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.
