My son has been happily attending SIDC for three years. He loves his teachers and friends there…read more Here are a few key factors to choose SIDC: - size: with just one classroom for each age group and lower than state imposed number of children in each one, you can be sure that the kids get due attention - teachers, high retention: my son only changed teachers only when he moved to the next classroom - nonprofit: run by dedicated staff and a board formed by parents! Community feel - logistics: situated in downtown but away from the noise and crowd of it. Extremely easy access to/from highway, very close to stops of major bus lines, or you can enjoy riding on separated bike lanes through 2nd and 4th aves. - High Scope curriculum: just google it if that's unfamiliar :) - COVID response: They closed in the early pandemic shutdowns, but were up and running with safety measures shortly thereafter. It's a lifesaver while working remotely.

Our infant daughter has been attending the SIDC for a few months now and we have only great things…read moreto say about it. She's always happy to see her teachers in the morning, and we love that kids in the infant room get a lot of attention thanks to the low student-teacher ratio (3:1, better than most daycares we toured). The kids are going on field trips very often, including a weekly trip to the Central Library for story time. Lastly, we really like that it's a non-profit and that our tuition goes to fund the education of our daughter, not to enrich shareholders.

This school was AMAZING for our 5year old son in his PreK year. Having just moved from Australia…read moreand not knowing the education system in Seattle, we were looking for a program which wasn't childcare and didn't want 5 days per week. We hopes for some social/ fun hours per week in a program & some academics also. We found an AMAZING PROGRAM at Illumination and our son loved every day. From Tap dance to yoga, sight words, piano, math and SO MUCH MORE, his days had so much joy, fun and academics. We were thrilled with the staff, the program, the honesty of his progress and the community celebrations throughout the year. Our son did so well in this program, he since was accepted into the HCC program in Seattle. It was an AMAZING year with Illumination, the staff were superb & we hope to send our youngest as soon as she is old enough!

We had a pretty underwhelming experience at the dramatics summer camp held by Illumination Studio…read more My daughter, who is otherwise a fast learner, and has learnt a ton in other 5 day performing art summer camps, came back home each day wanting to learn, and engage, but only to be left with random play stuff - legos, crayons, etc. Based on the website description, we hoped for an enrichment experience, but what we saw was mostly a child care center approach - if that's what parents should expect, setting the right expectation upfront is key. We did reach out to the administration sharing the same concerns, and we were told that the reason the dramatics camp could not do much dramatics related activities was the low student turnout. I do not think that's an excuse to not take accountability of not delivering what was promised and that I expected some kind of real teacher - student interaction and learning happening, which was not the case.

My younger sister and I used to go to BF Day, and our baby sister goes there now, and let me tell…read moreyou, that is dang good school. It's a small-ish school (as most elementary schools are) in Fremont, near the Woodland Park Zoo. BF Day is rather diverse in all meanings of the word, and does a good job of teaching kids that everyone is important and loved. The parents are generally lovely, as are the teachers, though many of my favorite staff members have retired. It can be a bit of a hippy school, but that is far from a negative, it just encourages kids to explore their creative sides and embrace themselves. I haven't heard a single negative thing about BF Day, though I do know that due to some zoning issues, a lot of kids have lost their transportation, which is a majorly sucky, but I don't believe that the school is at fault there. tl;dr BF Day is pretty much the best and everyone who went there loved it

NOT CLOSED, people! Not at all! When I moved my boys and me…read morenorthward from Portland to Seattle, I had researched the "cluster" school system (never was a name more appropriate for a system or situation), though my research was clearly insufficient. Because I made certain that I moved into what I thought would be the perfect cluster for my kids' schooling needs and profile...I just failed to realize that would make no difference whatsoever to where they went to school. My boys are half hispanic, and I wanted very much to continue with the Spanish language education I only sporadically inflict on them at home. So I moved into the Laurelhurst-ish "cluster." What Seattle did not advertise is that its school zoning situation is not just a cluster, but the mother of all godforsaken clusters. They found no availability in any ONE school for both my boys. That's because clusters at the time were only "suggestions" of where kids could attend schools. Suggestions that were largely completely ignored, and no matter where you lived in Seattle, your kid could be bussed into nearly any zone at all. So you can basically move your family onto a tent settlement ATOP a particular school, and not be allowed to enroll in it until the 300-child wait list of kids from a school 15 miles away takes their priority. W, as the kids say, TF. So the last years have been a constant cluster indeed, with my boys in two different schools and and in and out of several. Having tried or toured quite a few schools in the area now, I can say, this one is my favorite elementary school in Seattle so far. My son has a wonderful teacher, Miss Jackson (and yes, it is so punishingly hard not to say, or at least think, "If you're nasty!" every time I say her name) who despite being forced, as all teachers are, to teach to a strict test curriculum imposed by the lowest-common-denominator-encouraging "No Child Left Behind" legislation, is still highly dynamic, wildly flexible, and very encouraging of creativity in all its manifestations. I absolutely love her, and I love the diversity of the students and the parents--a graceful blend of the privileged and the struggling, chaotic and the orderly, the uber-hippies and the uber-hipsters who all somehow manage to be very empathic and very likable. It also sits at just the right notch on the spectrum of academic rigor. We tried John Stanford International with Nico, and he called them "The Von Trapp Family Singers." Whistles to encourage hallway lineups? No talking in the corridors? Boys' and Girls' lines for 5th graders? No dark sarcasm? In the CLASSROOM?! Yikes. Plus every mom I met there without a single exception kind of gave me the impression that the only hard decision she has to make in any three-week period is whether to give her cook, nanny and housekeeper massages or Lush bars as holiday gifts. I'm extremely grateful for this school and for how happy Maximo is to attend it. Teaching excellence here is clearly valued, as is parental involvement. If you're in the area AND in the market for an elementary school, stop in and say hi. They're great people.

Our now four year old started at The Children's School earlier this year after being at a small…read morein-home daycare and we've been very happy with TCS! The teacher to student ratio is excellent, and all the teachers have been very kind and caring. They do a lot of fun projects and spend a lot of time outside and on walks. We also love the flexibility of the afternoon care program run by one of the teachers. It's been a great fit for our son, and we're excited to watch him continue to grow there!

Our 4 year old has really grown during his time at TCS. We've been impressed with the teachers'…read morecreativity and dedication to bringing varied themes and play to the classroom, and have noticed our child's love of school as well as significant growth in learned skills and confidence.

Both of our kids attended SLC from 2020-2026 and we have been incredibly happy every step of the…read moreway. The teachers are so nurturing and engaged. They work to build a community amongst families. They take them on field trips and to the park and pea patch. My kids have learned so much and were more than prepared for Kindergarten. The classes are small enough that every child is cared for and they also have plenty of opportunities to develop independence. We would recommend SLC to anyone looks for a daycare where their children will thrive!

Our experience with Seattle Learning Center has been extremely positive. From the very beginning,…read morethe staff made our family feel welcome and supported. The teachers are caring, patient, and genuinely invested in each child's growth and well-being. One of the things we appreciate most is the balance between education and play. The daily activities are thoughtfully planned and help children build important social, emotional, and academic skills. Communication with families has also been excellent. Staff members regularly share updates about daily activities, progress, and any important information, which helps parents feel connected and reassured. SLC has created a positive community amongst the families. We are very grateful for the dedication of the teachers and staff and would highly recommend this daycare to families looking for a dependable and enriching childcare environment.

My daughter started at Amistad in pre-K with no previous Spanish experience. 1.5 years later she…read morecan have conversations in Spanish with proper verb conjugation and her accent is spot on. She reads in both Spanish and English and sometimes when she can't figure out a word in English because it's not spelled they way it's pronounced she looks at the Spanish and figures it out. I love that the student population is diverse and her teachers come from all parts of Central and South America and bring their culture into the classroom. The teachers are wonderful and my child is known and looked out for by everyone, whether they are her teacher or not. I truly look forward to the bilingual and multicultural education she will continue to have there. This kind of education is not available elsewhere in Seattle. I first learned about Amistad when I was chatting with a friend at the playground when our kids were just 3 and 4 years old. I was stressing out about how to get my child a bilingual education when I don't live in the geozone for one of the international schools (which are not immersion programs like Amistad anyway). Another parent overheard our conversation and felt compelled to jump in to say that his kids went to Seattle Amistad School and that if I wanted my daughter to have a bilingual education in a school run mostly by strong women of color I should look into Amistad. So I did! And I've been happy with the experience my daughter has had so far and look forward to continuing her education there.

We love Seattle Amistad School. The community is amazing and I see my children learning and growing…read moreeveryday. I love the nurturing environment and the world curriculum. All three of my children have attended Amistad since preschool and are completely fluent in Spanish, my oldest is in the Middle School program and my youngest is in kindergarten. I highly recommend Seattle Amistad School to any family looking for something different and special for their children and their family.

We really loved KinderCare! Michael, Cindy, and all of the teachers are truly amazing people who…read morelove their students. We sent our daughter there from 5 months -14 months with a few month break due to COVID (we kept her home out of our own caution). As an infant, she was so well taken care of at KinderCare! Of course it's hard for any parent to drop off your little one while you go work, but the teachers in the infant rooms really helped me adjust. They were okay letting me come visit whenever, and even invited parents in for story time. They helped her gain some independence with napping and bottles as well. Of course after covid, parents can't go into the classroom but I'm sure it will be back to normal eventually. Ms Denise is the nicest teacher and really made our family feel connected. Also, since my daughter was out of daycare for a few months, when she came back and transitioned to the waddler room Ms Denise made her a memory book of her first year with photos and art projects! It was so nice that she did that even though our daughter missed a couple months! Waddler room teachers are also great! Our daughter was always super happy when we picked her up and they did a lot of fun activities. Overall the curriculum is great- safe space for kids to move with lots of music and art throughout the day. They have themes and vocabulary lessons too. We moved to a daycare next to our house since we no longer commute downtown but will always love KinderCare for helping us get through the first year!!!

Came in one day to find someone's child holding a bleach bottle. Dis enrolled our daughter per the…read morewritten notice - they sent messages at the same period saying that because of covid they had the right to also charge us 5 days a week even if they could only offer 3. This is a scary place, do not send your babies here. After removing our child from their care they started sending threats for collection because we didn't give enough notice. We gave plenty. What they really meant to say is they only pay their workers minimum wage and treat them like crap to keep this facility barely functioning.

I could not be happier at Kindercare Wallingford. My son joined the infant room program in January,…read moreand we have been blessed with 2 amazing teachers (Miss Cecelia and Miss Lillian) and a very supportive administrative staff (Alex, Christine, Amanda, and Katie). Miss Lillian has been with Philly since day 1 - and we could not be happier with the love, care, support, and attention she's given our son. She has been with Philly through all of the first-year highs and lows -- teething, solids, crawling, weening, etc. -- at this point she feels like family! We could not have done this first year without her. We have been very happy with all the teachers and staff at Kindercare Wallingford so far, and I cannot thank them enough! Next month, our son will transition to the toddler room. Although I'm sad he'll be leaving Miss Lillian and Miss Cecelia, I know our son will be in great hands with his new toddler room teachers!

This facility is filthy and often inadequate staffed. Echoing the same thoughts as you read below…read more Teachers play on phone, ignore basic requests and do not practice hand hygiene especially after diaper changes. Unable to follow basic instructions is concerning because how can you teach my child if you can't follow the rules yourself. My child has been sick almost constantly since enrolling and it's reached a point where this facility needs to be reported and closed down for a terminal cleaning and proper sanitation lessons. This corporation is money driven and in the twenty years has been poorly managed and went down hill. Don't waste your time and end up like us regretting the decision to give them benefit of the doubt. To the upper management you need to be a secret shopper and see how poor the director and teachers interact amongst one another. There is a handful of decent teachers but, in all it's TRASH. Highway robbery.