A Saint Paul staple! Absolutely magical. My family and I have an annual tradition of seeing the…read moreCircus Juventas show yearly. We love supporting local talent and feel that our money goes to a great cause as every participant in the show is a student (sometimes they do have guests to help fill certain roles or parts). Overall, your money goes to helping students build confidence, community and collaboration at circus. By attending shows or purchasing merchandise, the money gets put back into the circus school. Each year, the theme of the show is different and students weave in and out of the program. Once they are a senior, students move on. My family has been attending for so long that I recognize many of the former talent now being volunteers or riggers on set. I am always amazed at the talent and even more, how it's local and in our own community. Skills range from silks, tumbling, roller skating, trampoline jumps, aerial, acrobatics, juggling and more. Each show typically runs about 3 hours with a 20-minute intermission. There are small vendors onsite that serve the standard hot dogs, chips, sodas, candy bars and even Cold Stone creamery has had a both the past couple years serving up ice cream. It's truly an honor to be under the high top. As they say at the end - may all your days be circus days! Thank you to all the students, coaches and volunteers! Bravo!!

We attended Circus Juventas' Blizzard show this week. I wasn't sure what to expect having only seen…read moreone Cirque du Soleil show. What I didn't expect this to be was a show put on by kids! WOW! Blizzard was a culmination of several Christmas stories using the setting of Santa's Workshop. Christmas play meets Cirque du Soleil. These kids are no joke! The acting, strength, and fearlessness of these kids is amazing! If you weren't sure it's worth going don't, go! Bring your family and support these talented kids. Looking forward to seeing more of these shows in the future.

Some pronounce the name like the backup group for Gladys Knight or more like fits with an h…read moreinserted. This handsome still modern styled building in Hudson Bandstand Park stands out for a town this size. A chamber of commerce dream with multiple activities, performance stage, movie theater, art galleries and studios. There is no entrance fee and the displays change regularly. Just the architecture inside with curved windows with wood columns afford some stunning views of the St Croix river and adjoining park. Afterwards people can a walk a block up the hill downtown to explore some unique shopping and dining.

The Phipps has such great productions! It is a beautiful theater in the best location. Lots of…read moregreat surrounding restaurants to grab food before or after seeing a show. Easy parking and a great environment. Tickets are also affordable! Highly recommend.

I spent a week volunteering in the Recwell Center for the Special Olympics USA basketball teams…read more The facility is spacious and accommodating. The washroom was clean and well stocked. Walking on campus daily was enjoyable. I had to be careful at crosswalks and to obey the traffic "walk" signals.

I have never taken a course at the University of Minnesota (UMN). I used to hang out in this area…read moremainly because I like Dinkytown, which is the heart of UMN student life. I like the stores and good eats in this neighbourhood. I've always felt comfortable visiting universities and checking out campuses. It's no different here. I had a friend who got his master and doctorate degrees from this university, so I got to hear about his experiences when we both lived in Minnesota. I am a hockey fan. The UMN has a decent hockey program, both men's and women's. You often see local talent make it to the Minnesota Wild and Minnesota Frost rosters, respectively. Alex Goligoski, who recently retired from the NHL, played for the Minnesota Golden Gophers at UMN before he was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins. He won the Stanley Cup with this team, but spent his last three years with the Wild as a defenseman. During his 1,000th NHL game, he scored the game-winning goal, which was quite the storybook ending. As of late, Brock Faber is a solid defenseman on the Wild. He is starting his second full season with the team and was captain of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. He is young, but exceptionally skilled and mature beyond his years. Taylor Heise, who is a forward for the PWHL's Minnesota Frost, played for the Minnesota women's hockey team. The Frost won the Walter Cup and she won the Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP award. If I were looking into academics, UMN has both computer science and mathematics departments that would have appealed to me. It is similar to York University in that you can choose to do either a Bachelor of Arts or Science in either field. Only a Master of Science is available in both. You can also study towards a PhD in either domain. UMN has a Bachelor of Science in Technical Writing and Communication. Many universities start off offering Technical Writing degrees as an Arts degree. I like the shift with universities going with a Bachelor of Science. Technical writers are needed more than ever to explain technical, complex details as clearly and concisely in engineering, medical, and more. It's makes more sense that it's a Science degree. This university does not offer graduate degrees in Technical Writing. It's one reason why I didn't do my Master's here. I don't have any inclination to get a doctorate. If UMN offered one in my chosen field, I'd consider it if the price is affordable and I could do it remotely. It was nice being back in the area. (394)

I have been taking classes at the art academy for 15 years, on and off. When I look back at my…read moreprogress, I know that what Jim and Sarah offered really made me a better painter. they have a method that works. I would recommend their classes for any and all ages.

I joined the school this summer and returned back to it this fall. It was one of the best decisions…read moreI have made lately. The teachers are very pleasant, accommodating but at the same time try to push to be a better artist. If you are a returning student you get an approx 30 dollars in discount. Its 150 dollars for a whole semester. The art supplies can be expensive but they will last you a life time and you have to buy them only once. Ample parking in the school parking lot. Plus some of the fellow students are really cool people so all in all it makes up for a very positive experience.

I love all that Hope Academy stands for and what they are instilling into our children. I have…read morerecently visited the campus twice. 1 to pick up my niece and I was greeted by the front desk woman outside of the office, who located my niece for me. My second visit was for my nieces music program, which was done very nicely.. My niece speaks often and highly about all she learns, her teachers and her environment. If I had children, I would want them enrolled at Hope Academy as well. Ambiance: Located on Chicago Avenue and 25th. There was no lot adjacent to the school, however there is street parking and a ramp directly across the street. Growing up on the South Side, It is located literally next door to one of the most drug saturated parks in South Minneapolis (Franklin & Chicago), but prior to building the school, they started cleaning the park up. The neighborhood has changed some over the years and has become a different environment for children to play, bus and be educated. The school itself has secured doors and only one entrance in and out for visitors.

Though I was socially awkward when I attended a few months ago, it is a very fun school and…read moreeveryone is very nice. Would recommend - Gerard Giolando

I truly can't say enough good things about this school. My…read morechild was a transfer student to this school. They handled the distance learning smoothly, the staff is extremely helpful and caring too. This was the first charter school my child ever attended and it exceeded our expectations. I'll admit, I had reservations on how strong their academics would be. But, when my child had taken their ACT and did so well, I know that this school had prepared for college and beyond. Well worth going to an informational session, see if there are other parents too with current or previous students to hide you input on the school. My child has always felt safe and able to express who they actually are.

Our daughter has been enrolled at Kinderstube for 7 months now. She attends the Diamond Lake Rd…read morelocation. So far we are very happy with everything. The teachers are all very nice and seem to genuinely enjoy working with children. Being a German immersion program, the teachers speak to the students only in German however the kids are not forced to speak in German if they do not know or feel ready to do so. Whenever we drop off or pick up, the classrooms are clean, orderly, and safe. They do many different activities that our daughter loves to bring home and show us. They also have additional dance class that you can purchase that the students can attend. We get our weekly yoga and dancing lesson once she comes home because she's very excited to show us what she's learned. Overall, we are very satisfied with everything at this school and plan to enroll our son next year once he's of attendance age. Most importantly, our daughter always looks forward to going and has never complained or not wanted to go.

You will notice from my other reviews here that I am not really a negative review type of person…read more But unfortunately, I feel the need to share; So this review is really two-reviews in one. Review 1: If your child is "normal," then they will probably have a great time. The actual teachers are very caring, and I can't speak enough praise about Michelle, Kirsten and Robin at the Minneapolis campus. I truly think that Michelle is one of the best early childhood educators I have ever met. She is genuine, hardworking, and really gets kids. Review 2: If your child is a boy, or has a higher level of energy, or has any kind of mental illness, disability or special needs, I unfortunately cannot recommend this school. My son attended school there for 7 months and most of his time there was uneventful. A few months in he started talking about fears about the head teacher Vincent and how Vincent was mean to him. I still do not know what happened to make my child so afraid of Vincent, since my son shuts down anytime I try to broach the subject (although since he left the school his stomachaches magically disappeared). Although I do think (I hope) there was not any abuse, I really am just stumped and will have to be satisfied with never knowing. In unrelated move, my family decided to also pursue mental health treatment for my son for sleep. We mentioned this to the school in an effort for open communication. There were occasional "bad" days and difficulties hitting, but nothing that any of the teachers, nor Vincent, nor Babett, the director, said indicated that this was anything but typical rowdy "boy" behavior. However, after we revealed the diagnosis to the school, it seemed as if Vincent made an effort to remove my son. He repeatedly called us to pick up our son, with crisp phone calls without providing any further discussion about strategy, behavior modification or any other problems. In these calls, he only indicated the problems and never mentioned any attempts at solutions. Only two weeks after we shared the diagnosis, in what my husband and I thought was a strategy meeting, Vincent and Babett literally said, "he has to go" and that they, "didn't want to manage him." In every moment, up to that point, my husband and I were open and interested in engaging with the staff. We provided a book to inform them of our son's new diagnosis, sent a LICSW to discuss some of my son's "problem" behaviors, and even came to the expulsion meeting with our behavior strategy plan. Vincent and Babett never showed any interest in meeting with us or even discussing anything with us prior to the fateful meeting. They never attempted to discuss with us any plans, behavior modifications, or even asked us what worked well for our child. Given Vincent's strange schedule at the school, he was never available to chat with after the school day. Furthermore, they have a so-called-level system in their handbook, which they did not follow at all. Our primary concern, after this situation, was not that my son is no longer there (I agree, 300% that it is not a good fit; and personally, I wouldn't even send my "normal" child there), but it was the lack of communication, lack of empathy, and lack of any attempts to accommodate a child's disability that make me question Vincent and Babett's choice of careers. Discrimination is not acceptable. Although private preschools can do what they want, they need to realize that expulsion is, as child psychologist Gilliam writes, not a child behavior; it is an adult decision. There is great research out there showing that most "expel" worthy behaviors are easily changed with both parent and teacher work. Although every child is different and I have known children who had a great time with the Kinderstube and even with Vincent, I personally cannot recommend the school. Until they deal with their internal issues about discrimination and address their relationship to preschool expulsion, it is not a safe place for children.

I can't wait to get back to teaching this year!…read more The Developmental Designs program was fantastic. Not only did it teach me new and better ways to teach my students, but it also just got me even more excited to go back to school. Anyone that teaches middle level students and above should definitely take this course. It is a little pricey, but well worth your time. If you have time, check out the Origins website for great books. You can even go right to the store to pick them up if you would like. I know this doesn't say a lot, but I love this place. So, I had to promote it if even just a little.