Our oldest son just finished 2 years here and we can't recommend the school enough!! They have set…read moresuch a strong foundation for him both academically but also with values (leading with respect, kindness, etc.). This last year the teachers went above and beyond bringing the kids' interests into the curriculum. They put on a Beatles concert and had World Cup tournaments. I'm in awe of the teachers' knowledge, energy, and enthusiasm. We're very sad to be moving on but grateful our younger son will be there in the coming years.

We LOVE CoG! We had a horrible exiting experience at our last preschool at the beginning of 2022,…read moreand the staff and administration at Center of Gravity were warm, communicative, and worked with us to fast track our admission. They went out of their way to make our daughter feel welcomed and she loved her new school right away. Almost immediately we noticed a positive affect on her engagement around school. She was eager to go each morning, and happily tired from her day's activities at pickup. Nutritious, balanced meals and snacks are prepared for all children onsite, and that same week she started we were shocked at how much more open she was to eating veggies and new foods. Fast forward to this year, we returned for kindergarten and her love of school continues. Her teachers are kind, open, and patient. One of my favorite things about CoG is that the teachers post "dailies" online so parents can see what the kids are learning about. These include photos of the kids as they participate in their play/work, and they really help us ask our daughter questions about what she's learning in specific ways that are so much better than "how was school today?" Kindness, inclusion, empathy, and cooperation are taught and reinforced just as much as the classic STEM subjects, and we are so happy to report that our daughter is flourishing in all areas. If they offered elementary grades, I would certainly be open to keeping her here. Our neighbors needed to find a preschool for their 3 year old recently, and I suggested CoG (they have another campus nearby for younger children). Now they're enrolled and loving it too. All in all, an excellent school/organization. We are so happy to have been here!

Hi my name is Mary I used to go here it is the best school ever all the teachers are nice and care…read moreabout you learning out side time is fun to there is lots of fun things to do like stem garden lab pe and other things I recommend this school

When it was time for my son to go to Kindergarten, we thought we'd be in the Walnut Creek School…read moreDistrict -- we live in Walnut Creek, after all. What do you know, we're NOT. We belong to the Mt. Diablo School District. Yes, I know, we should have found that out before we bought our home. Actually, our real estate agent did tell us about school districts, but somehow we didn't really focus on it since he was 3 at the time and it seemed so far far away. Anyway, back to the story, we were diappointed. THEN, when we went to the enrollment day, which they call "All-in-One" day, we found out that the school has involved parents, good teachers, and even a foundation. AND, this sounds crazy, EVEN A COMPUTER LAB FOR KINDERGARTENERS -- yeah, they go once a week. The downsides of the school are the same that any school has: fundraisers that are optional (but not really), budget issues (this upcoming 08-09 year will be even tougher), and turnover of principals (we had three principals for the 07-08 school year). But the school really does its best to make new families feel welcome - giving plenty of opportunities for volunteerism that involve little time to once a week (probably more). And the parent involvement and the dreaded fundraising help fill the gap of the funding from the government. We feel very lucky that our kids go to this school.

Hello, friends! Popping into Yelp to let you know that, Emerald Heart Preschool Program moved from…read moreFairfax to Inverness/Point Reyes and has been renamed EMERALD HEART FOREST SCHOOL. We are now happily thriving in/with the forest on Inverness Ridge. If you are looking for a place-based nature immersion program in West Marin County CA for children 3 to 6, please look us up. We are happy to answer your questions!

I feel so lucky that I found this wonderful preschool. I was surprised by how few play-based…read morepreschools there were in Marin- the research that I did convinced me that socially and emotionally it was the only way to go. Emerald Heart is unique in that the children not only get a lot of free play, but they do it outside in a beautiful woodland setting (there is literally a swing under two ancient persimmon trees in front that makes my heart melt). Teachers Taira and her assistant Mercedes are amazing- kind, patient, and grounded. The program is Waldorf-inspired so the children eat together and sing together in an indoor space that is gorgeous. My son has thrived!!

Not a good fit for kids with special needs. I was told we need to find another place to go because…read morethe school is not just "babysitting" but rather an "environment of learning." My son learns in his own beautiful and unique way, so naturally I found that hurtful. After we left they hired my child's school aide to work for them which felt like a serious conflict of interest.

In the 12/13 school year, SS offered the 3's program 3 days a week so we went to a Moraga preschool…read moreon the other 2 days. Very quickly we realized that we couldn't continue at the Moraga preschool, my son would kick and scream the whole way, he didn't like that school and only wanted to be at SS. SS has wonderful teachers, a beautiful facility and a great group of families. Miss Tracie always brings in special people and her special touches - like goodie bags on the first day of school, a magician, the bee guy who brought his hives and the police and fire department. I also love that the school offers a soccer program in the afternoon's once a week, it's great to have one less trip to the park. The other teachers are great too. They talk in Spanish to the kids and have a separate art teacher and room. When I go to pick up my son, the mom's of the other kids have become great friends and we usually hang around catching up and chatting - love this community! Also, this is a not-for-profit school so the prices are $200-300 less than other places we've been.

We've been part of the Gan Ilan community for the past three years, and it's hard to put into words…read morejust how special it is. Our son spent two wonderful years here before transitioning to public elementary school, and now our daughter is thriving after a year in the toddler program (she started at 18 months). What makes this preschool stand out is its truly play-based philosophy and the emphasis on outdoor time. The kids spend so much time exploring the beautiful property--rain or shine--and it's clear how much they learn through play and nature. And I so appreciate how they come home happy, fulfilled, and absolutely exhausted every day! The teachers are absolutely incredible. They are warm, attentive, and deeply invested in the kids' growth and well-being. Our son grew in every way during his time here--physically, emotionally, socially--and we watched his confidence blossom. But more than anything, we're grateful for the community. Through this school, we've made lifelong friendships with other families, and our kids have formed strong, joyful bonds with their peers. It's a place where children and parents alike feel connected, supported, and engaged. We couldn't imagine a better place for our kids to begin their educational journey.

We have two children now at Gan Ilan and we have had such a positive experience. The teachers are…read morewarm, knowledgeable and communicative. The kids spend so much time engaged in creative play, especially outside in the garden. The school makes a wonderful effort to build community among families and we have made so many close friends. We are so happy with the quality of this school and its Jewish programming and will certainly be staying there when our next child is ready to start preschool.

5 stars hands down! We are so lucky to have found this pre-school. The teachers & director are…read moreamazing & our son has advanced in just 4 months. His speech has improved as well as his ability to communicate with others without getting frustrated has been life changing. They even taught him to potty train within a week! What a bonus! The team are so welcoming & warm. I really feel we are blessed to have found them!

What an incredible Daycare! We have put two kids through saybrook and are soooo thankful we found…read morethem! Amazing loving approach, hands on, and have been very developmental for our kids learning. We started right when they opened back up during the Covid, and we felt so safe bringing our boys to the center. Soledad Peoples the director has been instrumental in our kids development, and we hope these friendships last a lifetime! 100% trust and support Saybrook learning center for your children's needs! 7:15am to 5:30pm, meals provided, with learning and fun guaranteed!

Everyone there is so kind and welcoming. The school it's self is very well taken care of.read more

Unfortunately there is a lot of covert and overt forms of racism here. This is a major failure upon…read moreadministration which serves to breed even more stigma and discrimination toward marginalised communities. It's a shame that with access to so many resources to teach in a place like Lafayette that something as poisonous as racism is present and reinforced amongst this context where kids are supposed to be educated. It's sad and key players like Brian mangold and the owners of the Behavior Management Solutions Company (which has a contract with LUSD) and provides the school with "behavior therapists" (many of whom are not registered with the BACB, the credentialing authority who oversees those credentialed in Behavioral Psychology) do nothing to address the presence of racism and derogatory remarks which are race related on the campus. In addition, they recently rolled out their Counseling Enriched Classroom and it is not ethically up to standard, employees have chosen to leave because of this and parents have little to no awareness of what goes on in there. The director of LUSD hired the current Counseling Enriched Classroom teacher (Phillip Eddy) because they were friendly with one another, and the teacher came from from a non-public school which is a completely different setting, the teacher has little to no psychology knowledge / credentials and is "leading" the space (How can you pride yourself in providing trauma-informed care when you do not have the knowledge or skills to do so). I would consider all of this before allowing any kids to go into a space like this and choose better because the bar being so low is detrimental to their development.

The Coder School is amazing. My kids have been going to The Coder School for several years…read more McGrail, The Coder School General Manager WC, is very responsive. He gets knowledgeable and patient coaches. My kids have always been paired with fantastic coaches/mentors that inspire them to learn several coding languages and create their own programs. The kids meet once/week with their instructor and/or with another child with similar ability for an hour to code a project of their choice. The Coder School is unlike other coding lessons. While the other places tell the kids which button to push to create the same code, the Coder School coaches/mentors help the children create what the kids want to code and teach to that. Every week their coach emails a report on their project and what they have been learning. In reality, my kids are too excited and want to show what they've accomplished immediately after every sessions even after several years of coding classes. We, as parents and a tech professional, are in awe of the code that our children have created and can't believe they have progressed so far and how much they love to code. A big thank you to McGrail, the coaches and the Coder School.