I have had multiple children attend throughout several years and would recommend it to everyone! We…read morelove the serene, short walk to Rock Spring from our house and my children have had exceptionally patient and dedicated teachers during our years here. It seems like every weekend at an Arlington family festival or local library storytime, we are always running into other Rock Spring kids and parents. It is truly a small neighborhood school where you can make lifelong friendships and feel connected to other nearby parents in the same stage of life! Incredibly compassionate and qualified staff.

This is a Cooperative Preschool, if you are like myself, when I started working at this school last…read moreschool year, I was amazed to find that my assistant teacher would be the parents of the children in my classes. What a wonderful learning experience. The children who are 1.5 through Pre-Kindergarten have their parents interacting and being very involved in the early learning years. I have worked in various types of preschools and school environments and can really appreciate and love the way this school teaches its children. The teaching staff works together and loves the children. I stopped working at the school because of personal reasons, which if they had not come up, would have stayed at the school for many years. Each family is giving, friendly, and wants not only the best learning environment for their children but experiences to remember throughout their life.

My son was constantly complaining about having a "boo boo" on his diaper area. This made me very…read moreconcern so I went to the center and spoke to director about this. She told me that she would express my concerns to the teachers and a possibility could be that maybe the teachers don't change him as much and he gets sore and irritated because of that. I picked up my son earlier than usual two times and yes, he wasn't changed at all. I know it because we have different diaper brands at daycare and at home. the diaper was so full that the blue line disappeared and his skin had rashes and was very irritated. no wonder why he kept complaining about having a "boo boo"? this also means that they send fake updates through the app. don't trust this place.

I recently moved back to the area - with a 2.5 year old in tow this time - during the midst of the…read morepandemic. To say I was nervous about safe childcare was an understatement! Thankfully the team at KinderCare provided a smooth and supportive transition for my son. I love the app that provides updates and pictures throughout the day and direct communications with the center staff for any questions. The teachers and center directors are always very warm and friendly. As I am working from home - I love that my son has a place to go social interaction, structured play and learning activities far more than I could provide at home! Thank you KinderCare!

What I most like about the Montessori School of Cedar Lane is that it administers tests in…read moreselecting its students. The tests comprise psychological, social, linguistic and spatial reasoning to ensure that the students are good match for the school. The head master and instructors run an excellent program and know what they are doing. This is a good school for getting one's kid into the presence of other children who are good at taking "merit" based tests.

Maria Montessori would be rolling over in her grave if she knew the manner in which this school was…read moreimplementing her program and vision. Avoid this establishment at all costs. It has taken me quite a while to write this review, mostly because I've been avoiding reliving the horrible events that led up to it. My daughter was just over 2.5 years old when she was enrolled here in April 2022. As a pandemic kid, she had never been in any sort of daycare setting and did not have many opportunities to be in social or group settings until her first day at Cedar Lane. Nonetheless, she was (and remains) a highly sociable, sweet dispositioned and inquisitive little explorer who soaks up knowledge like a sponge. As first time parents, we were so excited to widen her world with a Montessori education, but Ceder Lane sullied the whole experience for us. Within the first two hours of drop-off, we got a call from an exasperated Ms. Pamela saying that our child was refusing to sit and listen, just wanted to play with toys, and was requiring more attention than the other kids. None of these things sounded developmentally abnormal to me, as it was her FIRST DAY away from home, and yet Ms. Pamela had the gall during that FIRST conversation to suggest we consider an Early Intervention Program for her. I immediately called our pediatrician who was flabbergasted by this suggestion. The Pediatrician said they recommend at least 3 weeks for a child to adjust to a new routine and environment and for any sort of recommendation to b made within 2 hours was completely out of pocket. We asked Cedar Lane to work with us by allowing her to come in for 1-2 hours a day for the first couple of weeks to get acclimated. We did this for a few days and noticed that our child's face was completely red and puffy each time we picked her up from crying. A few days later, we were called in for a meeting with Ms. Tabitha, the Director, who said our child can't self-regulate. I was taken aback by this assessment given the fact that no 2.5 year old can self-regulate, and teaching them to do so is the whole point of preschool programs at that age. Our child did not hit, bite, push or disrespect others personal space. The only thing she was doing "wrong" was wanting to explore the classroom during circle time and she was labeled as having a "problem" because of that! Mind you, this was still within the FIRST WEEK of her being in a new environment. Isn't discovery and independent exploration a main tenet of the Montessori method? During our meeting, we asked that they work with our daughter and develop a performance improvement plan, and at least give her the recommended amount of time from the Pediatrician of 3 weeks to adjust. Ms. Tabitha refused, and tried to hand us informational paperwork for a developmental psychiatrist. She kept reiterating that they can't make medical diagnosis but were at the same time diagnosing our child as needing a developmental psychiatrist. Our pediatrician thought this recommendation was ridiculous, after having closely evaluated her and never seen even a single marker or indication of any sort of developmental issue. We pulled our daughter out of Cedar Lane after a mere week of her being there for 1-2 hours a day only. We re-enrolled her somewhere else, where she has been for the last 2 years. Lo and behold, her new school has never once indicated that she has had any issue at all. Our parent-teacher conferences always include glowing assessments of her as an extraordinarily intelligent child, a leader in the classroom, academically advanced, sweet, funny, and a pleasure to be around. Can you imagine if we had taken Cedar-Lanes half-baked assessment to heart? In retrospect, I believe they labeled her as a problem because they are severely understaffed and under trained. They have the among the highest student-teacher ratios in the area. They probably just didn't have the resources to properly educate the children in their charge, and so culled the herd by axing out the least docile of the group. This is an institution that will shift blame from their own shortcomings onto CHILDREN who bear no responsibility for the schools own failures. I'd give zero stars if I could!

We moved from Nevada in May and have been incredibly thankful to have found Creche!!…read more All I can say is WOW! The teachers & staff here are the best - so sweet, patient with kids, fun, and just radiate light! There's different class options based on age. There's a great playground and outdoor space that the preschool is able to utilize as well!

My oldest daughter attended St. Francis Creche for two years and my youngest is in her third year…read moreat the school. I could not be happier about the quality of the program. We attended two other preschools in the area prior to moving to Great Falls and ending up at Creche. I can say without hesitation that Creche offers the perfect balance of hand's on learning combined with an emphasis on learning through play. The teachers are warm, nurturing and collaborative. My daughter struggles sometimes with emotional regulation. I speak with her teacher regularly about her progress. We share strategies and observations and have teamed together to collaborate on her success. In addition to the positive overall learning environment, Creche offers a strong sense of community for the parents, which is unique. The school sponsors social activities throughout the year and the parents have many opportunities to get to know each other, which is beneficial to the kids. My older daughter left well prepared for kindergarten and I have no doubt that my younger daughter will be as well.

This place is always causing a significant traffic back up for the surrounding area. There is…read moreconstantly a quarter to half mile line of cars that are always delayed because the school needs its own separate traffic up. They really need to figure out a better way.

They failed during Covid. Kids for the same non existing distance learning as kids in FCPS this…read morepast spring. A lot of other moms have pulled their kids and switched to other private schools. It's costs too much money for what you get. Their administration is a joke too. It took me a week to get ahold of someone in admissions office, I tried calling, I tried emailing, I left multiple voicemails. I understand you are busy, and might be understaffed ( which is surprising for private school) but it's just simply rude to ignore parents like that.

"Mama, why do they have stay at home days?", my son, a kindergartner at the WWS asked me. In his…read moreopinion, eliminating stay at home days is the only improvement his school needs. I could not agree more, but I'd still have stay at home days for my own selfish reasons. Here is a sample conversation at the end of a typical day: Me: What did you do today? My son: Played, played, and played. Me: What did you learn today? My son: Nothing. But I love my teacher so much. Me: Why do you love your teacher so? My son: She rakes with me. For you folks who are unfamiliar with Waldorf schools, ask to check out books on Waldorf pedagogy at the school library, turn off the TV, and buy your kid a leaf rake next time he asks for a new toy. For my savvy readers, WWS is a fantastic community of likeminded individuals who will make your kid's childhood and adolescent years an epic experience of play, work, love and passion. Stay at home days are overrated anyway: school days are so much cooler! Cheers!

Our daughter has thrived at the Washington Waldorf School since joining the first grade in the Fall…read moreof 2020. The educational experience offered by WWS has nurtured all aspects of our daughter's life and personality. The emphasis that WWS places on skills beyond basic reading, writing and arithmetic has been critical to her growth as a person and increased confidence in herself and abilities (both mental and physical). The basic curriculum is certainly taught - and taught well - but the use of movement, arts and crafts, music, and outdoor activities to teach and enrich has made all the difference. WWS's guiding principle is the education of the whole person; as our daughter experiences the highs and lows of life, we feel this will serve her well. We are excited to watch our daughter's progress as she continues her education at WWS.

My daughter goes here. Its a very small school for what I'm used to in this area. The cafeteria…read moredoubles as the auditorium and, I believe, the gym. The admins and teachers all seem wonderfully pleasant, and the kids that leave in the afternoon when I go to pick up mine all seem very happy. The assistant principal is especially sweet; I speak to her briefly most mornings. The school does seem a bit iffy on extracurricular activities. There are some; my daughter is currently in an after school art program. However, availability seems to be intricately tied to the husband/wife led PTO's funding and approval. This seems to lead to a lot of talking about activities, but little response when asked for details. We tried to volunteer for a host of activitiesast year, but never heard back. Perhaps if we went to more PTO meetings, that might change, but the one I did go to left me feeling as though the open policy was one of "come in and see how we do things," rather than "come in and participate." I don't know how common this is. We had PTAs when I grew up. Still, the school itself shows a lot of promise. I'm pleased as punch that they still provide art, music, and PE in this day and age. I feel safe sending my daughter in each morning, and even try to volunteer whenever I can.

I attended this school as a young girl and sent my three sons there as well. It was a wonderful…read moreexperience and I highly recommend this school.

Not what you'd expect from a private school…read more Most teachers at the school are public school teachers in Germany that come here to teach form a few years. This doesn't mean that they're bad teachers, but not what you expect from a private school. They will only do what is required and nothing more. During Covid my daughter's teachers would sometimes not show up to zoom classes. The cafeteria food is bad. One example is a baked potato with sour cream, that's it! Upon questioning the menu myself the reply was we'll look into it but never heard back. The air conditioner is always full blast having my kids wear a jacket in class during the warm months. When asked about it they said it's the way it is. The computers are old and outdated. Administration seemed helpful and friendly until you need help with a serious situation. Some children had a hard time with online classes and weren't doing as well as they were prior to covid, some teachers did not care and graded them as they always had even though the principal assured the parents that they wouldn't. When questioning the teachers they told us they weren't told or others said they were, but clearly not. The seniors (2021) had a problem with the travel agency with the money a teacher paid ahead of time before Covid for a trip to San Francisco. Instead of helping them get the money back they were told to let the money go. Even when parents got involved! They did end up going on a trip to West Virginia for 2 nights on a bus and paid almost the same amount that the 5 days in San Francisco would have costs!!!This is including airfare. The kids worked hard to save money for the trip and were shamelessly robbed by the agency. Several staff members literally told the parents to let the money go and one staff member was even rude and yelled when asked for support in the matter. I cloud go on and on but the idea of the non-supporting staff is clear. I do want to mention that one teacher did go above and beyond his responsibilities, Herr Tack. Sadly he left to Germany this Summer. My daughter and the other children will surely miss him. Had we had more choices than just this school we would have sent out kids elsewhere.