We are not year-round family at Westerly, but we consistently return for their summer camp…read more Our eleven-year-old son had attended all the local summer camps in Long Beach--JCC, 49'er camp, the city's parks and recs--over the past few years, and he ranks Westerly the highest among all camp experiences. The staff is accommodating, the hours are flexible (7:30 am to 5:30 pm), and he has a great time.

What can I say. Our family loves Westerly! Our eldest started at one of Long Beach's blue ribbon…read moreschools, but with the huge classes we decided to take a look at Westerly and we couldn't go back. Since then all our kids have thrived in their Westerly experience. It starts with a sizable campus with a beautiful grass field for sports and activities, newly constructed learning studios and the amazing arts village. What a great place to learn. Then the passionate teachers and staff deliver a whole child program, with a better than 10:1 student/teacher ratio. The Westerly program includes: Curriculum and instruction - Enthusiastic teachers with a well thought out curriculum and small class sizes enabling teachers to adapt the curriculum to the needs of your child. Technology/STEM - Westerly recently hired a full-time Director of Instructional Technology to enhance an already strong technology/STEM program throughout the curriculum. Think coding in class, 3D printing, science and engineering fairs, etc. Visual and performing arts - Incorporated in the curriculum is an annual school-wide play lead by the folks at TKTC. The visual arts program is second to none with the kids being exposed to public arts projects, ceramics in the new ceramics studio, mixed media, painting, photography, etc. I wish I could take the classes myself. Wildcat, the after school program is a blessing. Our kids beg to go to Wildcat to play with their friends, work on yearbook, take film, dance, music, robotics and other after school enrichment activities. Athletics - A legitimate, well-run PE program with enthusiastic instruction and basketball, volleyball, football teams throughout elementary and middle school. Music - Every child takes both general and instrumental music as part of their Westerly experience. Spanish - Kindergarten through 8th grade all the kids get introduced to the Spanish language through a dedicated Spanish instructor. Leadership - This is quite possibly one of the most amazing parts of the curriculum. Continuing on the theme of whole child education the Director of Student Affairs leads an amazing program that goes so beyond student council, creating leadership opportunities for so many children. Programs like student council, district representatives, green team, etc., start in Kindergarten and the kids grow in responsibility as the children grow themselves. Each child also gains leadership responsibilities as a student mentor, where each older student is paired with a younger student as a mentor. Service learning and field studies - As the kids grow in maturity so do the service learning and field studies. Our children have enjoyed trips to Catalina and other local camps, but the highlight of the program is a one week trip in 8th grade where the whole class travels to Nicaragua to conduct a service learning project, practice their spanish, and are exposed to a different culture and way of life that they are used to. Community - Westerly is a place where without question every family places a priority on securing a great, well-rounded education for their children. Being in an environment like this is so fantastic. Independent school is not cheap, but in our minds it's the best gift we can give to our children. Westerly also offers significant financial aid support, so if that is an issue be sure to discuss your situation with the school to see if they can make something work for your family. P.S. This may sound like a paid ad, but it's our true feelings about this place. It's really special.

We are thrilled with this school. It was exactly the environment I was searching for when I had my…read morechild. I knew I wanted an educational environment that was based on true child development and wellbeing science. I wanted a school that focused on learning through play and interests rather than for rote memorization and standardized tests. I wanted a school where my child could be her full self and grow confidently into her teen years. I wanted teachers that loved teaching And that would know my child's strengths and needs. I was thrilled to learn that the first grade teacher follows the class (like in many Nordic countries). But what I value most is the community. This is a welcoming and loving school community. I look forward to drop off to connect with the parents and other children. I genuinely am making wonderful friends and it's wonderful that we share many of the same core values: limiting tech, fostering a love of lifelong learning, authenticity, kindness, volunteering, and letting children grow into the full expression of their uniqueness. I also am inspired by the headmaster- Lisa. She is brilliant and I trust her deep pedagogical knowledge and commitment to making a positive impact on the world. If you want a school that has the nostalgia of an 1980s childhood- this is a school to consider.

This school makes me disgusted. This school makes me puke from all of there lies, and dirtiness. My…read moreson went to school with someone with the same problems at maple village as one other review described and what dose the school mean by this account has never been enrolled how would you know that's their name? Just shady people never let your kids come here it's a waste of time and thousands of dollars for your kids to be on a small campus and to me playing in a alley full of homeless people

My daughter has been coming to this school since 1st grade (transferred here) All I can say is that…read moreboth of her teachers were great! I love how involved the principal is with the kids. Mrs. Escobar (2nd grade teacher) did an AMAZING job, my daughter loves her so much. All the stuff that she learned amazed me! I've seen so much progress with my daughter. Can't wait to see what next year has planned for her. All staff are helpful, friendly and above and beyond.

bad school, Mrs.platt yelled in my face and made me cry once, also the kids are meanread more

All we've done is taken a tour and frankly.... wow. The campus is conveniently located, nice, feels…read moresecure, and definitely geared for the children. It was not even fully set up yet and you could see how neat the campus is. Ms. Kargas is flexible, sharp as a tack and ready to welcome you. She doesn't miss a beat answering questions and it was a privilege to be given a tour by the principal, herself. Definitely worth looking in to!

I was a student of this school class of 2025…read moreI loved it. funny moments and all. great teachers that cared about grades and homework!

Both my sons are enrolled here, and we are very happy with all the school offers. They are friendly…read moreand welcoming, all the staff is kind and helpful.

The staff are good but too much homework and only 20 mins of lunch I'd give 30mins but I like it so…read morefar

I love this school and it was very great years. I love my fourth and third grade teachers they were…read morevery nice to me and It's a very great school, and I love that school.

Great school love ms Deedee she's very helpful with the kids…read more great diversity school were really gonna miss it here

Our son started at OAP as soon as he turned 2, and he adjusted very well. They provided potty…read moretraining and their program was effective - he was potty trained in 1 week! They provide a lot of activities for the kids to enjoy such as petting zoo, bubble party, and field trips. They have a structured routine and program. All staff members take the time to know each and every child. Their 6 am to 6 pm hours are very helpful especially for all types of working families and is already included in the tuition! We definitely recognized the amount of growth our son has made while at OAP to the point where he has been complimented on how good of a student he has been in TK at his new school. We decided to enroll our son to TK at the elementary school closer to home and when it came to our surprise that he was able to enroll asap, I immediately consulted with the preschool director to determine potential next steps. She was very supportive and genuinely wanted the best for our son. I was literally crying and more sad that our son was leaving OAP sooner than we had planned! We still keep in touch with the staff there and they will forever hold a special place in our hearts! Thank you OAP for laying such a strong foundation on our child's academic journey!

Our family recently disenrolled our 2.5-year-old toddler from Oakwood Academy. As an African…read moreAmerican parent, I want to share our experience because feeling welcomed, respected, and heard by our child's school is important to our family. Before making our decision to disenroll, I read all available reviews. Notably, multiple African American families described experiences that were strikingly similar to ours, including concerns regarding communication, behavioral responses, and feeling unwelcome. While I cannot independently verify the experiences of other families, the consistency of these accounts, including reviews spanning several years, raises serious concerns for me about an unresolved pattern of implicit and, in some instances, explicit bias. Our primary concerns involved safety, supervision, communication, and collaboration. Our toddler was given no grace as this was a new environment and had attended the school for less than one month. Our toddler exited the classroom, and we were told that two staff members were assigned to the classroom. There are two classrooms separated by a partition. Our toddler crossed the partition and entered another classroom. We understand that leaving the classroom is a safety concern. At the same time, we wanted to understand the circumstances surrounding the exit and the supervision in place at the time. The immediate decision to have our toddler removed from school was difficult for us to understand and, given his age, felt punitive rather than educational. Our toddler crossed a partition and was subsequently removed from school. Our concerns about the overall environment also came from our direct observations. My child would say hello to staff and was sometimes not acknowledged. I observed his teacher look at him when he arrived without speaking to him. On other occasions, staff either looked at me without speaking or did not make eye contact. When my hands were full, an elementary school student helped me open the toddler gate while staff members were only a few feet away and talking among themselves. We also had difficulty with some relatively simple requests. For example, we asked for adjustments to our individual access codes and requested that staff use our child's shortened name, which he was able to pronounce. We did not feel these requests were met with the level of flexibility or collaboration we were seeking. I am sharing our experience so prospective families can make an informed decision. I deeply regret entrusting our child to this school. Families should be able to expect respectful communication, appropriate supervision, and meaningful collaboration when concerns involving their child arise.

The school was better but after they got a new principal it was not good…read more They make it unfair. The school water is not even filtered I know a kid who got sick from the water . And favorites kids it's different from a teacher and they dot favorite kids. And grabbed a kid be cuz the thecher was not fair. I know a kid who got framed in 3grad book after allredey having the same 1 and got suspended for it.

Our son was incessantly bullied for years - baited and mocked, ostracized, shoulder shoved, run…read moreinto from behind, "project" friended to be dumped & ostracized later. His test scores were removed from the general population so the school could claim that every student passed their state tests. His 5th grade teacher, Mrs Reyes, openly mocked him in front of the class & rolled her eyes with disgust at his IEP. She also favored the kids who bullied him. We could not afford to home school, so we were stuck with this armpit of a school.

School is great. I actually go to the school so fun makes you do so much fun stuff and feels you…read moreprotected.

And although they are a little bit too sensitive with everyone's feelings, it's a great school and…read moreI love my kids teacher teachers

Their kindergarten is the only reason I'm giving 3 stars, without it I would give them 1 star…read more Their kindergarten department is a blessing. The same cannot be said for the rest. It starts at the top with their principal,Mrs. Robinson. The level of professionalism she displayed during my interactions with her, I would expect from a child, not from an adult much less an adult in her position. As stated the teachers and aides in their kindergarten department were outstanding and while I'm sure they have a few teachers who do care and try to educate our children, she sets the tone. After having various discussions with my son's teacher, we would communicate consistently to make sure he was doing his part and that we as parents did ours. There was an issue with some students that my son ended up involved in. I spoke with everyone involved and was told the situation was addressed only to later receive a call from Mrs Robinson informing me my son was suspended along with a completely different version of the events. When we met to discuss this the aide involved was not present nor would we be able to hear their version. The teacher whom I would always communicate with changed their narrative on my son and wouldn't even look in my direction throughout the entire meeting. The attitude displayed by Mrs Robinson was "zero f's" given. Mrs Robinson, I'm a grown man who respects women (and truly appreciate the teachers who play a key role in not only educating but also help raise our children) I decided to act my age and not my shoe size. The job you hold carries lofty expectations which based not just on my review, but many others I see here, are epically failing to meet. Do better! I could've resorted to returning the same energy you displayed during our meeting but didn't. This won't be the case all the time. Hopefully you end up stepping aside before you run into a person who decides to teach you the acronym for f.a.f.o.

Terrible school ,they do not help u out at school when u need help ,horrible principleread more