Extremely disappointing experience. I would not recommend this daycare, especially to families of…read morechildren with developmental needs.
My son is 3, autistic, and receives ABA therapy through an outside provider. Florita knew about his needs when I enrolled him and represented herself as experienced with children with special needs.
Over the past several months, her biggest recurring complaint was that my son did not have ABA therapy in the afternoons. I was actively working with his provider on his schedule, but his ABA therapists are independent providers they are NOT daycare employees and do NOT work for Florita. Their job is to provide therapeutic support to my child, not to serve as additional daycare staff.
Florita repeatedly pressured me about his afternoon ABA schedule and became hostile toward his morning ABA therapist when she did not comply with her demands. I was also informed that Florita told his therapist she could not communicate with me. She even became upset when his therapist attempted to support my son with potty training, despite this being a developmental goal we had communicated to the daycare.
What is most concerning is that Florita never communicated to me or my son's father that he had serious behavioral problems. I have countless texts with her. The concerns she actually communicated were that he climbs on things, is active, loud, excited, and sometimes has mild tantrums.
He is THREE YEARS OLD. Being active, loud, excited, climbing, and having occasional tantrums are normal behaviors for a three-year-old, whether autistic or not. Yes, he requires additional redirection and support because of his autism which is exactly why he has a therapeutic team.
His morning ABA therapist consistently updated me after sessions about his major behavioral improvements, progress, and learning, regularly telling me how well he was doing.
Then suddenly, I received a termination notice stating that his daycare services were being terminated because of his behavior. When I asked why, I was told it was based on the provider's "sole judgment" of his behavior. There had been no meaningful prior communication about serious behavioral issues or documented pattern presented to us.
I was also informed by my son's therapist that other children had hit him, pushed him, pulled his hair, taken toys from him, and potentially bitten him. These incidents were not appropriately communicated to me by the daycare. On one occasion, I noticed a mark on his ear and provided a photograph, only to be told it was probably a bug bite from home.
I was also told by his therapist about another concerning incident involving a child reportedly being left outside alone in the rain and crying because they were alone. I did not personally witness this; it was reported to me by his therapist. His therapists have raised concerns about observations involving other children and the overall daycare environment as well.
I was also informed that Florita had been gossiping about my son's parents, allegedly telling his therapist that we were negligent, that we were never around, that "randoms" were always picking him up, and that she could never communicate with me. I was also told she characterized us as always having an attitude.
These statements are false.
My son's authorized pickup list consists of his mother, father, maternal grandfather, and paternal grandmother his immediate family and established support system. There was one occasion when my sister picked him up for a planned weekend trip, with my authorization.
I also have extensive text communication with Florita, and she has personally spoken with me numerous times at drop-off and pickup, frequently to complain about the lack of afternoon ABA. So the claim that she could never communicate with me does not reflect my actual experience.
The pattern was extremely concerning: repeated pressure regarding afternoon ABA, hostile treatment of his independent therapist, conflict over his therapist supporting potty training, lack of communication regarding incidents involving my child, and then sudden termination based on his "behavior" without prior documentation of serious behavioral problems.
ABA therapy is for my child it is not additional daycare staffing.
I have submitted my concerns to the appropriate licensing authority for independent review, including concerns regarding supervision, staffing, child safety, communication with parents, treatment of children with developmental disabilities, and the daycare's treatment of outside therapeutic providers.
Parents trust daycare providers with their children. That requires professionalism, appropriate boundaries, transparency, adequate supervision, and honest communication.
Unfortunately, that was not our experience at 123 Little Starts.
1 star. Parents especially parents of children with developmental needs should do their due diligence before enrolling their child.
