The kids classes are so well curated and every artist gets a finished piece! My oldest just started…read morethe wheel throwing class after dozens of hand building classes and she loves both so much. What a treat to have such a wonderful studio that provides such a genuine art experience with ceramics. Highly recommended.

Terrific place that does such a great job with kids parties and classes. Owners are super nice and…read moreresponsive.

Talk about igniting my child's desire to learn, explore, and grow in STEM! You absolutely see what…read moreyou are paying for each day when your child comes home full of new ideas and doesn't stop talking about them until you put her to bed. We have been going to KSL on and off for about two years and this summer we enrolled our daughter in a 3 week camp. Each week a new topic was covered: dinosaurs v. animals, engineering, and astronauts/space. I can attest that each day was packed with experiments and builds that made science accessible. 1. Teachers and staff are kind, attentive, and educated. KSL is creative about learning and definitely provides a hands on experience. The teachers & staff show patience with the children and a passion for what they are exploring/teaching each day. This is definitely a differentiator from other camps we've attended/researched. Every person I encountered at KSL knew my child by name and was by my standards professional & helpful. 2. The quality of the subject matter & builds is unlike any other place we've taken our daughter. It feels like the curriculum is designed to allow kids to ask questions and learn through hands on projects, reading, and experiments - (these are the things your child will not stop talking about for days...) 3. The materials used in these projects is so inventive. This year my daughter built a Mars Rover model that is truly better than anything I could have constructed... and she's 5! Each day I was impressed with the magnitude of engineering and creativity used in the projects that came home... yes there's still goo and snake venom but the fact that my daughter could talk about what snake venom does to blood blew me away... she took an understanding away from the cool experiments - it's wasn't just about making something slimy or gooey. 4. Location: KSL has parking in the Whole Foods North Ave. parking garage. This is an awesome thing for anyone toting around a second child (like me.) It's truly an easy in and out and their building is very secure. I never left my daughter feeling concerned or worried about her safety. Honestly, if you child has any spark for creativity (which I think they all do) try out a Saturday drop-in class. I think they sell packs so that you don't have to commit to being there every weekend if your schedule is nuts. It's an experience you won't find anywhere else. Last, but not least, here's the true testament to how great this place is: We commuted from Jefferson Park (Foster Ave.) to KSL on I-90 during rush hour for 3 weeks... yeah, it's that good.

Mr Shegan is AWESOME! His way of handling stressed parent minutes before the big show, his way of…read moreengaging kids VIRTUALLY during the shows, my kid and her friends had a great time celebrating my daughter's birthday virtually. Mr Shegan called the day before to walk me through what would happened, so I appreciated the walk-through and gave me a level of comfort despite the backoffice chaos i experienced the last couple weeks. What's really dampening the supposingly-stress-free experience is the back-office arrangement. Some of the highlights below - So the zoom info was given to me when I booked the party back in May. I called a few times to confirm the zoom info a couple weeks prior to the party to make sure what I had on the invite was still correct. What really caused me a bit anxiety is that when they did "confirm" the zoom info with me over on email, the info sent over contains a couple other kids names and one of their party information. Granted nothing really personal was shared, but this made me wonder how they handles guest information in general. The day of the party, apparently, the guests and I were in a different zoom room from Mr Shegan's, the "registration" page we were sent to had a different party date/time options to pick from, which confused a lot of us. Many parents were texting me just few mins before the party while I was confused myself, and not sure what happened since it was slightly different from what Mr Shegan told me the day before. I think there's a change of personnel post-sales coz I couldn't reach the person who I contacted during the sales to confirm all the logistics. Everytime I contacted KSL, I reached the voicemail, emails were unanswered. Granted they did call you back rather quickly. But that's kinda annoying and added extra layer of stress to a planner like me. And suburb buyers be aware - if you want virtual party, kits pick up time is 9-4 in LP. During sales time, the lady told me that they could arrange weekend pickup given I live in the burbs and DO work regular 9-5. But obviously, this didn't happen. We had to make an arrangement for a quick trip to the city. All in all, the experience was 5+ star DURING the party time, but it was less than desired during the planning phase post-sales. Mr Shegan is def. the saving grace.

The teachers are very warm nice and welcome!…read more And also they are very responsible! My daughter had made a gigantic push cart and my son had brought several hand crafts home! It was so fun!

My daughter has been to Camp Galileo for the past two summers and we are about to sign her up for a…read morethird. She LOVES this camp and keeps asking to go back. When I pick her up she sometimes does not want to leave! My daughter came home last year at the end of every week with a bag of all the projects she worked on. She was so excited to tell me about each and every project and why it worked the way it did. They had a great mix of STEM activities but also made sure the kids got to run and play outside as well. The staff is welcoming and they really care for the kids. This camp is safe and fun! I would highly recommend it.

Also the most expensive camp among dozens of other great options in Chicago. Communication was…read moresloppy and programming disorganized. Did not appear the staff had much training. We obviously will not be back and I cannot recommend Freda to friends.

We've sent out two older kids to Fred's for two summers now, and next year we're excited that the…read morelittle one will be old enough to join them. Every day, the kids were so excited to get to camp, they repeatedly validated our decision to choose Fred's. We couldn't be happier. They simply do everything right.

Harmony has become our favorite play school. We have gotten to know Ginny and Maddie, and…read moreappreciate their efforts at creating a learning environment that is also fun, clean and safe for the toddler sessions. My son is part of the two days/week session, and it seems to be the right fit for us. We tried one day/week, as well as three days/week, but found the 2days/week session was enough for our 1 year old. You have options to create a schedule for your child, which is magnificent! Harmony is Montessori-based, so you will not find any commercialized cartoons or music here. They do have a music box with kid-oriented classical music on cards the children tend to play with (somewhat like the Tonies box). They have books and reading nooks in different spaces, toy stations throughout, and the kids tend to go and come as they please. There are group reading and singing/playing opportunities for the children, but mostly it is open play. My son enjoys seeing his friends here every week, and I think this is the best part of Harmony. There is a sense of community, with the majority of the children being locals. We are grateful for Harmony play school!

So surprised there aren't any reviews here yet! Harmony Learning Center is just brilliant!!…read moreMiss Ginny is an absolute wonderful and passionate woman who opened up a perfect play haven for young kids and their caretakers to be together. Everything is Montessori focused so no worries on screens or commercial characters de-focusing your children from meaningful play and socialization. I love the coffee/office space area for grown-ups to get some work done, even if it is just to read a quiet book or check some emails. What I love most though is their schedule/roster of events. Beyond just work and play, they offer tutoring and after school care, which is a unicorn of a find in the city. The place is so clean and well cared for, there's a consistent theme/vibe that's so welcoming. Will 100% be back and be spreading the word!

My kids had an ok day at the Audubon Location. When I came to pick them up, it took in excess of 20…read moreminutes and 5 people to locate their epipens. this camp says it's allergy friendly but - I shudder to think what would've happened in a life or death situation. I spoke to the manager and she told me there were 300+ kids and that the hadn't anticipated so many meds. I don't feel remotely safe about leaving kids with allergies at this camp. they lacked a single point of contact for emergencies and said "everyone is trained". most camps we've attended have a single person responsible for safety one even had a paramedic. I do not recommend this location if you're managing health conditions.

Week 1 complete at Steve & Kate's Camp complete, and so far my 4 1/2 year old daughter is loving…read moreit. They have a streamlined check-in process online and curbside drop off and pickup. My picky eater daughter gives the lunch a thumbs up. And communication with the camp directors by email or text has been excellent. Best of all, my daughter comes home exhausted from all the activities and goes to sleep early ;)

A true 10/10 experience! My two year old had a BLAST at the one hour tots class. He was able to…read morechop veggies, mix Rangoon filling, wash dishes and... EAT! It was a fast paced class to keep kids' interest, but everything was clear and perfectly tailored to toddlers. As a former early childhood teacher myself, I was highly impressed! I'm sad to know their brick and mortar is closing at the beginning of next month because I want to sign my son up for a thousand more classes! If you can squeeze in a class while they're still open, it's absolutely worth the money!

My brother and sister in law sweetly got me a gift certificate for classes here for my birthday…read more Their thought was I could use it for virtual cooking classes with my 10 year old son. I reached out initially to them via email and Kallie replied since they hadn't posted their fall schedule mid summer but she promised to email me as soon as they released. A month later she sweetly sent me an email notifying me (I was impressed she remembered!). Unfortunately being west coast based, the live class times were too early for us on weekends and my son wasn't keen on an on demand class. I wasn't too sure what to do with the gift certificate and Kallie explained that although their focus isn't on retail sales there were some items they stock and she sweetly took pictures and my gift certificate was able to cover some lovely items (including recipe cards for my son's gluten free diet). I was so impressed how Kallie went so above and beyond that if we were living in Chicago would be frequenting this spot often given their exemplary level of customer service.

I took a class here as a teenager and it was top notch! I have talked to many students who have…read moretalked classes here recently, and you know what, they can't speak highly enough about it! Yes, the rumors are true! It's just as good now as it was 45 years ago! Hats off to all the great teachers for encouraging all the students from around the world (yes, I knew a young woman from Italy who attended classes back in 2005!). A big standing ovation to all the teachers keeping this great institution world class all these decades later! You are the greatest!

Continuing Ed "intro" courses are not worth it. Don't bother unless you've already mastered the…read morebasics elsewhere because you will not be taught any techniques here.

What a gem of a ballet school!…read more The three reasons we have loved this school for our daughter: (1) The faculty has some serious ballet expertise and passion (numerous alumni have become professional ballet dancers) but they're also incredibly good with teaching kids. Our daughter is always excited to go and see her teachers & classmates. (2) All students from 3yos in Creative Movement to the pre-professional dancers in the studio company are cast in their annual Nutcracker performances. Not only is it a cool experience for her perform on stage in real performing arts venues like the Harris Theater, but it's taught her a lot that goes beyond dance. Performing on stage in front of over a thousand people without stage fright, showing up for her classmates for multiple shows each season are good life skills. (3) While ballet isn't the most historically diverse place, Ballet Chicago's school directors make a conscious effort to be inclusive (different backgrounds, body types, etc.) You can tell they're committed to making ballet a positive experience for their dancers and it extends across the school. There's a real community feel. Oh! and I should mention that the studio and classes are also well-equipped: live piano accompaniment during classes, Marley sprung floors, nice natural light.

This is a ballet school that will prepare young dancers with technical skill and performance…read moreexperience and foster a love of dance. Both my son and daughter enjoyed performing in the annual nutcracker performance and it was great as a parent to watch the esprit de corp develop among the young dancers of all ages.