This is a great daycare operation. The kids are well cared for, the staff provides structure and educational activities, and the director (Rose) is an incredible human being. read more

We are so grateful for Belmont Academy! They are a wonderful neighborhood school with a lovely community of parents, kids, and teachers. The class sizes are small, the teachers are consistent, and the parent communication is outstanding. Every teacher knows and loves our daughter, and they bring such care to the small details of her life. I've noticed all the little things like helping her take off a sweatshirt when it's warm outside (vs letting her overheat!), fixing her hair to be out of her face, and remembering to ask about something she said she was going to do over the weekend. The preschool learning is exactly our speed - this Fall has included About Me, Feelings, My Family, calendar, weather, a letter each week, etc. We get lots of photos on the app so I feel included in what's going on and can talk with my daughter about her day. Snacks and lunches are great too, and the kids eat outside when the weather is nice. The long hours are awesome too - 7:00-6:00. We rarely need such long hours, but it's so much less stressful to not race the clock to avoid late pickup at 5:05 or not having to wait in the parking lot if we arrive a little early. After the pandemic, it's a hard transition to having my daughter away from home during the day, but Belmont has made it really easy. It feels small and cozy, not like a giant facility where my kid is just one in a big group. I can't say enough wonderful things! read more

Belmont Academy - Preschooler work on display with books the class read this week - Child Care & Day Care Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I had a great experience with their pre-K classroom teachers. They took care of my girl for the better part of a year and loved her like their own, and I have nothing but good things to say about those two ladies. They are Belmont Academy's saving grace. If it were just them, I'd give 5 stars. The management seemed unfriendly. Their after-care was crowded and busy and attended by less-than-perfectly-trained part-timers. The less said about that the better. I'm teetering on the edge of a single star rating, because their dance teacher really got on my nerves. Who gets down on a four year old for not "pulling their weight" in a pre-K dance class so bad that they end up crying on stage? The recital was very professionally put together, sure, but was not at all about the kids having fun. It was about the dance teacher's resume. read more

I have a high-energy daughter with some special needs, and she has done so well at Belmont that i can't believe I'm the first one to write a review. The price is decent, but the teachers have been marvelous, praising her strengths and helping her with her issues. She's made friends, and loves getting up in the morning to get ready for school. The investment these teachers put into the children really shows in how happy the children are, and I almost feel bad that she'll be heading off to public kindergarten next year. We may still opt for after-school time at Belmont, though, because of how much she loves it. read more

Our daughter started this summer in the Belmont Pre-K classroom. She had been happily attending a small, mixed age group daycare/preschool for several years, but as she approached kindergarten age, we felt she had outgrown her previous day care, and was ready for a more traditional 'school like' environment. We looked at just about every option in Portland/Milwaukie, and Belmont was basically the only school that fit the bill at a workable tuition cost. There are private K-12 schools that offer a true PreK classroom, and also some Montessori options, but all of those are REALLY expensive. If you want to pay less than $1000 a month, you are basically relegated to home day cares, churches, or something very part time. We really appreciate what Belmont is offering, as they seem to be filling a need that not many other places are: A true school (not day care) for littler ones at a cost that's not out of reach for the average middle class family. If you need your child to have only vegan organic meals, or a state of the art facility, or uber-crunchy curriculum/ideals, Belmont is probably not for you. If you are looking for a purely play-based curriculum, you are probably not going to like what you find here. They are pretty old school in many ways, including their campus. We personally love the campus. It's got personality, and has the feel of a classic inner city private school. How many day cares can you think of that have a dance studio, a gym, and three playgrounds? If you like really old places, you'll probably really enjoy it. I love going in to pick up my daughter there every day. As for the actual classroom work, our expectations have been exceeded and then some. The two PreK teachers, Rosie and Rachel, are just awesome. Our daughter is learning much more than she was at her previous school. She is happy and looks forward to school every day. Claudia and Gary, the directors, are great too, they are a constant presence each day. The part time afternoon helpers have all been friendly, sweet and caring. In addition to learning classroom subjects, my daughter is learning Spanish, American Sign Language, AND taking ballet, all during the course of the school day at Belmont. How many daycares can say they offer this level of enrichment? We would not hesitate to recommend Belmont to a friend, and though we will be sending our daughter to public school next year for kindergarten, we definitely hope to take advantage of Belmont's summer explorers program for school age kids! read more

We have been looking into daycare/early schooling for our 18-month-old and reached out to Belmont Academy for a tour. The assistant director contacted me to set up a tour, but my partner and I decided against sending our daughter there. The a.d. asked if she could know why so I told her we wanted to find a more conventional/traditional place to attend. A place where teachers are there to educate and not indoctrinate into a certain way of thinking (stressing that was a parent's job). Rather than offer a simple "I understand, sorry we couldn't be a better fit" (or something similar) she chose to offer "ME" an apology for how "I" feel - "I truly apologize you feel that way", she said. Why is the assistant director gaslighting a potential client with back-handed apologies? These people oversee our children?? I guess one might say we dodged a bullet by not letting our daughter anywhere near that place. read more

My son was attending this preschool 3 years ago for just few weeks. We had to find a different place quick as he hated this place. He loved his new place immediately. From my interactions with teachers they were ok but my son didn't care for all of them. His class had no windows no day light. All the art projects were done mostly by teachers with kids doing little work. Management was not very friendly. Teachers had no room to eat their lunch or take a break. They were eating holding their lunch on their lap in a hallway/waiting room. The place was not very clean and had wall to wall carpets that is not great for kids with allergies and asthma. Perhaps lots of things changed since 3 years ago but I really had to write this review as I forgot before. It is great for parents to have before and after school program but overall I wish there was another option near by. Perhaps it is great for some families and kids but for us it was far from perfect experience. read more

I love Belmont Academy. My children have been going here for years and I wouldn't want them anywhere else. My daughter has been in Belmont's care since she was 3 months old and she recently started public school. Her new teachers are very impressed with her respect for adults, polite manners and overall intelligence for her age. Belmont has done a tremendous job in assisting me in preparing her to become the wonderful, thriving student she is today, while still encouraging her to be a kid and play. She participated in the dance and gymnastics classes during her stay here and she loved it. All her care providers through the years have loved her as their own. Whenever I would ask her how she likes Belmont and her Belmont teachers, she has nothing but good things to say. As for my son, he is a toddler now and he enjoys going to school there. He has never expressed any fears about being dropped off, he give me a quick kiss in the mornings, and he is off to play with his friends. He even yells "Ashton's school!" when we drive up to the place each morning. I ask him if he likes school and says "Yup!" If there was any constructive feedback to give to Belmont Academy to work on, perhaps the security could be improved. Parents often leave the front and back gates open, making it easy for anyone to come in and for young escape artists to get out. Also, parking can get tight. A lot of the time, the director parks her car in the small parking lot area, and a valuable swath of parking space is consumed, making pick-up/drop-offs more difficult during the rush hours. read more

Our family has been part of the Belmont community since 2008 when our eldest was 3. Our little guy started as an infant in 2008, and will graduate pre-kindergarten in August 2013. We love this place! read more

You cant rate a day care place because of the dance teachers. That is an optional part of the program and you are not forced to have your child participate in it. To rate this school on their optional dance program is self-centered and ridiculous. As for Belmont itself, its Pre-K program is very strong and we were pleased with our experience. Because our child was not old enough to go to Kindergarten we had our child attend Kindergarten there. It was the most wonderful experience for her. Amazing teacher, individuated attention and small class sizes and great community in that kindergarten program. Affordable too. While our child will repeat Kindergarten because of the strictness of laws, we feel she will CRUISE through it without worries. read more

My two children go to this school full time. They both really enjoy it - in fact - my daughter asks to stay longer so she can play with the friends she made. The school is affordable for two working parents. I would agree they could improve a few things around the school but overall, I always get smiles great feedback from the teachers. read more

Our daughter started going to Belmont Academy for Pre-School. She loved it so much we kept her there for Pre-K and their amazing Kindergarten program. The attention she received was wonderful and it showed in her academic success. When she started to attend public schools we were lucky enough to keep her in the after school program. Our daughter LOVED attending. She connected with her teachers and the staff. She made some amazing friendships and great memories. This is the first year that she is not going to Belmont's after school program...we can't thank everyone there enough for being invested in her well-being and success. read more

We had two kids go through here the past 3 years and think it's a great option due in part to three things that not all daycares can claim. First, it is set up well to accommodate families with different childcare schedule needs. They do this by being open from 6:30am-6pm every weekday except major holidays and one in-service day. They have before and after school care and bus from some of the schools. They also offer part-time schedules. And if your needs change throughout your time there, they're willing to work with you to change your schedule. We also found it to be very affordable for the level of care and food provided. Also, the administration has been at this for a while, and the place appears to run very smoothly without too much parent involvement (though you're welcome at school or on field trips). They keep parents informed with simple email updates as needed. Second, a lot of the staff have kids of their own there (now or in the past) which has a few benefits: it incentives staff to make the place a good place to be, it creates a family atmosphere, and it helps reduce turnover. We found staff to generally be very caring towards the kids and approachable for parents. Third, the extra programs are nice. The small Kindergarten class size, cost, teacher, and instruction make this a great alternative to public school, especially for our son who turned 5 in the Fall. Summer Camp has the kids outdoors a lot and interacting with kids of different ages. And the dance program, while it was a little different from what we might otherwise chose, was fun for our oldest and a nice way to get everyone together twice a year (for the recitals). All of these things contribute to the overall vibe of the place, which we found to be pleasantly unpretentious. I definitely recommend this daycare to others. And we may be back for summer camp 2015+! read more

Please send your child somewhere else! This is not a healthy,safe, or nurturing environment for young children. The staff is very unprofessional and untrained. They routinely overcrowd classrooms and the children are not able to engage in activities at their own pace. I would urge you to send your child somewhere where their individual needs can be met. This is not the place! read more