Great school thanks to the site leadership Solange and the maestras. They really care for your…read morechildren and prepare them for learning. My child attended for three years and was ahead of her classmates when she left for kindergarten. Her Spanish was also quite impressive. Coming from a home with no one that speaks Spanish, everyone is always impressed with her accent and fluency. All this has nothing to do with the new ownership. The new vc company has been awful and completely destroyed the community feel of the school. A 40% rate hike after enrollment closed for 80% of the the options was a strong arm tactic. They want to become like Escuela and great an IB program and are on track to charge 35k per year. It's no longer a community institution. It's another independent school for the wealthy.

Love the director of the school and the maestros, but the school is owned by a private equity firm…read more(Crane Capital) that cares nothing for the wonderful community we've built. Read Sally's review for all the details...but two days before enrollment opened, and at a point at which most of us have no other options, they surprised us (including 4 other campuses) with a horribly communicated 40-50% tuition hike and a structure change from year round to 10months with summer camps in 2week increments. They also wanted to charge 5% for paying monthly (as if many of us have 30k laying around to spend on preschool) - they backtracked a little on that changing to 3% but I still see it as making things less accessible for all. They are hoping to become an IB preschool-8th grade program and basically getting us to fund it, without delivering any extra value to our kids or families right now. Crane Capital, the CEO Chip Miller, and anyone else involved in these changes and the horrible rollout of them should be ashamed. Our wonderful neighborhood school has completely changed into a money grubbing corporation. I feel nauseated by this experience and so sad for all of the families for whom this is affecting. I only hope they aren't treating the maestros as poorly as they are treating families.

What does it take to get into KUMON Alameda? It's been very discouraging to experience all the ways…read moreJane responds to us when we have attempted to get our child (who is Black) into this center. When we sent an email, Jane confirmed that there was a space available, but when she sees us come in person suddenly there is no longer space available. We have heard multiple reasons as to why our child may not be able to join. We have noticed her face change in a negative way when she sees us walk into the center. Jane, please check your negative bias towards Black people. You are here to provide support to all families.

My initial review magically disappeared from Yelp not sure why so I'm reposting…read more.. Not sure who the negative reviews were referring to but I can vouch that Jane who runs the Alameda Kumon is one of the nicest people I have met. My 6 year old goes to her center for Math and English for the past year and his reading, writing and math skills have vastly improved. I highly commend Jane for her patience, encouragement and support of the kids in her center and her professionalism, courtesy and patience with the parents. It is very obvious Jane loves what she does and she radiates the joy when she sees kids in her center improving and doing well.

Our experience at The Child Unique Montessori has been very positive. The environment is calm,…read moreenriching, and full of gentle encouragement. The teachers are kind and genuinely attentive to each child's growth and development. It's no surprise that this school came recommended through word of mouth. Many families speak highly of it, and it's easy to see why. Some of the parents here once attended TCU themselves and are now bringing their own children. That kind of legacy speaks volumes. Dr. Cindy Acker and her team have built something rare and lasting in Alameda, a women-owned and led school that has quietly left a mark on this community through years of dedication and consistency. The involvement stretches beyond the classroom and into the home, where Dr. Acker gently shares knowledge that parents may choose to engage with through periodic letters and events. That kind of support, offered with care and respect, creates a meaningful partnership not only between the school and the parents, but also among the many families who feel part of this community. This is a special place that continues to shape lives, quietly but powerfully.

Both my sons have attended The Child Unique, from 2019-2020 and then from 2021 up until the…read morepresent. My older son is shy and a bit anxious, but I believe his Montessori teacher's calm presence really drew him out and helped him establish a strong bond with her. He loves creating and drawing, and his teacher last year really encouraged that and he flourished under her care! He graduated from TCU this past spring and is now doing well in kindergarten at our local public school. Our three year just started attending TCU this summer and similarly, has bonded really well with his primary classroom teachers. He's always happy when I pick him up and is signing the Mandarin songs he's learning from his Mandarin teacher. He seems to really be loving school and so both my husband and I are relieved and happy he is at TCU like his brother was!

Our son has been going to the after school program since TK and he loves the STEAM program (STEM +…read moreART)! He enjoys the van ride from Bay Farm to the big island with the other kids and now that he's in K, he spends about 2-3 hours after school there - playing with new and old friends, learning more coding, math, reading, and science and experimenting with art methods. It definitely fills in the gaps of public school with the stronger focus on academics. We are very happy with his progress. And of course, he loves his STEAM teachers, Ms. Yuan and Ms. Jamila, as well as the coding, art and math teachers (Mr. Francisco, Mr. Patrick, Ms. Emily, etc.). That being said, this school isn't for everyone and parents have to be open to finding the right school for their child (which can change over time). For our family, I appreciate that this school respects the learning environment best for kids who are ready and motivated to learn on their own. This means that the kids are ready to learn and appreciate the lessons prepared (not yelling, standing on tables, napping, or other disruptive behavior), responsible/sensible to sit in a van full of kids and listen to the teacher, get along and be respectful to others, etc. To keep the kids on schedule with the van and different subjects requires tremendous patience, planning and care from the teachers, staff (Mr. Long) and Director Sunny - we appreciate you! If your kids can focus and manage at YY, they can sit through movies, dinners, airplane rides, etc. - self-managed discipline is what I appreciate the most. The staff communicates well in advance and also is very responsive and accommodating (e.g. if I have to pick up early, miss school, have another parent pickup, etc.). They also have parent-teacher conferences twice a year with a newsletter about your child's class with photos. Also, when we first signed up for TK when my child was 4, I was worried about the transportation, but that's one of the best part that our kid looks forward to when he goes to YY with his friends - it's safe and the van is there early for pickups (and the fee is very economical for us working parents!). We also have friends in the Mandarin program whose parents are very impressed with their children's language and writing skills and enjoy their class performances! We also have a friend who moved their child here due to allergies. Our kid also has a mild allergy and Yuying is very good about keeping everyone safe with allergies (making sure there's no nuts in anyone's lunchbox, no sharing, educating kids about allergies and keeping everyone safe, etc.) and also keeping up with the parents for updated EpiPens and meds.

My kids have gone to Yu Ying aftercare for several years now and have maintained and improved their…read moreMandarin significantly. They have participated in structured learning, including learning to read and write in Chinese. They have performed in annual live performances and attended several camps when there is no school. Yu Ying has also arranged to pick them up from public school and transport them to the campus, just a short drive away. Overall happy with the program.

Our daughter has been at LPF for almost 2 years and we've had a wonderful experience! Laetitia runs…read morean amazing daycare/preschool and all the staff are very caring and engaged with the kids from infants through preschool age. The community is friendly and the space is large, clean, and safe and has plenty of outdoor space and stuff for the kids to play and engage with. We're very happy with LPF overall and looking forward to our new baby starting there at the end of the year as well!

Our baby was at LPF for 6 months and it was a wonderful introduction to childcare settings. The…read moreinfant teaching team is so warm, kind, and fun, and our baby quickly felt at home there. The communication is great and provides all the information and peace of mind you need. They sing, dance, and do lots of daily activities, serve a variety of tasty sounding meals, and expose the kids to not only French culture/language but lots of other cultures during different celebrations around the year. We switched daycares because of location and work commute logistics, but happily recommend LPF to other families!

The classes are generally good but the program needs better organization. The website is confusing…read moreand needs design improvements. The office is not easily accessible on the phone. To improve service, it would help if the school were to put itself in the position of its students and then proceed to design better systems, both online and by phone. All information needs to be well-organized and easily understandable.

The yoga class was canceled and it's a HUGE hassle to get my refund…read more I show up for class dressed and with my new yoga mat and it was canceled via a piece of paper on the door. Really?! You have my email and phone number, can you let me know before I go through the hassle of changing and driving there that I shouldn't show up? I email AND call to try and receive a refund to no avail. My phone call with Kristin this morning was something like "Did you pay online?" "Yes" "Oh well we can only give you a cash refund. And we only get cash on certain days so call us in the afternoon and you might be able to come by and get your money." "Well can't you set aside the money for me to come by tomorrow and get it?" "No, call us this afternoon." Blech, would not recommend.

I'm happy to share a much more positive update about Yu Ming Charter School's after school program…read more This week, my son was accepted into the program, and I couldn't be more relieved and grateful. I especially want to thank Principal Amy. She is truly sweet, caring, and attentive. She saw me today and made sure to ask if I received the acceptance email, which meant a lot to me. That level of thoughtfulness and follow-through is exactly what parents hope for from school leadership. While I was initially disappointed and frustrated with the process, I appreciate that things worked out and that my son can continue in a familiar environment with people he knows. This stability means the world to both of us, and I'm grateful to Yu Ming for making it happen.

It saddens me to say that this school definitely has a negative vibe to those of us who are not of…read moreAsian descent. It seems as if it's always the same Asian women leading the same school activities year after year, AND they seem to take their roles a bit too seriously. These women need to relax. You are JUST a volunteer. Based on experience, little things here and there, they add up to definitely giving one a feeling that they take care of their own (if you know what I mean). Academics are strong, but socially this school fails miserably. By diversity, they mean white mixed with Asian. Hardly any brown or black. But they sure do focus on taking pictures of our kids to put on their headline pictures. For parents who are choosing a Mandarin immersion school, think of the social aspect as well. I think based on my experience at this school, YM has an insane amount of rules that kill the ability to build a real community. First is academics, second is academics, third is academics. Would it kill them to give at least the middle schoolers a social dance? Or more than one or two field-trips per year per grade? In addition, be ready for fork out money to hire a tutor if you are a non-Mandarin speaking family just so your child doesn't fall behind. This will get expensive real quick. Hope this helps.

I sent my child here for less than a full school year, from the age of two to close to three years…read moreold. It's a beautiful school with great teachers. All that you want out of a Montessori education is here. He got a lot out of it and usually wanted to stay at the end of the day. He learned many interesting skills and they took good care of him. The only reason we left is that we had to move far away. Why 4 stars? In a word, it's expensive. The tuition is really high. It costs more than college. One kid at the age of 2 going full time was $1791/month. Add to this various fees. Also add to this that they are closed usually several times a month, and you have to find alternate child care or sometimes they have alternate care for $80/day (!) on top of the regular tuition. If you want to pay for a lunch through their program, it costs $6. Granted, it's organic and locally sourced, but seriously, $6 for a 2 year old's lunch that consists of a few steamed vegetables and a tiny slice of pizza? It was a drawback for me.

I really was impressed with this school for the two years my daughter attended. Her teachers worked…read morewith her, especially when her behavior got squirrelly during the worst days of my divorce from her abusive father. I LOVED this school. I raved about it to anyone who would listen. However, what happened at the end of her second year has led me to give them this negative review. My ex was on the hook for school fees per court order so he went in to the headmistress Helen Campbell and the business manager Nancy Haskins and told them I'd forged his signature. They had just offered her a 66% scholarship so she could finish her kindergarten cycle and prevent even more upheaval in her life. Rather than talking to me about it, they broke the contract and categorically removed her financial aid and dropped her enrollment. I could have straightened the whole thing out, even provided them with a copy of the forensic document examiner's report that I got after the fact showing my ex had manipulated them, but they weren't interested. To add insult to injury, they knew they were in trouble for breaking the contract so they made up a bunch of stuff about me in a letter to Community Care Licensing and distorted events that had actually happened to make me out to be a problem parent and that was why they broke the contract only weeks after they'd signed it. They provided a copy of this letter to my ex, who used it in custody court and then proceeded to make life even more miserable for me and my children. I was never informed by the school exactly why they'd dropped me. I just got a short, hostile phone call from Nancy Haskins that said it was all my fault and I could have prevented it if I'd wanted to. I didn't hear the "real" reason until my ex filed their letter in court as an exhibit in a pleading. During the first year that I was struggling to survive after leaving my husband, and dealing with his reindeer games, my daughter's teacher was very sympathetic, telling me that if she "had to choose a side, it would be mine." She compared my ex to Hans Reiser, whose children with Nina Reiser had also attended GLM. I can't help wondering if they treated Nina Reiser like they did me, and pulled their support from her when she needed it most. Sad to say, this teacher also ended up writing a distorted letter about me and that betrayal hurt the worst of all. I'm pretty sure I glimpsed her at Summitt Hospital last week; when she saw me, she turned around and walked the other way as fast as she could go. So at least she has the grace to be ashamed of herself. An apology would be nicer, but I'm not holding my breath. I'm most angry with this school and their unprofessional treatment of my child because they completely dropped us from alumni lists so we don't get invited to things like the Back to School Carnival, and all the parents of my daughter's friends started avoiding us and wouldn't set up play dates with her. I think it's despicable that my poor kid, who needed stability in her life, lost not only a stable educational situation, but all of her beloved friends in one fell swoop. This is after taking thousands and thousands of dollars of her savings for her education the previous two years. I guess once the money ran out, their concern for her welfare ran out too. They made all this noise about wanting only what is best for my child, and then stabbed her in the back in a most despicable manner. Nancy and Helen, if you're reading, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves. I hope that all parents reading this review think long and hard about getting involved with this school. The underhanded, malicious behavior of the administration of the school is something that should be avoided. In a word, sleazy. There are schools just as good for less money.