I've taken my 7 year old here for almost 3 years. They have a great before and after school program…read morethat transports him to and from Southdale. I like the summer program because he gets to go swimming, biking and on field trips. My two year old has went here since he was 8 weeks old. They have nice clean rooms that are full of fun colors and toys. The babies are separate from walking babies so they don't get hurt. They have a separate room for 1 year olds and another one for twos. That way the kids are on the same level. They have a schedule full of fun and learning. They are all very professional and the teachers are educated and well trained. I strongly recommend. One negative is that you have to enroll in auto pay and payment is deducted every Friday from your bank account.

This is by far the best daycare in Cedar Falls. NAYEC Accredited, QRS level 4 center. It has won…read moreBest of the Best on several occasions. All teachers are highly trained. Classrooms are structured with daily lesson plans by teachers. The staff are friendly and caring. Rooms are clean and well maintained. 2 of my children have attended this center.

Probably one of the best churches in Marshalltown. It is on the large side (maybe over 700…read moremembers?). Exciting sermons, in-depth bible study and sense of community. Comfortable atmosphere. Friendly people and staff. Just walk in and grab a cappucino and take a deep breath and feel at home. Wednesday night dinners and classes for the whole family. There really is something for every person, no matter your age or where you're at in your relationship with God. While hymns are sometimes used, worship music is usually very contemporary, some songs verge on being "rock" music. Something a little different each week. Very missional, bible-oriented. Pastor and staff really love the Lord and love serving the people. They really try to get everyone in the congregation involved and into a thriving relationship with Christ. The church has communion bread and "wine" together once a month. No liturgical "high church" here. Just people fellowshipping, worshipping together and serving each other. As a side note, the drama team is outstanding, and they don't shy away from sharing the whole Gospel!

Everyone goes out of their way to be helpful and friendly. Sandi,one of the water aerobics…read moreinstructors, is amazing! She made me feel very welcomed and comfortable in new environment for me!

the life guards kicked us out for wearing SWIM shorts when there was other girls wearing shorts and…read moregrown men wearing NOT swim shorts and underwear in the pool too and they did not say a word about it

MCC is simply the best. We have taken our two children there for seven years as have had nothing…read morebut an incredible experience. MCC is like family to us! It's so wonderful having a place we completely trust and are thankful to send our kids to. I love the Montessori philosophy and inquiry based learning methods. They do such a great job supporting children's natural curiosity while also teaching independence, responsibility and important life skills. I've been so impressed with how's much my kids have learned and how's much fun they have! They love their teachers, they do so many fun activities and never seem to get bored. I'm also impressed with how often the activities in the room change, and all the cool arts projects they bring home! The owner and all the teachers are truly the best people; kind, nurturing, patient with a solid sense of humor. We're so lucky to have MCC in our lives!

Overall I like this daycare. I've taken my son here since he turned 2 and plan on continuing until…read morehe has to enter Kindergarten. While, they're not as strict as other Montessori daycares, I find that a good approach. Children are meant to be children and they discover with play. Applying strict rules to everything restricts kids imagination but that doesn't mean that they are not given structure. As far as I've seen, they keep the kids active during the summer, and whenever weather permits during the winter. I like that they don't have TV and their playground is great. They are right across from a park so they go there during the summer sometimes. The only thing Im not too happy about is when I've called to let them know about something, I feel like i'm always rushed by the person at the other end.

Prairie Flower Children's Center is a wonderful, Waldorf-based preschool that emphasizes time in…read morenature and imaginative play. All four of my children have attended Prairie Flower, and I am so grateful they were able to have non-traditional preschool experiences that do not focus so heavily on learning letters and numbers but rather focus on educating the whole child and nurturing the magic and wonder of childhood. I can't imagine a better experience for little ones.

When my daughter went here, she was relatively happy with it (although frequently confused by the…read morerules). As a parent, though, I was not happy. It felt very judgmental and clique-y. We got in trouble for dressing our daughter in tshirts with cartoons on them, for bringing non-homemade snacks, because she watched a video while at her grandparent's house (gasp!), and we were admonished for not showing up to things like the Harvest Forest Walk (or whatever they called it) because we had to work. This place feels like it's for parents with more time on their hands than the rest of us can reasonably hope to have. We believed in the philosophies of Waldorf, but needed something that worked in real life. Real life... where sometimes you set your kids in front of the TV. Real life... where you don't have time to make organic homemade gluten-free sugar-free cupcakes because you have to WORK. Real life... where you have to make compromises. When compared to other childcare places, I really appreciate that they have a philosophy that gives the kids the chance to connect to the seasons and the outdoors. But, ick. They give the idea a bad name, and our time there felt like a visit to Guilt City.

Please do not discount or discredit this rating. It has taken me a very long time to come to terms…read morewith our time at this school, and if I could give a negative rating, I would. Looking for a Montessori education we came across Montessori System Preschool of Black Hawk County and considered ourselves lucky to get in. If only we knew what the next year would hold. Continual dismissals of our children. Messages and emails about needing to pick children up early due to incredibly minor issues ie: a runny nose with no additional symptoms. Children cannot return once sent home until the "symptoms" disappear, until at least 24 hours pass, or with a doctor's note. I never had issues returning with a doctor's note, but urgent care and primary providers definitely rolled eyes and expressed frustration when I took up their time (especially during cold and flu season) due a "fever" of 99.0 degrees. I'll repeat what was said in other reviews - more closures than the public school system, additional money charged for childcare during mandatory conferences or closures. Alleged behavioral issues that staff had been dealing with for "weeks" with consequences to begin immediately (ie: come get your child now), while we, the parents, just found out about said behavior and had no choice or chance to work through it with the school or help address the behavior with a child to help them actually grow and learn from said experiences. The reason I am writing this review is more due to how parents and children are treated. You and the child are made to feel small, unworthy, and at fault - always. What is happening is because you are a bad parent and you have failed. Because your child is a bad child "never in our (40 years) have we had to deal with this" ... Because your or your child has failed in some way. There are no meetings or conversations to help work through possible issues or concerns, and no efforts to treat anything as a learning experience. Children (and parents) are always learning. Day in, day out, we are learning and growing, and teaching kids how to learn, grow and adapt behavior, along with consequences for their actions, is part of why we wanted a Montessori education. What we got from this school is knowledge that some educators punish children for having their own minds, their own thoughts, and their own feelings, and I wish we were able to warn more parents away sooner. I didn't get the chance to interact with many teachers. I can tell you that we, and our child, adored Ms. Katy during our time there. The administration should answer to a board, and that board would quickly see the need to replace the administration. After leaving, I talked to former parents whose children attended years before my time, and the behavior and treatment of children and their parents has not changed in well over a decade. This school is not worth your sanity or your child's well being.

The administration as of 2022 is ruining what could otherwise be a wonderful school. The contract…read moreyou sign leaves you with little power, and makes it nearly impossible to leave if you are unhappy (unless you are willing to pay out the remainder of the contract). My children were sent home from school almost weekly for illness, and sometimes for ones that seemed, frankly, invented. When I tried to bring one of my children back with a doctor's note to show we had waited a medically approved amount of time, the director told me she didn't trust doctors, and asked that her daughter inspect my child to determine if she was healthy enough to return. They twist facts to make themselves look good and to make people with genuine concerns look bad. Can't recommend for any working parents, or to those who wish for their children to be in school with regularity. Really disappointing.

We have been at Little Lambs the past 2 years and absolutely love it! We are so thankful we found…read morethis gem of a preschool! We have attended multiple preschools before and this is our favorite!! The teachers are warm and welcoming and create a wonderful learning environment for our kids. I completely trust them with my children and know that they look after them as they would their own. They truly care and treat each of the kids so well! They teach the children a lot of wonderful Bible lessons and seem to be more in-depth than other Christian preschools we've attended. They have a small outdoor playground - completely sufficient for the class sizes/times and also utilize the gym inside for the kids to play and run which is a great blessing especially with the weather here in Iowa. They also have a lot of events during the month - and change up often - with visits to the library, chapel time, fire department visits, local police department visits, various professionals coming to their classroom (dentists, etc.) to talk of their work, Donuts with Dad, Muffins with Mom and holiday parties. The children rotate bringing snack, which they also get to bring something special from home to show their friends and have "special helper" duties during that day such as feeding the classroom fish and guinea pig, etc. There is an abundance of activity going on that keeps the kids excited about learning and looking forward to special times. They have monthly themes and change up their activities often. There is always something new (centers, tub toys, decorations) at the preschool. They focus on specific letters for the week and include activities and programs associated with that. They also have opportunities to give to the local food bank and help other families at Christmas time which helps the children see beyond their situation also. They also have classroom guinea pigs which children can sign up to care for over the weekend in their own home. This can give some children a "pet" experience without the full time responsibility of caring/providing for a pet. You can drop off the children at the entrance with a staff member and they will take them down to their classroom and wash their hands etc. That can be super convenient depending on your children, especially with little babies/siblings in tow also. This is the same for pick up, which again can be super helpful with siblings and weather etc. The teachers also share a brief summary of all of the things the kids did for the day and also have a website where they share the pictures from the week. This is a great addition to a great program! We have found the tuition and hours to be comparable to ones in the area, but you get so much more than what you pay for here - the extra layers of love and concern that are priceless when it comes to our children. While no place is perfect in this world, we have found Little Lambs and their staff to be as wonderful as possible!! We truly can't think of anyway that they could improve, as they are often seeking feedback and ways to improve. We highly recommend this preschool to any and all of our friends who have children in this age group and would recommend it for you also!

From the owner: Welcome to Little Lambs Christian Preschool (LLCP). Our purpose is to provide a well-rounded and…read morenurturing pre-kindergarten experience for three, four and five year olds in a Christian environment. LLCP supports the home by providing a program of developmentally appropriate learning activities that will contribute to the child's mental, physical and spiritual development and further his/her social and emotional growth. The goal of Little Lambs Christian Preschool is to provide the kind of environment and varied experiences that will allow the child to: -Acknowledge the daily presence of Christ in his/her life -Make a successful transition from home to school -Live, work and play with other children and adults -Develop a healthy self-concept -Encourage creativity and self-expression -Develop of a sense of security through experiencing success -Develop self-control & responsibility -Participate in large & small group settings -Discover the wonder of God's word -Develop verbal skills