My son attended summer camp here and they did a good job growing his enthusiasm in new subjects and…read moreactivities. I really like arts and crafts that are offered. He comes home with paintings and other artwork. When I ask about my son's day they update me very clearly and honestly. My son seems very happy when the day is over so I have no complaints. They are a great group.

Our 8-yo attended the spring break camp at KidSmart and she absolutely enjoyed every minute of it!…read moreThey offered a fully packed variety of activities for kids of various age groups, exactly as advertised on website. Our kid liked the cooking session the most and enjoyed the science class very much, too--she was so excited when her seeds sprouted! She has been with KidSmart since kindergarten. Teachers not only teach lessons but also foster an encouraging learning environment with love and kindness. Compared with other after schools we experienced before, we are so grateful we found KidSmart!

Our son spent two years in the Butterfly class at Challenge School's San Mateo campus, and…read morehonestly, sending him here is one of the best decisions we've made as parents. When he first started, he was a quiet little boy. He'd come home from his old, all-English school and barely say a word about his day, and making friends never came easily to him. That slowly changed here. From his very first days, Challenge felt safe to him, and bit by bit he came out of his shell -- chatting about his friends, laughing more, growing into the outgoing, happy kid we'd always hoped to see. Watching that happen has meant more to us than we can put into words. So much of it comes down to the teachers. He adores Teacher Francis and greets him with a hug every single morning, and there's a genuine tenderness in the way the teachers treat the kids -- right down to the little nicknames they have for each of them. What really stayed with us, though, is how the school shows up when things get hard. Last year our son got bigger and full of energy, and his afternoon nap started keeping him up later and later at night. Bedtime turned into a nightly battle -- some nights we were still at it past midnight, and the whole family was exhausted. When we brought it up, they didn't just nod and move on; they sat down and worked through it with us. They offered to move him to the after-school class, and -- knowing how much his friends mean to him -- suggested he could still spend his mornings with his original class so he wouldn't lose them. His sleep eventually sorted itself out and we never needed to make the switch, but the fact that they were so willing to bend for one family told us everything. His Mandarin has blossomed here, and so has his confidence in English. He mostly speaks Mandarin, but Teacher Hanan gently coaxed him up for Show & Tell each week, and he went from not wanting to say a word to standing in front of the class and telling his story in English. The teachers keep a close, caring eye on the whole child, too -- they check in with us often about how he's doing with his learning, his play, his communication -- and they're always adjusting to help him along. And it's simply a joyful place to be a kid. He's forever bringing home crafts and drawings, he helps look after the classroom plants, and he counts down to every holiday they celebrate -- Easter, Halloween, Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day. We're deeply grateful to Francis, Hanan, Nicole, and everyone at Challenge School. If you're looking for a warm, bilingual preschool where your child will be truly seen and truly cared for, we couldn't recommend it more.

Our son had a wonderful experience in the Butterfly class and summer camps. The teachers were…read morecaring, knowledgeable, and genuinely supportive. The curriculum was thoughtful and engaging, and we were especially happy to see how much his Mandarin improved. The facilities were always clean and well maintained. We also loved the many events held throughout the year, including Lunar New Year, Halloween, and the Mid-Autumn Festival. Our son's performances were such a pleasant surprise, especially the Christmas performance at the mall! We're very grateful for our experience and would highly recommend this preschool.

I am looking to complain to this YMCA about its unreasonably hard pool lane dividers in which one…read moreof my pinkies was injurred this morning but since I'm here I'm going to be fair, give a rating of 4 stars, and refute to several cranks here. I've gone to this and the Mission Valley YMCA for years. I find the complaints about the front desk to be frivolous. There are no towels except small ones for use with disinfectants and thus that complaint is frivolous. This is Yelp and it draws a lot of defective people to complain.

It's the Y. It's not a fancy schmancey, hoity-toity, lala gym. It's a neighborhood gym for normal…read morepeople. Average Joe's if you will. And I love it. We left Crunch after 17 years (well, technically it was Gold's before but you get the point) because I had a female stalker and Crunch wouldn't help me (even with restraining orders). I was wildly unimpressed with their non-assistance. We went to Equinox bc it was supposed to be nicer and it was only a 1 mile walk from our house - fantastic. While it looked nicer, it was not nicer. It's old, outdated and limited. It's stupid expensive. And the hours really, really suck. So after a year, we left Equinox and we were wavering on going back to the Bay Club or joining the Y. Our kids really wanted to work out and the Y was a great option for a family plan. So we joined for them. While testing it out and thinking we might bounce out to the Bay Club, we ended up loving it. They recently upgraded all the equipment to smart equipment and I'm diggin it! I haven't seen these machines since I was at an upscale gym in Houston a couple years ago! I love the price ($185 for all 6 of us, plus it as daycare vs $230/mo at equinox per person and no kids are welcome) I love the normalness of the Y too. I may make great income, but I don't want to be with the stiffs. I want to be where my roots are.

My son attended the Kids Connection Summer Camp Coyote Cubs with Mrs. Floro. We originally signed…read moreup for just one week, but he loved it so much that we enrolled for a second week. If we hadn't had a vacation planned, we would've absolutely continued! Each day after camp, he would run up to me excited to share all the fun he had, something I haven't seen at his current school, so it made me so happy to see him so engaged. I really appreciated the blend of academics and fun, he thrived in that environment. Every staff member we met was kind and welcoming. The front desk team and the morning check-in ladies were always friendly, which made the experience even better. Thank you for putting together such a thoughtful and enriching program!

I'm a parent who is considering the school for my daughter. However, another parent told me that…read morethey have horrible reviews on yelp so I came here to read them.. I read all the one star reviews and have came to the conclusion that their criticism was unreasonable. Whether it was about promises made or protocol issues never once was review about how horrible the teachers were or how horrible my child felt at school.. I just wanted the owners of this establishment to know that those one star reviews are unreasonable and I will be following up with possible enrollment.. thank you to kids connection and their wonderful staff.

I Have been taking adult art class with Inna for half year and making a lot of progress. Inna is an…read moreamazing teacher who tailors the teaching based on my level. I'm able to learn a lot from each session. For someone who has been learning painting from YouTube for two years, getting immediate feedback on my work makes a huge difference. Also, watching Inna doing demos are simply rewarding and nothing short of wonder. Furthermore, Inna creates an inspiring environment that makes me want to do better each time and also learn from each other. The class is both serious and fun. Although still new to the field, I now approach painting in a different and more principled way. Would highly recommend the class to anyone who is interested in pursuing art in any capacity.

I have been learning to paint at Art Academia for about 2 years. Inna is a really talented artist,…read moreshe is very knowledgeable, patient, polite and is a great teacher! With every class I learn something new and feel absolutely accomplished! Lessons have been focused on a wide variety of topics like landscape, still life, portraits, different techniques of painting with pallet knife, brush. You're welcome to use any medium as well! During this pandemic, Inna has been able to beautifully adapt to teaching online over zoom and gives personal attention, it's almost like a private class! I consider myself fortunate to have found Inna as my art teacher and I would highly recommend Art Academia to any one who is passionate about art and would want to learn and grow into an artist.

Definitely a favorite. My boys can't get enough of it. They always negotiate as many weeks as…read morepossible and beg for extended care. You can't go wrong.

My daughter has done these camps in SJ two summers in a row and loves them! She loves the teachers…read morethere, especially Tim. She's excited to go and tells me about it every day when I pick her up. Highly recommend checking it out!

As a student who has gone to Bright Horizon Chinese School (BHCS) and is now a student at…read moreuniversity, BHCS was a cornerstone of my childhood and a foundational space for my friendships growing up in the Bay Area. Even outside of the after-school care provided by the school, where school buses would pick us up outside of our elementary schools, provide yummy snacks, teach us how to read, write, and speak Mandarin Chinese in class, and (though I was stubborn as a child), provide practice math and English language homework for students to get ahead. Annually, BHCS created iconic student showcases hosted at a local stage, known as "看我说中文"， where students like me would memorize important information about Chinese traditions, language, and community. Looking back, it was so funny to re-watch and see what I looked like at age 12. Although stern at times, its teachers deeply cared about our well-being, stayed communicative through me and my parents, and helped me progress in academia. BHCS has been such a foundational part of my experience in making and maintaining friendships, learning, and speaking Chinese (I can speak/read fluently, and my writing is still relatively fluent). Even after elementary school where BHCS would provide traditional children's after-school care, I still took weekend Chinese classes that would end up helping me get ahead in future AP Chinese/foreign language requirements for high school and college. In middle and high school, I volunteered at BHCS during my school breaks and would see new generations of students grow and connect with one another, which as a big sibling, was such a beautiful sight to see. My younger brother, now in high school, has followed my footsteps through BHCS's after-school care for elementary school students, and weekend classes for middle school students, and has even given back by also volunteering the same way I did in high school. All in all, as a student who has been through BHCS's whole curriculum with my younger brother following right behind me, the memories and experiences that I have had here were incredibly beautiful and are forever a part of my core memories. I still try and visit my teachers every year. 100% worth it! :)

Both my son and daughter attended BHCS, separated by maybe 6 or 8 years. The school teaches…read moreChinese speaking and writing, as well as math and supporting in school homework. Both kids had multiplication memorized before they even started elementary school, very impressive compared to their peers. The school holds performances several times a year, giving the children opportunities to develop all-important public communication and performance skills. It was amazing to watch such little children perform and speak with more poise than most adults. Beyond Chinese, math, school coursework, BHCS also had special classes in dance. (I believe the founder/principal had professional ballet background, explaining her ability to orchestrate such professional level performances annually.) CONCLUSION: 1. The boy who had Chinese exposure all his life came out of BHCS with very limited Chinese speaking and writing skills. The daughter, adopted, entered BHCS with ZERO Chinese speaking or comprehension, but emerged speaking, reading and writing perfect Chinese, with perfect accent and intonation. She can recite classical Chinese poetry and has pass ion to learn about her culture - impressive for someone with absolutely no Chinese capability when first enrolled. Conclusion- if your goal is for your kids to speak, read and write Chinese, know YMMV. Learning is so individual, and a school can only provide the teaching, but if someone resists learning, they won't learn. I can say this definitively based on my own personal experience and that of my son. 2. Regardless whether the kids learn Chinese, BHCS gave my kids an academic advantage, starting with early math, public speaking and performance opportunities, and homework time everyday. My daughter has very strong learning and memorization capabilities, which I attribute to her time at BHCS. 3. My son is now a successful corporate attorney. My daughter is very successful in high school and has the performance level to enter top universities. My son's classmates now include MDs, Management Consultants, Investment Bankers, Software Engineers, and many other successful careers. So many high performing young adults shared a BHCS history. I am convinced there is correlation between their success and BHCS. At the very least, the kids come away with an impressive network. My kids know or knew friends attending all the Foster City San Mateo schools, and out of dustruct schools. Their friends are amazed at the wide social network my kids have. These relationships seem to be lifelong friendships, as my kids continue maintaining close ties with their BHCS alumni. 4. Finally, I recognize the individuality of experience. There are many paths to success and happiness. One size cannot fit all. Some kids don't do well in a structured environment. Some parents don't want their kids to be too academic, preferring more play time. Clearly, there were many successful graduates of BHCS, yet, as the reviews show, some did not have a positive experience. I am also aware of a past member of the staff splitting off and opening her own school to compete with BHCS, employing some questionable practices. Are the negative reviews related to that? I cannot say.

My first experience with PFBS was during Covid, when we needed a summer day camp for our oldest…read more They basically just hung out at a local beach every day, exploring the length of it, nearby tidepools, discussing rocks, etc. She enjoyed herself despite the setting being fairly mundane. Now my Kindergarten student attends a weekly pod at the Coastside Moss Beach location and we are really happy to be sending her. The location--Fitzgerald Marine Reserve and the neighboring forest--is spectacular, and I am constantly being surprised at the random nature knowledge she casually spits out. They visit the tidepools whenever the tides allow, make secret hideouts in the trees, make dams in the sand, etc. I wish I could go to forest school!

My son (started at 2.5, now is 3) has loved every minute at PFBS, he asks to go every day! We…read moreappreciate and trust the teachers and he is cared for with love and affection. He thrives in the beautiful forest classroom. In just a few months has become deeply aware of his surroundings in nature and has developed a true curiosity for the ocean, animals, bugs and plants. Now that he is 3, we planned to send him to a traditional preschool full time, but because of his love for this special program, we are continuing part time at PFBS to foster his love for the outdoors.