like they'll be mostly outdoors at a playground or something exploring and playing. However, there was rain in the forecast, so the afternoon before, we received an email with the day schedule and a change in plans. Instead of staying in Manhattan, they will be taking a bus from Manhattan to their Brooklyn facilitity to be indoors due to the rain. I was apprehensive at first as my kid had not taken transportation without me anywhere before. But, they reassured me that it'll be fine as it's a common thing for them when the weather changes. They're professionals and use a trusted bus service. They'll keep us posted and will share pictures and updates. The day went fine and yes it rained, a lot, so I'm glad the kids were indoors. Their email had said that camp is 9am-4pm and pickup is at 4:30pm and must be done before 5pm. So, my husband was at the Manhattan location at 4:30pm to pick up our kid. BUT, when he arrived, there were no kids, no counselors, no bus or anyone was at the building. We called Bonjour NY number but no answer. There's a security guard at the building but he doesn't know anything and didn't let anyone into the building. Luckily, some other parents were also present and they had Airtags for their kids and were able to see that the kids were still in Brooklyn and moving towards Manhattan. Apparently, with the heavy rain, the traffic got really bad with flooding, so the bus is running late. Which is understandable, but there was no communication beforehand, during, or after from anyone at Bonjour NY that there's a delay with the bus and we don't know how long the delay is going to be and how the kids are doing? Are they hungry? Do they need to use the bathroom, etc.? These are 3.5 to 5 years old in a bus without parents and just three camp counselors navigating NY streets in the rain trying to get home. We would have felt better if someone in charge at Bonjour NY had called us or sent an email saying sorry for the delay but your children are fine and safe and we're on the bus coming back but there's a lot of traffic so we're running late. Any communication would have been greatly appreciated!!! But, no one reached out to us parents, there were no pictures shared throughout the day, no notes, nothing. Thankfully the kids returned safely after an hour delay, which for parents who don't know where their kids are was a very excruciatingly painful and worrisome experience! I emailed them about my concerns and dismay with their lack of communication about the incident, and the camp leader for the day, Awantz apologized and thanked us for our patience, which we accepted. Then, reassured us that the picture album with the days activities is being prepared and will be sent out later that day for us to see and enjoy with our kid. Five days go by and still no pictures or recaps of the day camp experience so we can see what our child did. Now, three weeks later as I'm writing this review, still nothing. We would've given them another chance had they follow through and send us the recaps and pictures of what we paid for our kid to do at day camp here. Things happen, traffic makes it worst, we understand. But, their inaction, lack of communication, and no follow-ups showed us that we can't trust them. Not with our kid. No merci!

A wonderful place in so many ways. All sorts of programs for all sorts of people and ages. Clean,…read morewell lighted interior. Swimming pool, fitness studios, classes, library, film screenings, cafe. A callout to Celeste Carlucci, founder and teacher of Fall Stop, Move Strong program for seniors.

The Private Swimming classes and the way this program is run is very poor, especially the guy in…read morecharge, Christopher Lucas, a nasty man. "trainers" really aren't and I don't know how they are qualified to be called swim coaches at all. they don't have any profiles on the JCC site, and when you ask for some bios so you can select the one best for you, you're told NO and you're just assigned some rando person according to the time you want to go. (Getting told NO is a recurring theme at the private swim program) There is only 1 time slot available during week days 2-3:30 and at the facility at all other times is so crowded that it's not pleasant to be there or especially the ladies locker room, which is utterly packed with little kids. If you become ill the day of your appointment, you can cancel but you will be charged for the session you've already paid for PLUS a penalty. But a trainer can cancel one hour before and that's fine apparently. Trainers can fail to show up for your appointment and that's ok. And when a trainer reschedules a session for a day and time when you are no longer in the city you won't be refunded.

Does it take a rocket scientist to run a camp? Nope…read more But when a rocket scientist* runs a camp, is the camp fantastic? Yes -- at least when it comes to Launch. (This is a review for the summer camp only, not the tutoring, which we've not tried.) Summer camp is, as previously noted, the bomb diggity. Our 10-year old and 6-year old both loved their two weeks there, loved all the STEM-y, fabulous projects they made: a copycat Operator game, gyroscope, perpetual motion device, magnetic art board, lava lamp, magic eight ball, pinball machine, marble maze, etc, etc, etc... Over the course of two weeks the projects were different each day and they were excited to show them off. It's clear that a lot of thought went into the programming. If there were even more emphasis on explaining the why and how scientific concepts behind all of these fun projects, the parents at least would love it even more. Campers are also introduced to Scratch, a baby programming app developed by MIT. The kids aren't using C++ / Java, but they do manipulate discrete strings of text (in colloquial English) to create games. Campers bring their own nut-free lunches, which they eat outdoors at the park whenever the weather permits. COVID precautions are thorough: There's a self-reported health screen every morning, a temperature check, and everyone remains masked indoors. Only nitpick: Campers don't get a lot of opportunities to run around at the park, which can feed into the doughy, weak, out-of-shape stereotype of math and science nerds. If my kids could play tag and run through a fountain at a playground on a 96F day, they'd be even happier campers. :) *Scott, the founder and owner, is literally a former rocket scientist, a.k.a. aerospace engineer! Wow!

I found Launch Math via Mommy Poppins and what a great find I must say! My daughter was having…read moresome difficulties in Math so like any concerned parent, I found her some support. I loved the fact that there was no guessing what areas they would assist her, they completed a thorough assessment which detailed her areas of strength and weakness. Not only was I impressed, so was her teacher. My daughter has been attending for one month but she has made some remarkable progress. She really connects with her tutor and loves to show off what she has learned to her brother. They have great math games and even set the students up with a computer program to use at home. I am so grateful for finding this gem!

We love going to Olga's Art Studio for classes. I took 4 Adult classes and my daughter took 5+…read morekids class (not at the same time). Olga is talented and always helps you improve your skill.

From the owner: Children's Art Classes…read more Art can play an important role in your child's educational development. The class covers essential drawing and painting skills, color theory, composition, and art history. Children learn to draw from memory and imagination, illustrate books, draw figure and portrait, paint still life and landscapes. Customized lesson plans inspire children's unique prospective, enhance their curiosity and creativity. Classes are for children 5 to 12 years old. Adult Art Classes This is a unique opportunity to learn drawing and watercolor skills in a friendly and creative atmosphere with an award-winning artist. You will start seeing the world differently, share your life stories through painting, and connect with like-minded creative people. The class covers basic drawing and painting skills, color theory, composition, painting from memory, imagination, and real life. Olga's Teaching Method Olga believes that basic drawing skills give you freedom to fully express yourself. Her rigorous teaching methods combined with a great sense of humor allows her students to comfortably learn and discover things for themselves.