Our daughter is in Kindergarten with Ms. Perez and Ms. Umanani, and we absolutely love Challenger…read moreSchool. The teachers do a fantastic job of tailoring their approach to kids with different personalities, making learning both highly effective and incredibly fun. Our daughter loves everyone there, from her classroom teachers and Extended Care staff to the administrators. It is a wonderful, supportive community where kids truly thrive!

I am delighted to recommend Challenger School - Middlefield to any parent seeking an academic and…read morecaring environment for their child. My child attended Preschool since he was 3 years old and our experience has been nothing short of outstanding. The teachers ( Miss Jia and Miss Aboli) are compassionate, patient, and highly skilled in early childhood education. The curriculum is a perfect blend of academic learning, social development, and creative play, all within a safe and nurturing environment. Since attending Challenger, my son has grown in confidence, developed important social skills, and discovered a love for learning. I am grateful for the wonderful foundation the Preschool has provided, and I highly recommend them to any family.

I know this school is built for people with learning disabilities and ASD, but I feel like the…read morestudents here don't reach their full potential. This is not necessarily the faculty's fault, but I think the curriculum here is way too slow and dumbed down for students. My daughter struggled in this school because it was too slow for her, and she was way ahead of her classmates despite having ASD. The accommodations were great, but I believe the school didn't provide my daughter education she actually learned. She would come home and talk about how much she played on an iPad or a device, which is just unacceptable. Why are kids playing video games in class? This is school, they need to be learning different subjects. My kid talked about how their classmates were playing mobile games on their iPads that they brought to school. I think this school can be better if they focused more on pushing kids beyond what is expected, because if we keep holding our children's hands throughout life because they have autism, it invalidates that people with ASD are actually extremely capable of succeeding. I pulled my daughter out of this school, and I believe it was the best decision. She is now an undergraduate and researcher at the University of California, and I notice that no one from Hope Technology school attends the University of California, nor do any of the staff members graduate from there.

Out son had a wonderful experience at HTS that helped prepare him for public high school…read more Incredibly dedicated staff.

I am shocked this school hasn't been reviewed yet. It's been around for over 20 years and they…read morereally are such a gem. Located off Oregon exp- it's in the same building as the preschool heads up but completely separate. It is true Montessori with differentiated learning, one 6th grader taking trig, and incredibly kind teachers. Yes it is small- has three sections. 1/2 grade, 3/4/5 grade and middle school which is new. That being said the teacher ratio is more like 1:5. Their science was impressive too. They were working on strawberry dna- for 1st graders. Classes are about 7-10 kids and it's year round or 10month option. So much more reasonable than other schools. About $2000-2100 a month including after care. Plus they teach Spanish, Mandarin and art and music. No choices- all subjects! Their website does not do the school justice. The teachers- especially raji- really love the kids and know what they are doing. Great place where kids don't bully and all the kids work with each other.

My child and her friend attended the WriteNow! summer writing camp focused on "creative" writing…read more The teacher Chuck Bernstein, who is also president of the Early Learning Institute at the school, was harsh and punitive to both kids as well as to other students in the class if they didn't do exactly what they were told, down to including very specific story elements in their stories. Even if they did do the assigned writing, but finished early and then worked on something else, they got in trouble - Chuck crumpled one of their poems and nearly threw it away because he thought they were off-task, rather than asking. Every day he had students present at the end of class, always running overtime into pickup time, and then angrily shushed both students and parents who made ANY noise (even just entering at the door, whispers, or rustling papers). An easy fix would be to do these presentations earlier so they didn't run over-time, especially for parents picking up multiple kids at different camps or otherwise on a tight schedule - but he did not react well to this feedback. On the first day of the program, the person at the front also was angry that we were dropping off at the time we did, even though we had paid for the before-care. On the second day they had a sheet of who had before-care and after-care, but did not on the first day. But to get angry at us for dropping off, rather than asking about before-care, is also baffling. The program's flyer boasted that kids would love writing after this. My child went in loving writing and came out disliking it much more than previously, and her friend started out hating writing and ended the same. Since Chuck also teaches at the school, I can only imagine that this harsh approach is one he takes with full-time students during the year, too. We will certainly never return.

I cannot speak highly enough of Los Altos Christian School and the difference it has made in our…read morefamily. Both of our children transferred to LACS in the middle of the school year, and we saw a positive difference very quickly. One of our children needed significant learning support after several difficult academic years, including the impact of remote learning during the pandemic. Despite receiving support through an IEP in public school, he had fallen behind academically and lost much of his confidence. When he joined the Learning Support Program at LACS, the change was remarkable. The difference between his experience before and after coming to LACS felt like night and day. With smaller classes, individualized support, encouragement, and teachers who truly took the time to understand how he learned, we began seeing progress almost immediately. His confidence grew, his academics improved dramatically, and despite transferring in the middle of the school year, he was able to finish that first year strong. By the time he graduated from LACS, the child who had once struggled so much academically had become a confident and successful student. He graduated with multiple awards, an achievement certificate, and a scholarship. Seeing how far he had come was incredibly meaningful to our family and showed us what can happen when a child receives the right support, encouragement, and opportunities. Our other child came to LACS with very different academic needs. He had been an above-average student in public school before the pandemic and is naturally a high achiever. LACS helped him regain his academic momentum and continue to thrive academically, making the Principal's Honor Roll--the school's highest academic recognition for students earning a 4.0 or above--multiple times, along with receiving several other academic awards and recognitions. Seeing him achieve so much and regain his confidence has been incredibly encouraging for our whole family. One of the things I appreciate most about LACS is that it can be a wonderful environment for different kinds of learners. Our two children had very different academic needs, yet both were able to grow and succeed. Whether a student needs additional learning support or is a high-achieving student ready for greater challenges, our experience has been that the teachers take the time to know each child individually and help them reach their potential. The teachers, faculty, and staff genuinely care about each child and family. Whenever we have brought forward a concern or request, we have felt heard and taken seriously. The faculty and staff have gone above and beyond to support not only our children but our entire family. LACS has also given our children so much more than academics. They have had opportunities to participate in music, leadership, sports, and many extracurricular activities, build wonderful and lasting friendships, and experience amazing field trips and educational travel, including Washington, D.C., and the East Coast. There are so many opportunities for students to discover their interests, develop their gifts, try new things, and become involved in their school community. We have also really enjoyed the wonderful school and community events throughout the year. LACS creates many opportunities for families to be involved and get to know one another. Parents have many opportunities to volunteer and chaperone field trips, which has allowed us to be part of some of our children's experiences and create special memories alongside them. The sense of community among students, parents, teachers, and staff is something we truly value. Most importantly for our family, LACS is Christ-centered. As a Christian parent, I deeply value a school where faith is not simply another subject but is woven into the students' education, relationships, character development, and everyday life. At the same time, families from different backgrounds are welcomed, which contributes to the warm and caring community we have experienced. Choosing LACS has been one of the best educational decisions we have made for our children, and we only wish we had made the move sooner. LACS has truly been such a blessing to our family. I am incredibly grateful for the teachers, staff, programs, opportunities, friendships, and loving Christian community that have helped both of our children grow academically, personally, and spiritually. I wholeheartedly recommend Los Altos Christian School to families looking for strong academics, individualized attention, wonderful opportunities for children and families to get involved, a caring community, and a Christ-centered education.

Negative 100 stars. This was an extremely negative experience for our family. My daughter was…read moreverbally and emotionally mistreated by teachers on campus, and she still remembers specific incidents to this day. The preschool principal did nothing to support the situation. When we raised our concerns, the preschool administration or school leadership took our daughter's wellbeing seriously. Instead of feeling heard and supported, we felt there were attempts to minimize what happened and pressure us to sign documents restricting us from speaking publicly about our experience which we refused. For a school that identifies as Christian, we expected compassion, accountability, honesty, and genuine concern for children. Unfortunately, that was not our experience. I am sharing this because parents deserve to know about serious concerns before deciding where to place their children. I would never want another child or family to go through what ours did.

Excellent school. Maria and all teachers are truly wonderful educators. It is a great environment…read morefor kids to learn, and develop socially and emotionally.

Our 4th grader started this year at Sequoia Montessori and we could not be happier. He gets to…read morelearn at his own pace and loves the Montessori method of independence and guidance. The mixed age classroom is so wonderful to see and he thrives with the kids from different ages. We also do t have to deal with all the bureaucratic hassle prevalent at public schools and get individualized attention for Maria, the amazing founder and lead guide of the school.

We've had such a positive experience with Living Wisdom School. From the beginning, our family was…read morewelcomed with warmth and genuine care, and our son transitioned from public school far more smoothly than we could have hoped. He quickly felt included, made friends easily and has truly enjoyed going to school each day. What stands out most is the balance between strong academics and personal growth. The students are not only challenged academically, but also given practical tools to build confidence, emotional awareness, responsibility, focus, and resilience that they can carry with them throughout life. The teachers and staff are thoughtful, engaged, and clearly care deeply about each child as an individual. We've also been impressed by the sense of community throughout the school. It feels supportive, intentional, and uplifting for both students and parents. We're very grateful to have found a school environment that nurtures individuality, creativity, well-being and a genuine love of learning alongside academics.

The schools focus on holistic education shaped our sons personality in ways that we were really…read moresurprised and happy. The curriculum, method of teaching and even small things like starting the day with a meditation calms the kids to drive more focus. The annual play is a great exercise in getting kids to be more independent and work together as a team on something that is larger than themselves. Would highly recommend!

We are blown away by our shadow day/application experience at this school…read more First of all, let me say that gaining entry into private schools on the peninsula in the Bay Area is not for the faint of heart. The process with all of these schools has been completely grueling overall, so I have nothing but love and deep appreciation for the schools who met us with kindness and handled our family situation with care. This school is a phenomenal choice. After struggling initially with a couple of private schools, we steeled ourselves and made it our mission to engage wholeheartedly in the process. We applied to five top notch schools and our daughter got into all five of them! It can be done. Alongside one other school, Waldorf was tied as top choice. The teacher moves through all grades with the class until 8th, and wow--Mrs Sykes is a quintessential teacher!! The arts program is so powerful and strong, and kids emerge deeply talented and capable. Childhood is kept intact, and academics are rigorous. This school produces well-rounded humans, no doubt. It was painful to decline the offer, but we ultimately decided that another school fit our family's current journey slightly better. Marginally. Finally, I want to acknowledge Jaime in the admissions office. She was so responsive, kind, knowledgeable, and passionate! I wish I knew the name of the other two women we interacted with--one beautiful human behind the desk in the front office, and another who sat through our parent interview. Again, simply lovely humans. I am including he body of the email we received in response to declining. This is such a classy, humble, kindhearted, and generous way to respond. I'm sad to say that we now know firsthand that this is not the way that all private schools in this area treat people--not even close. We are so grateful! Please check out Waldorf!

Our family has had a wonderful experience at Waldorf School of the Peninsula. My son started in…read moreNursery and is now in 5th grade, and we're planning for him to continue all the way through 12th grade--that's how much we value this school. He genuinely loves going to school every day, which says so much. The teachers truly care about the students in front of them--not just academically, but as whole human beings. They are attentive to each child's development and also thoughtful about the class dynamic as a whole, creating a supportive and nurturing environment. The curriculum is incredibly rich and diverse. From math and English to music, gardening, handwork, world languages, arts, and games, the education is well-rounded and engaging. It fosters creativity, critical thinking, and a real love of learning. We feel very grateful to be part of such a warm and inspiring community and highly recommend WSP to families looking for an education that nurtures both the mind and the heart.

Our daughter has been at Stratford for the past 2 years, and we truly could not have asked for a…read morebetter early learning experience. Starting preschool at just 2.5 years old was emotional for us as parents, but from day one we felt reassured that our daughter was in caring and capable hands. The love, patience, and attention shown to the children every day made a huge difference in helping her feel safe, confident, and excited to learn. Over these two years, we have seen tremendous growth in her communication, confidence, social skills, and curiosity. We especially appreciate the thoughtful guidance during parent-teacher conferences, where we received valuable feedback on her strengths, areas to support at home, and advice through important transitions like Preschool, Pre-K, and TK. That partnership and support meant a lot to us as parents. We also want to sincerely thank Ms. Ruchi for the warmth, kindness, and positive energy she has brought to the classroom over the past 6 months. Our daughter always speaks so happily about her, and it is clear how much she genuinely cares for the children. What we love most about Stratford is how much effort the school puts into creating meaningful experiences for the kids. From classroom activities and celebrations to performances and special events, every detail helps build confidence, creativity, and joy in learning. Watching our daughter proudly participate in performances and come home excited about school has been incredibly special for our family. We are deeply grateful to the teachers and staff for creating such a nurturing and supportive environment during these important early years.

Update: Over a Year Later…read more Now that we have been at Stratford for over a year, we deeply appreciate the incredible support the school has provided to our kids' development and growth. When our older daughter transitioned from public school, there was quite a learning curve. She initially found the homework challenging, but her teachers were incredibly flexible and accommodating, giving her the extra time she needed and allowing her to write in print while she was still learning cursive. Now in fifth grade, she finds her workload easy to manage, is properly challenged academically, and feels completely comfortable in class. What truly set Stratford apart for her, though, was the community support. Her homeroom teacher, Mrs. Broke, actually went to see her dance competition live, while her classroom watched the livestream! This gave her tremendous courage and recognition. Over time, that sense of belonging helped her get so much more comfortable making friends, and she genuinely enjoys all her time at school. Given her fantastic experience, we transferred our younger daughter from public school over to Stratford this year. She is in Mr. Stokes' class, and he is such a warm, wonderful teacher. He helped ease her transition perfectly. She has blended right in, made friends, participates easily in class, and is having a blast. Mr. Stokes even noticed what a great writer she is and has been recommending ways to continue challenging her, including proposing that she participate in a writing competition. We feel so well supported by the teachers and the entire leadership team. It is a very close-knit, nurturing community. Recently, my kids started their own business at a children's business fair, and friends helped send out business flyers and went to the fair to support their business. The Head of School, Mrs. M, gave my daughter wonderful encouragement that really built her confidence for her first big event. My kids truly feel a sense of belonging there. Stratford strikes the perfect balance of academic rigor and genuine, kind community support.