This is the absolute best school anywhere! The teachers and support staff are amazing. It is…read morecertified AMI which is the actual Montessori system created by Maria Montessori. Montessori is the best education you can buy for you kids, and this is the best Montessori school you could hope to find. It's child centered learning in a loving and supportive environment.

Metro East Montessori is hands down an absolutely amazing school and I cannot recommend it enough…read more My children were in elementary and primary classes last year and we were super impressed! The school is run amazingly well, the building has an actual "school" feel to it that I love, and the back area for children to play in is huge! It doesn't look very big from the bridge at first glance, but it's very large. Anyone looking for a quality school should definitely consider checking this school out. They have many videos on YouTube that explain Montessori for anyone not familiar with it.

Do not take your child here because you will NOT get what you pay for. There is ONE person,…read moreincluding the director, who has actually had any Montessori training. This is not a Montessori school at all, it is a barely a daycare. It is not a welcoming place. If you are told "things are changing", they absolutely are not. I wouldn't feel comfortable sending my child here. This location is shameful to Guidepost Montessori's reputation. This school may look good from the outside but please don't waste your money.

I am extremely uncomfortable and unhappy with my experience with this school. I toured the school…read moreat the beginning of May . I thought it looked good and the staff very helpful and friendly . They told me if I paid $1900 , $400 for registration fee and $1500 deposit used as the last month payment I would be guaranteed a spot for my son to start on August 1st. In July I began to call since the date was getting close. I was uneasy about how little communication I got and how long it would take for someone to call/email me back. I became suspicious during the process. The women who was working with me was very nice but I could tell was overworked and didn't know what she was doing yet , as she had said she needed to be trained. After I told her I felt hesitant she emailed me saying she would be fully transparent with me and for me to call her so she could explain. Over the phone she told me that a month or so prior there entire administration team walked out of the school and quit. That they are in a rehiring and rebuilding phase right now. That safety and security procedures wasn't in place and that they were not even teaching the Montessori approach at this time. I appreciated her telling me , but I was shocked that if I didn't say I felt uncomfortable she wasn't going to tell me any of this and just enroll my 1.5 year old into there school. I decided I didn't feel comfortable sending my son there because of this and asked for my $1900 deposit back that I put down when the school was presented and established a very different way. I didn't even fill out the registration form. I was told I could not get my money back. That I could either go to another guide post school ( 30 mins away) or wait till they rebuild there program and come back in a few months. Neither option I feel comfortable with. I noticed the other school has a horrible rating and horrible reviews. Guidepost Montessori school seems like a fraud and is providing a horrible experience.

The learning environment and staff are wonderful!! My child loves getting yp and going to school…read more The hands on learning environment preparing them with life skills and academic success is amazing.

My son has been going to Montessori since 18 months old. He is now in the 5th grade. Not only does…read morehe get a great education that he would not get in a typical private or public school, but the teachers form a strong bond with the students and their families. It is a child base learning atmosphere and the children excel. I wish it went all the way through high school!

Love it! An excellent Montessori institution in Creve Coeur, MO. There are numerous options in…read morethe St. Louis but if you are looking for a safe, clean and caring environment definitely pay HOPE Montessori in Creve Coeur a visit. The facilities are excellent and Susie Shelton-Dodge is the Headmistress and is wonderful and very approachable. They do have before and after school care which is included in tuition. They participate in numerous field trips. The menu in the cafeteria also has very healthy items. The summer camp is also wonderful with numerous fun activities but my favorite part of summer camp is the swimming lessons. They do have a very nice swimming pool on campus (fenced) and teach swimming every day during the summer. Lessons are dependent on ability and age. There is even parent observation day at the end of the summer. No this place isn't cheap but well worth the money. Overall my favorite aspects: 1) Before and after school care 2) Summer camp swimming lessons 3) Small class sizes 4) Safe, diverse and comfortable environment

Our experience started ok. Our son did pretty well but eventually started sharing how some kids…read morepicked on him. These kids tended to be from affluent families and made fun of his clothes or shoes. There became more concerning issues when one child was being threatening towards the children in the class. When we expressed concern the teacher became defensive of the other child and it became very uncomfortable after we had built what I thought was a good report. I found out later that the teacher was close with the other family and even went on a ski trip with them. The director also showed little concern for these more serious issues. I also had to address the fact that my daughters class never washed with soap and water but used hand sanitizer instead. Both of my kids would express that the wrong kids were often disciplined and others got away with whatever they wanted. Every day I asked them how school was and they had nothing good to report sadly. It was hugely disappointing for the amount of money spent there.

This looks and feels like a wonderful place and as a result I wanted to pull my son out of his…read morecurrent school and send both my boys in 2020. At the time I had a 3 and 5 year old. I applied for them both to do the summer camp, which they got into and to go to school there, which they did not get into. We put down a non refundable deposit for both. When the pandemic hit they cancelled the camp understandably. My husband sent several emails asking i if, under the unforeseen circumstances, could we get our camp deposit back. We never heard back with any explanation nor did we get our money back. Every camp we applied in the summer of 2020 either gave us our money back or gave us various options of how to use the money. A little communication goes a long way . This one didn't even respond with an explanation. Very poorly run.

I take my daughter here when she was 18 months and the first month of being in the school we…read morenoticed great improvement in her social and learning skills. All the teachers in her class are so nice.

CAC Montessori was a truly wonderful place for our son away from home. He loved going every day,…read moremade friends, and grew into a confident and curious little learner. The teachers were warm, caring, and deeply invested in the children's growth and well-being. We're incredibly grateful for the love, care, and guidance they provided, which gave him such a strong foundation as he transitioned into kindergarten.

Both of my children attended CAC from ages 2-5 years old. The staff is professional, kind, and…read moretruly cared about the development of each child. My kids loved going to school every day, and I saw such growth in their social, emotional, and cognitive skills. I was very happy with where they were at the time they had to start kindergarten. The curriculum is well-rounded (includes music and spanish), engaging, and fun, offering a great balance of playtime, Montessori style learning, and creative activities, they have lots of fun events throughout the year like Splash Days, Bounce House, Bubble Bus, etc. In addition they also offer extra programs like gymnastics and dance. Highly recommend if you are needing care for your kids.

Amazing place, peaceful environment, very helpful teachers, lots of freedom and an amazing campus…read morefor students to play in during recess. Highly recommend it . I learned a lot from it. Montessori is great for kids any age to learn.

From the owner: A Montessori education is about more than excelling in academics. While it is true that our…read morecurriculum is academically rigorous, we take pride in educating the whole child. Our ultimate goal is to help each child construct a unique and meaningful existence, to become the best adult he can be. We offer Young Children's Community, Primary, Lower Elementary, and Upper Elementary education serving children ages 14 months through 12 years. Montessori provides mixed-age community classrooms, so the youngest children have the opportunity to look to the older children as role models, and the older children flourish with this responsibility. As each child grows within his classroom, he takes on greater responsibilities within his community and develops richer relationships with his peers.

Christina had an opening for us when our other daycare shut down the classroom. Incredibly…read moreaccommodating and enjoyed everyone. Our child loved attending, enjoys her ABC's, knows her 123's and made some great friends. Thank you for everything!

As of February 2017, our daughter has been going to the Creve Coeur Kindercare for nearly two…read moreyears, ever since she was 6 weeks old. Even after moving out to Ballwin, we've kept her at this same Kindercare location because of the bonds she's made with the other toddlers and her teachers. WHY WE CHOSE THIS LOCATION: When we were looking for daycare for our daughter, we did a lot of online research. Some of that research was looking up ratings for each place, like you're obviously doing now. Throughout the reading-up-on-reviews process, we kept in mind that negative reviews are often more common, as people with great things to say about places tend not to be very vocal on Yelp or Google. We also looked at data that's less subjective or disputable. What incidents were reported at the locations you're considering? Are they licensed? Are they accredited? (There's a good description of accreditation and why it matters here: http://www.kindercare.com/about-us/who-we-are/accreditation.) I encourage you to do as much research as you feel comfortable with. This is obviously an important decision. So, we saw that, at the time, the Creve Coeur Kindercare was licensed, accredited and even working toward a second accreditation (I think it has gotten it, too, since then). We saw it wasn't too far away from home, so that was nice. We visited a couple of other locations nearby and, to be honest, they seemed dirtier, or more chaotic, or less safe. That's partially where that accreditation comes in. The weekly rate did seem like a lot until we did more research and we saw that it was competitive with other daycares' rates. Yes, it is still a decent amount of money, but the safety and education of your child is worth it. And again, it's nowhere near the cost of Montessori school, for example. Plus, rates go down on your child's second and third birthdays. SAFETY & FOOD: [This section was deleted to save space. Please speak with the location for these details.] CURRICULUM: Each day, teachers will send home a report on your child's activities, what they learned and how they acted. It's really helpful to follow along for those parents who are interested. Our daughter has responded seemingly very well to their teaching style. Her communication skills are very advanced for a child her age, and she has really taken to learning as much as possible. Of course, it's hard to say if this is just our daughter or if this is Kindercare's doing, but I just had to brag on my little girl some, I guess! Again, when you visit, ask what the kids are learning at the time. They have lesson plans they follow, so the answer should be an easy one to get. Also, in case you're worried, they don't have TVs in the rooms, so they won't just be watching Barney all day. STAFF: Everyone has been wonderful to me. I like to stick around when I drop my daughter off and when I pick her up and talk to her teachers. I'll ask how she did, what her mood was, if she did anything (positive or negative) noteworthy. All the teachers have seemed invested in our daughter's care, education and growth. Some have decades of experience with professional childcare, even at Kindercare. Others are going to college to study it. The woman who previously managed the location was wonderful, but recently left to pursue an altogether different career. Her replacement is very kind, knowledgeable and vibrant and, while I'm no expert, she seems to be doing a fantastic job in the month or two since she started. BONUS: Once a month, on most months, the center will host a "Parents' Night Out" where, for an extra $15, they will feed and watch your child until 9. This is a wonderful way to have a built-in date night on the cheap, especially for people like us who don't have family close by to babysit on a regular basis. They also provide crackers for the ride home, which really come in handy with kids once they need snacks to keep them civil during car rides. There are plenty of smaller details, but this should cover the bulk of it. To be fair, this is the only daycare we have ever brought our daughter to, so we don't have any other experiences to compare Creve Coeur Kindercare with. But I'm just happy that my daughter is safe and learning everything she can in an environment that is well-suited to her. I hope this covers any questions you may have about the location. Good luck with your little one!

I still remember my daughter's first day at Hope. She was 15 months then and wow..time sure does…read morefly. She is now ready to move on to elementary school this fall. We could have not found a better place for our daughter.Under Ms.PAM WORLEY's amazing leadership, her team of commendable, dedicated montessori teachers work wonders with the kids. I could go on and on about every single teacher at hope that has made such a positive impact on my daughter...a special mention to Ms. SASCHA and Ms. SYDNEY....you guys rock!!!! I thank everyone at Hope Montessori Academy,LSL as my daughter steps out of Hope as a confident smart kid ready to face the challenges ahead. I strongly recommend Hope LSL.

My child was enrolled here at Hope Montessori Academy half-time for a month with the intent of…read moretransitioning him to full-time at the end of July. We decided to pull him for several reasons. 1. He was often dirty after coming home. Most days, no one bothered to clean his face after lunch, which bugs me to no end. I've had experience with multiple daycares and a dirty-faced kid is often a sign of neglect in other parts of the school. Not sure who is at fault - the teachers, or the director who doesn't hold them accountable. A clean, happy kid is what I expect when I pick him up, and this expectation was often not met. 2. The staff knew that he still needed help potty training, but one of his teachers we talked to seemed to not mind - she said just bring in extra underwear and shorts. However, we were asked by the director and his other teachers on several occasions why he hadn't been potty-trained and why he was still having accidents. Clearly, the teachers don't communicate amongst each other their expectations for my child. 3. Depending on the day, your kid may not have the same teacher. This is to be expected sometimes, but not as frequently as it did while we were enrolled there. This is confusing for any child and makes it difficult for your child to build trust with their teachers, not to mention build trust with you as the parent. 4. I felt that, since we were half time, we got half time treatment, even knowing that our kid was going to be full time by the end of July. As discerning parents, you should know that not all kids are afforded the same level of care and treatment based on how much you're being billed for their services. 5. My kid was setup to fail on more than one occasion by teachers (and directors) whose judgment should be called into question. Example: my child (2 years old) had a fascination with a bird in one of the classrooms. If you're half time, you have to pick them up by 12:30 PM - no big deal. However, when I went there to pick him up he had been removed from his normal class and was the only kid in the same classroom as the bird. This made him very excitable. He happened to have an accident at the same time, so the teachers were trying to change him. Being that he was in an excitable state, he was running around and wouldn't let anyone pick him up. They finally gave up and told me to take him home as is, with a dirty diaper on. Clearly, the teachers and director used very poor judgment when removing him from his classroom to take him into this room. Further, they refused to change him - going back to the often-dirty face cited above, this was no real surprise. Just a little background: my kid was at a "traditional" daycare for several months before. As an example, our teachers told us that he was the only kid they've ever seen that never, ever hit another kid. Overall, they felt his behavior was pretty typical for a two-year old. I thought that this school could help elevate my child, but I was wrong. To be clear, I'm not blaming the Montessori system, which I believe is good for children and a great child development system. However, Hope's neglectful and misguided implementation of the system leaves a lot to be desired. If you send your kid there, buyer beware. Hope may have a gleaming exterior, but it serves as a shield to its true, dystopic nature.