Looking to make the change from daycare to preschool, we found St. Joseph School in 2015 and never…read morelooked back. The preschool educators are our peers and mothers and grandmothers, who treated us-and our kids- like family. There is an educational curriculum, learn through play, arts & crafts, naptime, and all the feel-good-things to build a wonderful love of learning. St. Joseph School has so much to offer in academics & extracurriculars. But most importantly, St. Joe's is a true community. Our children look out for each other as reading buddies, recess pals, homework helpers, and making sure nobody sits too long on the Buddy Bench. Parents know each other's kids and even know each other- even if only as a familiar face during drop off & pick up. Our community can be seen not only at school, but on the fields, courts, and theaters supporting our kids. Upper-grade teachers know the names of the lower-grade students, and the lower-grade teachers stay involved & interested as their students move up and graduate. 2020 forced us all to make significant adjustments in our lives. We were fortunate that the St. Joe's staff was able to move swiftly to begin remote education since 3/13/20. Not only by worksheets, review, and checklists, but with new concepts, quizzes, tests, projects, and we had some fun. St. Joe's opened this fall while following the necessary safety requirements. It's different, and sometimes hard for our kids and our teachers, but it's working. Our kids are safe, learning, and most importantly, they are happy. I can't recommend St. Joseph School enough. Give it a look, learn about their programs, compare tuitions. Schedule an in-person tour to get a feel for our community. St. Joe's may be a great fit for your family! #SJSRocks

Great School, Great location, Great traditions. Looking for superior quality preK-8 school? This is…read morethe school you want!

My daughter attended the boys and girls club drop in after school program for years. After leaving…read morethe club one day, she was playing at a nearby park and fell. She (to my horrors!) broke her arm... and wandered back to the club for help. they called me, called an ambulance, went to hospital in ambulance with her and stayed there until i arrived. Seems obvious but she was just a kid walking by that entered and asked for help. so obvs, have been a fan. FFWD _ my daughter is now a teen: This summer she did the leadership training program, volunteering- and learned so much. Created such a positive environment and opportunity for leadership growth for my daughter. This fall, my daughter applied for a job and now works part time in the after school and LOVES connecting with neighborhood kids and organizing games/ playing with the kids. Feel very grateful we have an org in this community that is so accessible and empowering.

I love this place. They offer amazing programs for the kids. My daughter did summer camp here…read more(creative explorers) and is now doing winter camp. The staff is fantastic. They have a nice space here with a big outside area right on spy pond. The pool. The gym. Tennis courts. Kayaking in the summer. I definitely recommend.

Commonwealth has been an amazing school for our child. They promote a genuine love of learning and…read morescholarship. It's a small school so the kids develop strong relationships with the teachers. And the teachers are amazing... true experts in their field. The academics can be intense but we never found it overwhelming. Overall a fantastic school!

This is an extraordinary school that changed both of my children's lives for the better. If your…read morechild is the right fit for this school, it will change your child's life too. Take the time to read up on Commonwealth's history and its culture (the interactions between students, staff and teachers), because it's nothing like the other private schools in the area. It's truly unique. I cannot recommend Commonwealth highly enough.

My son attended Old South Preschool for his first school experience as a preschooler. The school…read morecame highly recommended by a trusted friend and it was immediately apparent that Old South stood out from many of the other preschools we considered. The classrooms are bright, open, and calming with quality materials used for play and lessons. The many "stations" curated and rotated by the teachers ensure children can feel comfortable choosing between their favorite activities or trying new ones. The kids are exposed to many themes and subjects. The focus on education is on building blocks for kindergarten. Kids are exposed to math and reading in a way that cultivated their curiosity. Weather, calendars, arts, nature, you name it! It's amazing how much is picked into the year. Our sons pride in his handwriting and creative creations was clear each day as we were welcomed into the classroom to review his work at pickup time. The school's emphasis on safe exploration of the city was another draw. We wanted our son to become a citizen of the city. A safe street crosser who observes and learns from his surroundings. Hearing from our son about the classes prep for their walks and then their adventures and lessons around the city was great. Finally, the staff and teachers were fantastic. The care and attentiveness they brought to the school daily was always top notch. They were always available to chat about a rough morning departure for school or other issue. Their ability to handle occasional hijinks was also impressive with the children quickly learning proper etiquette and behavior. Director of Old South, Carolyn, was very helpful coaching us young parents through some behavior challenges and through the kindergarten admissions process. All and all we would send another child to Old South and would not hesitate to recommend this school.

My son attended Old South Preschool during the 2020-21 school year. The year before, he attended a…read moredifferent, more local preschool (we live in Somerville), but that school chose to close due to COVID. Given the pandemic, we were scared to send our son to school at all, and it was even more nerve-wracking thinking about sending him somewhere new. Old South Preschool was recommended to us by friends, and being members of the church (the school is non-religious), our son was already familiar with the building. We decided it was worth the longer commute to have him in school somewhere we were all familiar with. We had no idea what an incredible year he would have. The staff took COVID precautions very seriously, and the school was open all year. Even with all of the extra safety measures, our son felt safe, cared for, and looked forward to school each day. The teachers--many who have taught there for over a decade--are masters at what they do (I am also an early childhood educator and was continuously amazed by their ability to relate to and motivate each child). Our son left Old South more confident, independent, and definitely ready for kindergarten. Old South Preschool was such a bright spot in this very bleak year. We are so grateful to Old South and could not recommend it enough.

Great teachers, great environment, a wonderful place to learn. Recommend 10/10!! Best art classes…read moreI've taken in Boston

Amazing Delicious Thank you Great service Tuesday offer…read moreis great too Recommended

This school it great but not always great there some nice teachers but there some bad teacherread more

its is such a good school for children to learn about god and staff are also the best!read more

My son has been here for over a year and is currently thriving in their Discovery Preschool 1. His…read moreteachers, Ms. Doris and Ms. Sasha are fantastic. They are nurturing, kind, loving and cuddly with the kids (which is so important to me since he's only two), and have remarkable classroom control. They teach both English and Spanish and we've just hit the point where my son knows more Spanish than me. The whole classroom will sing along songs in both languages. The room is also spotless at the end of every day which is very important to me going into flu season. They have an awesome app where I get 2-5 pictures or more a day of him painting, or videos of them dancing etc. and my son always tells me how much he likes school when I pick him up. As part of bedtime, sometimes we discuss who loves him and he lists off his family, friends, and almost always a few KB teachers. I know this place has had a bad reputation within the parent community around town (I've had multiple people tell me about their bad experiences) so I just wanted to address that too. All of those impressions are from when the old director, Teri, worked there. We came on and had about 6 months of her and were on multiple waitlists when she was fired. They've since brought in Brandi as the new director early this summer. Brandi is lovely, welcoming, has a personal relationship and conversation with every kid. She's worked hard all year to edit the staff and build a group of teachers who are passionate and amazing. No matter where my son is at the end of the day (kindercare as a whole has a merging policy as kids get picked up so sometimes the kids move classrooms), the teacher knows his name and is friendly and caring. I highly recommend you give this place a chance!!

Despite the high-end cost, you get low-end care. The kids are constantly shuffled around and don't…read morehave a stable teacher. When incidents happen, they do little to intervene in the moment, which is particularly critical at the younger ages, but will just write up a report. They deflect any accountability for allowing an incident to occur nor do they take any responsibility in resolving an issue. They will just resort to the method that requires the least effort for them: blaming the parents and child. The teachers are underpaid. The management are rude and often outright disrespectful. When you are unfortunate enough to have to interact with them, they are unapproachable, unavailable, and unnecessarily escalate issues. Stay far away from this place. You can get much better and cheaper care from a personal nanny. They are probably the most likely to have openings, but sometimes there's a reason for that...

An Amazingly Good High School…read more Far be it from me to plug my alma mater on Yelp... well actually, far be it not, because Andover deserves every single star it ever gets. Not to name drop, but I've studied at Stanford, Oxford, the Sorbonne, and Columbia... and the best critical thinking I ever encountered was at Andover. The quality of this education is unbelievable. What makes Andover great is that the students and faculty constantly, constantly push you past your limits. It's just the culture there. As soon as you think you've figured something out -- how to analyze a work of philosophy, how to solve some set theory problem, how to improve your time in the 100 meter dash -- you'll be challenged to do it better. Andover never, ever, *ever* settles. I know that may seem rather abstract, and that many institutions may claim this, but in the case of Andover, it is tangibly and provably true. The proof is in the graduates. Andover alumni are some of the most tenacious people I know, whether in their professional or personal life. They are not always kind, or right, or even good, but they never give up. They tend to be a little eccentric. Crazy poets, overworked lawyers, founders of strange companies that end up in the Fortune 500. It's the norm for Andover grads not to be in the norm. I think that's because during your three or four years there, your confidence is undermined in all the usual institutions that support us in life -- religion, social relationships, economic systems. No one goes through Andover without some kind of personal identity crisis -- at least no one I knew -- and that's when you're forced to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find out who you really are. Andover is uniquely capable of doing this because a) you're in your teenage years, when you are the most impressionable, b) you're on a liberal campus -- unlike Exeter, there's no dress code or strict behavioral standards -- so you have room to mess up, c) you're with kids as smart as at any high school in the country, and d) your parents aren't around to influence your choices. I've been through some pretty tough stuff in life. Public humiliation, severe depression, abusive relationships, family illnesses, friends murdered. I pulled through all of it, however, and I do not believe that I would have, had I not gone to Andover. The place gives you the sense that no matter how powerless you feel, there's a way for you to take control of any situation. It inculcates this into its students; it makes them believe that they absolutely, positively will win in the end.

Long lasting friendships, beautiful campus, wonderful town, competitive environment. All schools…read morewith their faculty, staff, administrators and students, have their pluses and minuses for a myriad of reasons. This old school has more pluses than most.