My daughter attended this school when they had a middle school offering…read more The idea of sending her to a huge public middle school was just not an option. I'm *so* glad we found Pacific Northwest Academy.. From Fall 2003 until Spring 2006 my daughter and I were completely embraced by the PNA "family'. The class sizes were very small - no more than 10 or 12 to a class. Also, while not a religious school the concept of community service is very highly regarded. I believe attending this school helped my daughter immensely in her highschool years.

Here is a haiku about Puddletown: Perfect, wonderful…read more and exciting just as well you should join right now! I joke, but it really is an amazing school. I have attended for 9 years and the community, the experiences and the curriculum are all great. Please enroll in the middle school program there so I am not a lonely 8th grader next year... - A Puddletown Student

My daughter joined the Elementary program at age 6 after enjoying several years at another…read moreMontessori preschool. The transition was very smooth and now in her 3rd year there, she's still doing wonderfully. The community (parents, administration, teachers, support staff) are all relaxed and intelligent people that clearly love and value children. The Montessori philosophy and learning environments are authentic and beloved by the children. There's plenty of interaction between the children and the outdoors, with fun interactive garden experiences and an interesting outdoor play area. Tuition is the same as most other Montessori schools, and they offer before and after care, and plenty of opportunities for parents to volunteer. Good times!

A lot of hype and hard sell about their nature connection and environmental stewardship program…read morewith little substance to backing up.

My son has been with Swallowtail since kindergarten and is now in the 7th grade and I highly…read morerecommend it to other parents. The curriculum prepares children for both future academic and social challenges and the environmental education (there is an additional 26-acre farm campus) promotes great responsibility. Highlights include: -Class sizes average 16 students. -The main teacher generally stays with their class from 1st-8th grade. -Media/corporate/commercial-free environment. -No Common Core or standardized testing. -Lots of outside time for every grade level -Kids that like going to school and thrive! This is a well rounded educational experience that helps develop sharp, motivated and emotionally strong young humans.

Best Mandarin immersion program in PORTLAND!!! From the very first day at three years old, the…read morechildren are immersed fully in Mandarin Chinese. They graduate fully bilingual and biliterate with so many doors open to them for the future. Before the age of 10 is critical to really developing fluency in any language. NWCA does a spectacular job of not only creating bilingual children, but also in developing the whole child to be generous, creative and critical thinkers. The principal and staff have extensive international experience in bilingual education bringing the best of all worlds to our children. Immersion education offers So many skills critical to tomorrow's world including cognitive flexibility, mental agility and creative problem-solving. Go check it out!

Both of my 4 year old and 6 year old son go to NWCA since Pre-school. This is the only Mandarin…read moreimmersion school that teaches everything in mandarin! Learning a language is not just about learning the language, but not only learn how to speak, write and listen as well as learn everything about the culture & history! NWCA definitely provides all of that all around unlike most of other mandarin immersion school that really only teaches kids how to speak. Both of my sons are very confident, caring , creative and critical thinking. They exceed in so many things/ways which I know for a fact NWCA's education/system has everything to do with it! And one more thing to point out, the teachers in NWCA are so attentive, competent & equal to all children! My kids never want to leave school when I go pick them up and that along should tell you sth, right?! Anyway, if you truly want your kids become bilingual (Mandarin-English), NWCA is absolutely your best option!!! Remanda Xiang

Between Leavenworth and Mount Angel, we in the Pacific Northwest are truly spoiled when it comes to…read moreBavarian towns and their assorted festivities. I am a tremendous fan of any town that embraces an unique identity, even for touristy reasons. Unlike Leavenworth, though, Mount Angel has a legitimate claim to its Bavarian roots, thanks in part to the Benedictine abbey atop the hill on the outskirts of town. But even more than that, Mount Angel has embraced the cuisine, music, culture and spirit of that beer-loving region half a world away, and we are all made the richer for it! In the "off-season", Mount Angel is a sleepy, out of the way village with rich heritage: it is the site of the aforementioned Benedictine abbey/monastery/seminary, a gorgeous Catholic cathedral, an enchanting Glockenspiel, and several other callbacks to its European roots. But during the festival months (mid-September, as well as Volksfest in the spring, a Christmas market, etc), the town swells by an order of magnitude, as myriad tourists from all over the region pour in, and myriad mugs and steins are poured into as well. Additionally, a handful of year-round shops and restaurants based in Mount Angel do the heavy lifting when it comes to the offering Oktoberfest essentials: Mount Angel Sausage Co, Touch of Bavaria, Angel Mountain Christmas, and the always exceptional (and recently revived from the dead) Glockenspiel restaurant! If you need a bratwurst, a dirndl, and/or some ornaments for the holiday season now looming on the horizon, these should be your erste wahl! I love this town, and I'm so very thankful that it's only a short hour's drive away from home (FAR more accessible than Leavenworth!). There's a lot more to Mount Angel than its Oktoberfest (although it truly is the best around!), and worth a visit just about any time of the year. This is a community that revels in its heritage, and celebrates in style (and plenty of beer), as often as possible. What's not to love?

This is a great little town. I have so many memories here. School, friends, Oktoberfest, swimming…read morelessons, my parents restaurant, graduation, the abbey, farming, and so on. All the years of growing up and now so many years being away. This is a great little town to visit. The Catholic church is at the center of town and you can't miss it. The catholic priests live at the abbey at the top of the hill. Every year they celebrate the harvest by having an Oktoberfest. Its a great celebration of food and fun. If you have a chance to visit Mt. Angel, you should. It's not very big. It won't take long to visit, but its well worth the time.

Sharing our response to the denied acceptance email received pertaining to our son. Our daughter…read morewas accepted. We are completely caught off guard and very disappointed to hear you have decided not to accept Henri. After reading through the numerous emails from TPMS there was NEVER any information that his acceptance was pending a school tour. In addition to the emails, we specifically discussed our situation with Jessica during the tour and I followed up with telephone calls after. Jessica reassured us TPMS had children similar to Henri. We were worried about disappointing him and told her we did not want him to tour the classroom if there was a chance he would not be accepted. She assured us that it doesn't work that way and the tour was just for him to get familiar with the classroom and meet his teachers. I specifically told her I do not want to even apply if there was not room for both children. We had a secured/accepted a spot for Lillian at another Montessori school and had Henri on the waiting list, which we have turned down since receiving your "acceptance letter." It is too late in the school year to secure a spot for our children at another school. This decision is INCREDIBLY disruptive to our family and completely irresponsible per TPMS admissions staff. It is pathetic I had to email Braden to find out why we had not had any follow up after Henri's visit. It is also misleading Elisabeth did not indicate anything went wrong with his behavior during that visit. Her communication & demeanor with children and adults is lacking. Judging a 6 year old boy with special needs after observing him for 2 hours in a completely new environment full of strangers is unbelievable and inaccurate, and speaks volumes per your internal practices verses the montessori educational platform. Your policies should be clear that you don't accept children with an IEP or ADHD, to avoid wasting families time Lillian will not be attending TPMS. I HIGHLY suggest you take a look at your admission process and the way TPMS communicates with families. Because of your poor communication and decision our children will not be able to attend Montessori school in the fall. Considering our situation after much homework and clear communication on our part, we suggest TPMS advertises correctly and does't mislead people in the future as it's been a very disingenuous and incompetent experience that will greatly affect our family and our child's developmental plans. Parents are always going to be their children's biggest advocate and TPMS should be ashamed as your mission statement and admission process is severely flawed, and its obvious people should know the truth! In closing, I'm not looking forward to explaining to my son that he will not be attending the school we've been building up to be a great experience. He was greatly looking forward to the school & "new friends" and going to school with his little sister, both of which will not happen now.

After researching and visiting several Montessori schools in the city for a few years, we decided…read morein 2009 to send our daughter (at age 3) to Providence Montessori School. We love the guides, support staff and other families at the school for their genuine care and interest in children and for the overall school community. We live closer to another Montessori school on the West side but decided the commute was worth the reward of great care, education and community of Providence Montessori School. What I love about the school: *Low turnover rate of the school staff After having a daughter at another Montessori school where the staff turnover rate was high, it's wonderful to have the stability of having the same faces in the school and classroom for my kids. The staff are happy to be part of the school, and that shows through as an overall positive energy and focus in the kids. *Elementary Classes-availability and opportunity to continue the wonderful Montessori method of learning *Enrichment Programs & Holiday Camps Unlike some of the other schools in town, they have before and after school care on site with some of the same staff kids see during the day. Oh, and they have a dedicated Enrichment Director who constantly comes up with great ways to engage and entertain the students. I'm amazed at the creativity in projects and activities to keep kids' interest and the artistic, fun results contributed by the kids. *Involved Parent Community We have lots of opportunities to meet and get to know other families at the school: Parent night out, picnics at the playground, potlucks, Coffee Fridays (for parents to drink coffee, snack and chat), etc. The school has a Parent Advisory Board where families can come learn about what's going on with the school administration and have input in the operations and programs. *Large open green space as playground They have an amazing, large secure play area for the kids with a boat, a tree house, a garden and plenty of are to play games and run around. My daughter loves to lift up all the big rocks to look for insects and worms and climb on the tree house. *Indoor Gym space When the weather doesn't permit outdoor time, the kids have an indoor gym they can still play games and burn off some energy in an indoor gymnasium next door. *On-site after school programs Rotating classes of Spanish, Yoga, Soccer, Cooking, Violin to name a few *Cultural and Socioeconomic Diversity The school gives scholarship to about 12-15% of families throughout the year (fund raised through school auction) and tries very hard offer great education to as many types of families as possible. This was one of our main reasons for choosing Providence Montessori School. We wanted our children to have a diverse peer group as it is in the real world. These are some of my quick thoughts. I can't type as fast as I think or talk and believe this is enough info for families who are researching and thinking of schools for their precious little ones. Sincerely, Current Happy Providence Montessori Family