Our youngest was enrolled from age 3 to 4.5 years old (until the start of TK), and our 1st grader would drop in sometimes when school was closed. The Schoolhouse feels like a second home, and the teachers create a fun and loving environment for our children. Structured activities and interactions with other children of different ages aided our child with developing social skills that made the transition to elementary school easy. Music, dramatic play, and water days in the summer were favorites. We are extremely grateful to have found a tight-knit family daycare and will miss Julie, Teresa, and Longshi! read more

We have two children at this daycare -- a 3.5 y.o. and a 9 month old. Both of them started when they were about 4 months old. What we love about the Schoolhouse is that they treat our little ones like we are all family. The teachers are very loving and have been with us through many of my toddler's milestones, and even helped us navigate these transitions as new parents. They emphasize learning through creative play, and they also have structures and routines in place to give our little ones the consistency they need. They have routines for each day of the week, including Art Day which is where my daughter made these pieces. We couldn't imagine our children being anywhere else for this critical period of their lives. read more

Juls Schoolhouse - Child Care & Day Care Near Me - San Leandro, California

Fantastic daycare! My daughter started at Juls when she was 7 months and is now 15 months. At Juls, she experienced all her major milestones and learned to socialize with other kids! My daughter loves the teachers -Ms. Julie, Ms. Teresa, Ms. Longshi. At first, she would cry when we dropped her off, but the schoolhouse quickly became her second home. She would run inside as soon as we dropped her off and didn't want to leave in the afternoon. Sadly, we had to move to another city, otherwise we would have definitely stayed until it was time for pre-K. Highly recommend to any family looking for a small, tight-knit family daycare. Especially recommend for infant families. I was super nervous sending my daughter at 7 months after she had only been in the care of family, but looking back, would have started her even earlier! Thank you Juls ! read more

Our family has been at schoolhouse since 2019 when our son was 4 months old. We started at the schoolhouse in San Leandro, then moved to the Hayward location when that opened in 2022. Our daughter also attends schoolhouse and we've really appreciated that the kids have been able to spend their weekdays together in one big space (it's bittersweet to see this change soon when our son heads off to kindergarten). Both schoolhouse locations are tight-knit communities and have trul been home-away-from-home, nurturing places for our kids at all stages of their development. Teachers Theresa, Mhalo, Longshi, and Julie treat the kids like their own, and encourage both social and academic skills through an enriched play-based curriculum. As the kids get older they are also given leadership opportunities with the younger children, and I know that schoolhouse is a big reason why our kids are caring and empathic - they've had wonderful role models in the teachers and older kids at schoolhouse. Julie also understands child development really well and is an excellent resource and sounding board when we've had questions about certain behavior. We feel really fortunate that we found schoolhouse and highly recommend it - also happy to chat 1x1 if you have questions. read more

When I was looking for a daycare for my two year old, I found Julie's place and my gut instantly told me this was the place. It felt like a smooth transition for myself and my child as it had a very home cozy feeling. As an educator, my primary focus was to find a place that my child could feel emotionally safe and continue to engage in creative play and exploration. Julie provides this and more! She has theme days of sharing day, cooking day, music day, dress up day, pj day, water playing games, etc. This created structure and routine for my child which allowed for him to further feel safe as he knew what to expect. My husband at times didn't like that there was more focus on academics, like worksheets, alphabet and numbers-and this is understandable. However, our son who just finished his first grade year is reading novel books and now my husband understands that creative play and emotional learning are the foundation of a child's academic success! I knew this at the time and that's why I went with Julie. I hope you do too! Julie's approach to behavior is also what I truly appreciated. Her years of expertise and knowledge on child development allowed for my child to be able to practice identifying different feelings and express what his needs were. She made sure every child was seen and heard. Her rules if I remember were simple - keep yourself safe, friends safe and toys safe. I strongly feel that Julie laid a strong foundation for my children (my daughter joined when she was two as well. My son was with Julie until he was almost 6). I am so grateful for Julie and her dedicated team. My kids often share their memories with me and how much they miss Teacher Julie. Things to know: - you pack your own lunch - hours when I was there were from 7:30am to 5:30pm making this super convenient for working parents - she is such a down to earth person! read more

Jul's Schoolhouse is an incredibly special place where every child is seen and appreciated for being themselves. I am grateful for the two magical years my family has been part of Jul's Schoolhouse community. The Teachers are all highly trained, with certifications in ­­­early childhood learning and more than 25 years of experience working with children. Julie has a Master Teacher Permit in Child Development through the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and it shows! Every activity has a purpose, from building fine motor skills by making Cheerios bracelets, to cultivating generosity and gratitude by sharing snacks. I like that some activities bring the toddlers and pre-school kids together for mixed age play, while other activities are targeted to each age group. Discipline at the School House emphasizes redirection, communication, mindfulness, and connection. Each day has a theme of exploration, which provides variety and keeps the School House friends engaged. Parents get a calendar that lays out the daily themes and special events for the month. Jul's School House uses an "emergent curriculum" model, meaning that the kids' interests drive learning and exploration. Right now, Schoolhouse friends are engrossed by springtime: earthworms, clover, seeds, and flowers. Julie turned their interest into an exploratory Nature Day each Friday. Magnifying glasses and bug jars in hand, the kids are out there observing, using their senses, and learning by following their curiosity. When I first visited Jul's Schoolhouse, I was impressed that Julie and the Teachers create a space where the kids can be safe AND energetic. Limits are clearly articulated around safe indoor and outdoor play. Those limits provide guardrails, not blockades against play. The space feels alive with little kid energy and joy. They skip, wiggle, dig, jump, toss, hop, dance, and run. That has been amazing for my energetic kid. She is happy and tired at the end of the school day. Creating a developmentally engaging place for children to explore the world with friends is what Jul's Schoolhouse is all about. We've loved being part of Jul's Schoolhouse community! read more

My son has been with Julie for 6 months and I could not be happier. I know with Julie and her assistants that he is loved, cared for, and developing along with his peers in a highly social environment. He most often doesn't want to leave when I pick him up! The price feels reasonable for the Bay Area and I feel so lucky we are able to have our first child learning from Julie! read more

Jullie has been providing loving, nurturing, and educational play-based care for my 2 kids since they were 8 months old. My son left Jullie's care when he went to kindergarten last year better prepared than his entire class, while my daughter is still learning from Jullie every day. I met Jullie while she was the center director at a wonderful child care center with two-dozen children, and my kids learned from other teachers also, but Jullie was the heart of that operation. Now she has progressed to start their own home-based child care center. Why am I using both "home" and "center" in describing this place? Because Jul's Schoolhouse is both: a home-based child care with the structured program that I've only found at a center-type child care. This is so, so much better than your average child care. My daughter is currently in Jullie's kindergarten prep program. Not only is she learning how to read, write and count, she's learning patience, respect, conflict resolution... all of which are play-based, so they're a whole lot of fun. I mean, what else but fun would play-based instruction be? It's PLAY based. And, I love the fact that Jullie has an unlimited amount of hugs to give, because other caregivers don't realize that hugs cure the whole being far better than sugar. I asked myself these questions when looking to give a "happy childhood" to my kids, so the following test might help you, too. Would you rather: -- 1a) read about a variety of vegetables in a book, or -- 1b) plant, tend, harvest and eat the vegetables in the organic garden? -- 2a) see in a book how colors are mixed to form new colors, or -- 2b) experiment by painting a large mural with brushes, and your hands and feet? -- 3a) watch a program with song and dance, or -- 3b) sing and dance yourself to different types of music (yes, pop also)? Which would you want your child to experience? I wanted the "b" option for my kids, so that's why I put my daughter under Jullie's care. Seeing my daughter all happy and sometimes dirty proves to me that she's had a fully enjoyable day while I slave away at work. There's a sand box in the back yard, water play when it's hot out (yes, kids wear sunscreen), home-made playdough made from flour, salt and water, cooking projects, music appreciation, reading stories from many cultures...the list goes on and on. The infant teacher who raised my kids (oh yes, raise she did) visits Juls because she misses all the kids she used to care for. Dianna is so patient and loving that the babies are always happy and therefore well-behaved around her. Dianna's love, attention and understanding of babies certainly made my extremely shy son feel safe when he first went under her care as an infant. Dianna firmly believes in caring for infants based on the infant's own schedule and personality. There is no "crying it out" here. (Sorry to those parents who want their kids to cry it out.) She supports your nursing schedule as well as bottle-feeding, supportive of what you the parent want for your baby. She also taught my kids how to play nice and how to eat with utensils. (Side note: Take my advice to steer clear of any child care place with enough mechanical swings for each infant or tells you that all their infants follow the same schedule (you know who you are!). They use the swings at high speeds to make the infants dizzy to force them to sleep instead of watching for signs of hunger or sleepiness like Dianna does. Dianna takes care of and interacts with the babies.) And if you've read this far in this review, you're probably wondering, "Where's the TV?" It rarely gets used; maybe once a MONTH for about 1 hour during the rainy season; never during the sunny season. Unheard of? But it's true. More time for real fun! I was originally adamant about not putting my kids into a home child care facility, which is why I enrolled them in the child care center where Jullie and Dianna used to work, but that was because at that time, none of the less expensive home child care places I visited met my requirements. Juls schoolhouse provides a positive, healthy, large enough environment for my daughter to grow. As a parent who wants to be highly involved with my kid's day but has to work, I absolutely love the open-door policy that allows me to drop by when I find some time during the day, as long as I'm not disruptive. Yet, even with this open door policy, I trust Jullie to keep my daughter safe, knowing that no stranger can waltz in and convince her to release my daughter. Closing comments (finally!!): snacks are provided, but not meals. At places that provide meals, a lot of the food is processed junk food anyway, so I want to prepare my child's meals and make sure she eats what I prepared. If she's going to eat junk food, I, the mom, should be the one to give it to her! I also pack her snacks because she's allergic to dairy. Though, the harvest from the garden sure gets eaten! read more

Jullie is the best day care provider around! If you are looking for day care in the San Leandro area, please go and check her family day care out. I have been lucky enough to have her care for my two girls full-time for the past several years. She has been the director of day care center for many years before opening her own family day care. Jullie is a wonderful person and has raised two girls of her own that are now school-aged and are also very sweet and kind, just like their mom. My kids have so much fun at Jullie's day care, while learning so much. She is great at sending me updates during the day and emailing pictures whenever she has a minute. My daughter is so well prepared for kindergarten after her years with Jullie. I highly recommend Juls Schoolhouse, you can't find a better, more personalized, safe, fun, day care for your young children in the area (i have searched!) read more

We love Julie's! Our kids have been there since our son was 2.5 and daughter just 4 months. Now the older is getting ready for kindergarten. I can truly say that Juls is a second home for them. They learn something new daily and have much fun with friends. The teachers all truly care for the well being of the kids and the other families all care for each other as well. For us this has been the best choice outside of staying home with the kids ourselves. read more

Jullies schoolhouse is a home away from home for my kids. Jullie has a natural ability with children. The kids inhale an abundance of early academics, exploration, socialization, problem solving, confidence building, laughing, singing, and so much more in a comfortable home environment. Jullies 15+ years experience in early childhood development is displayed by aiding all her children to achieve their milestones. My kids (4 yr & 21 months) look forward to going to school everyday. Jullie has helped us raise our kids for over 3 years now and words cannot describe how amazing she has been with our children. read more

You could find no better place for your child to grow and thrive than Jul's Schoolhouse. Julie and her staff are highly trained and have a great deal of experience. Their knowledge of child development and philosophy of providing opportunities for discovery are what set this place apart. Not only are days themed (Share Day, Art Day, Music and Movement Day, Dramatic Play Day, Exploring Nature Day) to cultivate skills, encourage exploration, and foster positive relationships, but the activities respond to student interests and what's going on in nature. If it's rainy, they'll go on a rain walk to explore what nature offers on a rainy day. If it's sunny, there are water activities in the backyard. If students like particular music or dancing, that becomes part of the routine. While some activities are geared toward certain ages, all the kids--babies to pre-K--spend time together and become good friends. The rules about how you treat others and behavioral limits are clearly in place here to reinforce these relationships. The result is that the Schoolhouse is alive with energy, and families are made part of the adventure. The community of parents, children, and staff feel like family. My daughter is more caring, considerate, and curious because of the years she has spent at Jul's Schoolhouse. read more

Just a quick update. Since I gave a detail review in Diana's care, I feel obligated to update on it that Diana is no longer working there, but the care and quality are still the same with the teachers there. Now I have my second on under their care. Can't be happier! read more

We were very picky with trying to locate a daycare provider for our first born....that was 6 years ago. Lots of precious moments shared and now our second is also attending Juls Schoolhouse. Everyone that works there was a previous care giver (Mhalo, Diana, Teresa, May) or director (Julie) from a larger corporate driven day care....which means lots of extensive training, full background checks and professionalism. These women have started their own business and the care provided to the kids improved even more. Better ratio than what is required. More personal attention to the kids and parents. Weekly fieldtrips (library, park, beach, marina) for the older kids and less red tape from corporate. Each person has at least 10 years of experience. Julie has moved to a nicer home that caters more to her business. It is recently remodelled and is very kid friendly (lots of open space, not seperated by walls). Easier to supervise the kids since they are all within line of sight. Most if not all the boxes were checked off, even for picky parents like us. Best thing to do is to check it out, she is off of Zelma St in San Leandro. read more

There are openings for pre-schoolers. Jul's Schoolhouse is a great place. She does the same things that a center does; and they go on field trips too. They have a Share Day, Cooking Day, Music & Movement Day, Park Day/Library Day, and a Water Fun Day (which turns into Pajama Day in the winter). They do a lot of art projects, and spend a lot of time outside. They have circle time twice a day. read more

My 2-year old has been going to Jul's Schoolhouse since she was 5 months old. I feel so fortunate to have found a place as caring and warm as Schoolhouse. She also has grown in ways I would have never thought of, and I feel like Schoolhouse has played a big role in all the things she can do. Especially all the songs she sings (from circle time, I've learned), her interest in cooking, and how she puts her things away when she's done. She sure didn't learn that from me! Overall, I highly recommend anyone looking for child care around San Leandro to take a serious look at Jul's Schoolhouse (kids often stay until kindergarten). It's run out of a house with three professionally trained staff. My newborn will be joining his big sister there when he's ready. They moved last year so their number has changed from what's listed here on yelp 510 969 5053. read more

My daughter has been going to Juls since she was 6 months old and is now 1 year old. She has thrived so much in this daycare. I always feel like I'm bragging when I tell people about our daycare situation but it really is the best daycare. When we were first looking ,we searched many daycares, large corporate daycare's and also in-home daycares. We also interviewed with some nannies. The first 5 minutes we were at Juls we knew it was the place for us. The thing about Juls schoolhouse is that it's the best of both worlds. You have structure: they log your child's naps, meals and diapers, they put out a monthly schedule, and have parent/teacher conferences. On the other hand it feels like a family. Every year there's a potluck at the house to meet the staff and other family, all the teachers know your child's individual need. Julie is always happy to answer my first time mom questions and her advice is so helpful. She is so knowledgeable and easy going. Whenever my daughter is dropped off she quickly waves goodbye to me and is happy to be there. When I pick her up she is always happy and well rested. We really couldn't ask for a better daycare! read more