Pacific Learning Academy has been life-changing! The fact that it is located right in Sammamish…read moreand has such wonderful tutors and staff, we are so thankful and grateful to have found Pacific Learning Academy. From the first phone calls and our first meeting with Ms. Jacobson, we felt taken care of. She really manages scheduling wonderfully and listens to you amazingly- she will find the right fit for your child and help them succeed. We had a struggling junior, and have used an IB LA tutor and an IB Calc tutor. Our son loved both, and we have seen the improvement. I highly highly recommend Pacific Learning Academy!

We have worked with Pacific Learning Academy for 8 years and 3 children. We have taken a mix of…read moretutoring, for credit classes, test prep, and college essays. We have always been very pleased with all of the tutors and staff at PLA!

Both of our children attended Chestnut Hill Academy, and our youngest just graduated from 5th grade…read morelast week. Throughout their K-5 journey, every teacher was exceptional, supportive, and genuinely caring. Communication between teachers, staff, and parents has always been outstanding. We love CHA's focus on community building, leadership, strong academics, and the emotional well-being of its students. Both of our children loved their time at the school and formed wonderful friendships that will last a lifetime. As parents, we have had the privilege of watching our children grow into confident, resilient, and well-prepared middle school students with strong leadership skills and perseverance. We are incredibly grateful to the entire CHA community for the positive impact it has had on our family.

Our daughter attended CHA from kindergarten and will be completing 4th grade this year. The school…read morehas been incredibly supportive from the beginning. Each of her teachers from K-4 were engaged and provided regular feedback on matters related to academics, social, and well-being. We really enjoyed the school programs from performing arts, field trips, winter activities, and leadership opportunities. CHA also did a great job connecting parents and building a strong community with the school.

The 4th grade teacher and some office staff were not very friendly…read more Ms. Ibrahim is the best. Overall not very pleased. But still one of the good schools in the city as WA is the most unchurched state.

Our daughter has been at ECS since 1st grade and is now in 2nd. She's built such strong bonds with…read moreher classmates, and we've seen how much those friendships actually help her in the classroom. When they hit tough topics--like some of the more advanced math concepts--having that supportive group of friends keeps her motivated and makes the challenges feel much more manageable. We also really value how the school handles social growth. When a conflict came up, the teachers and the principal didn't just 'fix' it; they helped her develop a real strategy for resolution and taught her how to navigate things in the future. It gave her so much confidence. Most importantly, we love that the school is centered on God and faith. Seeing her so excited to talk about Jesus after chapel is a huge blessing to our family. It's a wonderful, supportive community and we're so glad to be part of it.

Sammamish Children's School is our two-year old's home away from home. Every morning when he wakes…read moreup, he's excited to go 'play with friends' at 'new school'...he's been attending for two months, but this is his name for school. Our son is in the 'Dippers' class, and his teacher, Ms. Melissa and assistant teacher, Ms. Bella, are amazing. There are stations setup each morning with age appropriate and engaging activities (water play, sand play, Mr. Potato Head, etc.) which our son loves! There's music class every Monday and Thursday, an amazing outdoor play space on acreage, and nutritious, diverse meals served. Emotionally - Ms. Melissa and the staff helped reinforce preparing our son for the arrival of his baby brother by talking about being a 'big brother' and reinforcing our son's role in our family. It made the transition of bringing baby home more exciting than nerve racking. Above and beyond a typical school experience in my opinion. Operationally - SCS also has many less closure days than some of the schools my friends kiddos go to in the area, so much more predictable for work schedules. It did take us a little over 7-months to get off the wait list, but Ms. Kelly (assistant director) was awesome at helping us plan for a reasonable date to possibly join. I cannot say enough positive things about this school, the faculty, the activities, the food, and overall experience. Highly recommend to any families looking for a long-term 'home' for their kiddos.

The absolute best! Both of our kids have gone from 1 year old day care all the way through…read morekindergarten at SCS and it's the best money we've ever spent. Great Teachers (even at the early age, 1-2-3, they have a curriculum) Well run operations (sign ups, billing, updates) Awesome chef (yes, they feed the kids healthy food, you don't need to pack fruit by the foot) Safe! (Before, during, and all the way through the pandemic) The kids love it and it's really set them up for success.

My daughter attended the toddler program at Arbor, and unfortunately, our experience was not very…read morepositive. From the beginning, she was reluctant to go to school, though at her age (3 years old) she couldn't clearly express why. On the administrative side, I often found communication confusing and overly bureaucratic. The primary care director frequently stepped in when issues arose in the classroom, but her messages did not always align with the teachers', and she did not appear to have decision-making authority. When we finally decided to withdraw our daughter after several difficult months, the process was particularly challenging. We submitted our withdrawal notice one day later than the contract required (on a Sunday rather than Saturday). While I acknowledge that this was our oversight, the financial impact was in the thousands of dollars, and the school was unwilling to make any accommodation. Discussions with the primary director, assistant head, head of school, and eventually the owner all reinforced the sense that policies were rigid and prioritized the business side over the child's well-being or the family's situation. I later spoke with another parent who had a very similar experience regarding withdrawal fees, which made me realize this was not an isolated case. To be fair, there are dedicated teachers at Arbor, and I know some children do well there. However, if challenges arise, families should be prepared for limited flexibility and a process that may feel more focused on contractual obligations than collaborative problem-solving.

very unfriendly, not welcoming staff. Atmosphere/ environment is dingy not well lit, a bit…read moredepressing in-fact. not family oriented and to say it lightly biased.

at my previous school, I was bullied, depressed and hated learning. none of the teachers were nice…read morebut, hillside is the complete opposite all the teachers are nice, obviously care about their students and what they teach. all the students like each other. I'm still recovering from my past experiences, but hillside is doing a darn good job at helping me heal and helping nourish my gifts.

Flashback to 1989: I had just learned my parents had enrolled me at Hillside and I was furious. How…read moredare they enroll me in private schooling instead of buying me a car?! Needless to say, looking back, I'm glad of their decision. I hadn't been the most social kid in middle school and Hillside provided the perfect mix of supportive community, yet challenging academic environment, to enable me to succeed. If you're not familiar with Hillside, take a tour. They have one of the best college-prep, personality-development and real-world training programs in the area.

Open Window School Is a mediocre school,…read more As a current student it excels in programs for gifted students and for kids in need of special help. However, it lacks in some areas, it does not provide enough support to kids with mental health struggles and passes over kids they do not consider diverse. other than that, the teachers are the best teachers I have ever come to know and they always make sure that you will excel. overall open window is a mediocre school that is great if you are diverse and gifted.

We love Open Window School. The school really focuses on all-round development of each kid. Our…read moreyounger one went from a shy little girl to a confident young lady and we've seen the same happen to some of her peers too. She's developed deep interests in multiple extra-curricular activities and cultivated meaningful friendships. Meanwhile, her standard tests have been consistently off the charts. Many of her peers are among the brightest kids we've seen. There is a review that says "students at OWS lag behind public school peers". I completely disagree. Many of the kids had gotten into public school gifted programs and decided to come to OWS. In terms of academics, I'd say it all depends on parents' expectations. If you think your kids are gifted so they must learn calculus or rocket science in elementary school, then you will definitely be disappointed. If you believe 1 hour of homework for a 2nd grader is a must-have, then there are other schools that fit the bill. The new Head of School was the former middle school director at Lakeside. So far I think she's done a great job, despite the fact that she started the job at the worst possible time - in the mid of a pandemic. One thing I really wish OWS could offer is lunch, but the school doesn't have a kitchen or cafeteria - a questionable decision of the original designer of the campus.

Pine Lake Co-Op Preschool has been amazing for my daughter. Play-based learning, exposure to…read moredifferent skills/activities and time spent outdoors playing makes my child beg to go to preschool! The teachers are wonderful and knowledgeable. Co-op model means great student-teacher/adult ratio and very affordable tuition. Getting to volunteer in the classroom has helped me learn more about child development and felt more confident as a parent. It is a great use of my time. There's a reason Pine Lake Co-Op Preschool has been a central part of the community for over 50 years! My daughter is a second generation PLCP student!

We moved to Sammamish in the middle of the pandemic, and I am so happy to have found Pine Lake…read moreCo-op Preschool (PLCP)! It is exactly what my son needed after being home for so long without regular interaction with other kids his age. At PLCP, we have found the perfect balance between flexible structure and the freedom to just play and be kids. Our family has had nothing but wonderful experiences the last two years with Teacher Kim! It's very evident that she is thoroughly experienced with these age groups and provides a variety of developmentally appropriate activities and lessons for the kids. There's no better feeling as a parent than seeing your child thrive in their first experience of school! I am grateful to have found a preschool where my son is safe, positively engaged with his peers and teacher, and excited to go to school each day. As a former K/1st teacher, I have no doubt that Pine Lake Co-op is a wonderful place for both you and your child to grow and learn together. The co-op model is unique and we have loved building connections with other families. Our younger one will be starting at PLCP in a few months, and we're so excited to see his education journey begin!!

As a former student, Eton is a great school. The teachers are all very kind and understanding and…read moregenuinely help you to learn. I will say, I think Eton School works best as an upper elementary/middle school. I might be biased because that's when I attended Eton, but I think they offer the best support during that time. The only major downside to Eton is that especially in middle school, since there's so few kids (about 20 7th & 8th graders total and 10 6th graders when I attended) it means that there aren't exactly many options for friends. That was part of why I left in 7th grade and am now currently in public school. I also think that even if the kids here are smart, they do teach a decent amount ahead. Some of the teachers said that they were teaching us 9th grade honors (which, we were in 7th and 8th grade at the time). I think also that there was a weird amount of homophobic, racist, and/or sexist kids here, to the point that there might genuinely be less sexist kids in my current public middle school of over 1000 kids than here. But you get to do so many fun projects (especially in 8th grade, which I'm sad I'm missing out on) and I'd also like to specifically shout out Mrs. Zender, Mrs. Amelia, and Mrs. Eleanor for being some of the best teachers there. Mrs. Zender fully cares about learning and is to this day the most thorough and smart teacher I've ever had who actually challenged me, and Mrs. Amelia and Mrs. Eleanor were both kind and caring who always made their classes safe spaces.

To recommend DWs post from 10 years ago - this is statement is still accurate in 2025…read more This school is fine for easy-going kids who would do well anywhere. They absolutely do not focus at all on the social or emotional development of the children. Any and all problems are considered the parent's problem to fix. They also hire teachers with no secondary education background, and have no business calling themselves a dual accredited school when they can't support a class structure - it's chaos in there

my kids have been going here for almost 10 years. there is no education better than one that makes…read morechildren independent thinkers and this school achieves that in a happy and wholesome way.

Eastside Community School has been such a gift to our family. The teachers are not only deeply…read moreknowledgeable and grounded, but they bring a calm, centered presence that creates a truly nurturing environment for the children. The setting itself is peaceful and never overwhelming--exactly what we hoped for in a learning space. What has surprised and delighted us the most is the sense of community. The other families have become more than just school connections--they've become chosen family. The level of support, care, and shared values among the parents is rare and beautiful. If you're looking for a school where your child can truly thrive--emotionally, socially, and intellectually--while being part of a heart-centered, thoughtful community, Eastside Community School is it. We couldn't be happier.