I cannot say enough wonderful things about the STEP-UP CAREER ACADEMY CENTER From the moment I…read morewalked through the doors, we felt a warm and welcoming atmosphere that immediately put us at ease. The staff is professional, nurturing, and genuinely cares about each child's well-being and development. The children have thrived in their care throughout the years--socially, emotionally, and academically. They also offer a great variety of activities like music, art, Storytime, and outdoor play that keep the kids engaged and excited to come each day. I absolutely love his company, thank you for all you do to help, grow, and prepare our children for their future. Review from Alisa D. Wimbley Chicago, IL.

I have nothing but positive things to say about this daycare/school. The staff and owners are very…read moreprofessional and are very nice people. The teachers are great. Ms. Shawny is a sweet person. She keeps this place going. If you want your child to attend a school where the staff and taechers care and actually teach your child and focus on development and social skills as well personal growth, this should be your choice . The extra activities is a plus.. always learning and stepping up on another level at A Step UP Career Academy.

I honestly really recommend this daycare, the environment is loving and healthy and the owner…read morealways ensures to keep the kids happy by providing them with lots of toys and fun educational activities. The kids are super sweet and nice they are so fun to be around.

Maria Montessori would be gravely disappointed! My early education began with Montessori, which is…read morewhy I was excited to have my three year old son attend this year. I have always believed the Montessori methods and the philosophy of the program; however I was completely unimpressed with this particular location and the head mistress in specific. It turned out to be no more than an intolerant day care facility at best; they should not be allowed to call themselves educators. After three days, they informed my nanny when he went to retrieve my son from school that he wasn't welcome back and it would be his last day. The head mistress made no attempt to contact a parent to discuss with them personally what the particular issues were, what they were doing to attempt to rectify internally, and what we as parents could be doing at home to reinforce. Very disappointing after day three; are you kidding? When asked to make an appointment to speak with her further about the situation my request was denied stating that my check and some of his belongings were in the mail... Let me add that my son attended another pre-school prep program successfully the year prior (his teacher and her aides were disappointed to see him go when we moved) and is in week two of a new program without any issue. If you are looking at educational facilities for your preschooler be certain to research other Montessori facilities in the area and pass this one by!!!

Miss Karen & crew are legendarily extraordinary at what they do. The proof is in the kids. On…read moremore than one occasion my son has asked me why I don't bake with him as much as Miss Karen does. And, why don't we make homemade butter at home like they do at school. The teachers are "co-learners" at their best. You can tell they love what they do, which is why kids are so successful after they leave their school. Hands-down the best choice I have ever made for my little family.

Hello, I love Kiddie…read moreKarehouse! They are special to my heart. The teachers, the administratiom, and overall atmosphere of the building is great! I appreciate everything they do for my son. He's been here for almost 3 years. Great experience.

I love this place!! This was a great choice and so convenient between work and home. My son is…read morelearning so much daily. Good behavior, communication, accountability. And of course the academics. It warms my heart when I see his growth and witness him teaching others what he has learned from the day. The staff is amazing, facility is clean and safe.

Amazing experience for children to learn both academic and socially ! Very caring and patient…read moreteachers. Gated outdoor play area and challenging learning opportunities.

Extremely lucky to have found Kiddie Academy for my childcare needs. The entire staff is amazing,…read morethe building and classrooms are always extremely clean and my baby is getting a true curriculum to support her growth and development!

I don't normally review services. I this case, I wanted to overlook the ineptness of their service…read more I watched my boy tracing only his first and last names for months. Me and my wife decided to keep him at this facility just for social interaction with other kids. We were preparing him for kindergarten. Because his birthday month his August, he will have to go through assessment to be accepted into Kindergarten program. We have to prepare him by ourselves in everything from reading to arithmetics. This is not our first rodeo. When our little girl was in pre-K class at a different facility, she will come home with reading, writing, shapes, matching, coloring, drawing.., assignment, preparing them for Kindergarten. The horrible service we received from here made us appreciate Williams Christian daycare more. I would have let this bad curriculum slip, but they did the worst when they charged us extra week of service we did not receive. They claim we did not give them 2 weeks notice which I did but their email bounced 3 times before it finally delivered. I even faxed it to them when I was not sure if the email was delivered. I pay out of pocket, am not relying on government help because I can afford it, but I hate extortion. This does looks like it. They said, "their email that bounced back is my problem and my fault." I am a trained teacher and I know what an excellent teaching looks like. They probably have standardized curriculum given to them by the state, but do not know how to execute it. They even played on my intelligence a little that they were going to return my money by collecting my card information telling the money will be return in 4-5 business days. Only to call back after 2 weeks and listen to their BS. The $296 they took from my card probably enrich their pocket, but it shows that they only care about the money and deliver zero excellence.

Our oldest finished the Pre-K program here and our youngest is currently enrolled. Our oldest is…read moredoing an excellent job in Kindergarten this year thanks in part to what he has learned at Thornridge. The class sizes are good and the teachers are great and very caring! It is like a small family here. The classes cover many different topics and are very "hands on". There is a play area for open play and a large room for more exercise type activity. There are educational field trips throughout the school year. The only reason its not 5 stars is because I would prefer a longer (duration) learning program instead of 2.5 hours per day. Very happy to be part of the Thornridge family!

I cannot say enough good things about Thornridge. My oldest child just graduated from the Pre-K…read moreprogram and is very prepared for kindergarten. He had such an unbelievable and valuable experience at Thornridge that he was actually crying and truly sad it was over (as was I). He has built many incredible friendships and has nothing but great memories from the classroom to the fun field trips he attended. The teachers genuinely care about the children and are very creative in the lessons they teach. For instance, learning the alphabet, numbers, teaching the kids to write their names, and even cooking! They are very involved with every activity they do and truly enjoy teaching the children. They put so much more time into the regular school day (2.5 hrs), their day is not over after 11:30 am, by no means. I am very happy that my youngest son will be going there next school year for the 2 day program and then the following year for the 5 day Pre-K program. I know he will have the same special experiences and build friendships like me oldest son did. Very happy and thrilled to be a part of the Thornridge family!

Patti Komara's Tumblebear Connection offers gymnastics, dance, cheer, and swim preschool yoga, and…read moreGym-N-Learn (an educational preschool) year-long lesson plans, gymnastics training DVDs, business lectures on DVD, plus over 80 other products to choose from. Also available, phone consultations with Patti Komara. 30 day money-back guarantee on all products! Go to www.tumblebear.com to review their products or call 219-865-2274.

I had my daughter enrolled in Tumblebears through her preschool. The instructors lacked knowledge…read moreof skills and had a hard time running classes. Also, the class NEVER ran on time. When I tried to address the issues, I got NO response.