Having our daughter in Pea Pod during her toddler years was a wonderful experience! She thrived under the loving care of the parent coaches, Tara and Jasmine, and other parents. I also learned a lot about parenting from our discussions and readings at our parent meetings (especially "No Bad Kids" by Janet Lansbury). The co-op experience is unique because you get to be in the classroom regularly along with a parent coach and two to three other parents each day. It creates a very special community experience, and you get to be there with your child as they learn and grow. As a new parent with a Covid baby, I was so thankful to find a strong community at Pea Pod. I'm still close with many other parents from our cohort, and I love that our kiddos have known each other for over half of their lives! Most importantly, I feel like my child was truly cared for, respected, and allowed to be herself at Pea Pod. This meant - and still means - so much to me. It was the best childcare experience I could've wished for during those two precious years of my daughter's life, and I would recommend Pea Pod to any parent looking for loving care and a community for themselves and their child! read more

Peapod is an unlicensed, unregulated co-op preschool operating out of Tabor Space in Portland. As of July 2025, they were cited by DELC for unlawful care. No license, no DHS oversight, no required training, and no accountability if a child is harmed. They employ Jasmine Kennedy, who is unregistered and has no early childhood education experience (confirmed via her own public LinkedIn profile). She doesn't lead activities or engage with the kids meaningfully. Crafts were never more than paint haphazardly smeared onto paper out blocks of wood. Never once did we see a semblance of any kind of planned lessons or sessional activities from this "teacher." (Even through peapod says she's not a teacher, she's listed as such on both their website and her own LinkedIn). Multiple children, including ours, disclosed being grabbed, yelled at, and made to feel unsafe by her. When we raised concerns, the board shut down communication, deleted our posts, and said we needed to "manage our energy" at drop-off. No one ever asked how our child was doing. A leaked multi-page board document reveals a disturbing pattern: after a child disclosed being hurt by Jasmine while alone with her, the board portrayed the parents as the problem. They called the mom manipulative, overly anxious, and mentally unwell, implied her concerns were racially motivated, and labeled both her and the child liars. Jasmine was described as emotionally overwhelmed and burnt out, with the document centering her discomfort, not the child's safety. Multiple other parents had also shared concerns about Jasmine being rough, but those were ignored as "boundary setting." Instead of addressing her behavior, the board unanimously voted to terminate the family's enrollment claiming the family was "a harm to the community." Since speaking out, Peapod leadership has labeled us mentally unstable, mirroring the retaliation described in their own records. Peapod uses community-friendly language, but behind the scenes it silences parents and protects unqualified staff at kids' expense. read more

I'm gonna be straight with you, I fucking love Pea Pod! We looked high and low for the perfect "pre-preschool" for our toddler son. Nothing met my need to be involved, my husbands need for a teacher, and our son's need for consistent respectful RIE values. Enter Pea Pod... We immediately felt a sense of community - unique to the co-op model - which was a huge and unexpected bonus for us. The director, Tara, is currently filling the role of teacher/parent coach in the classroom. She is a toddler whisperer and we have learned a ton about ways to respectfully approach conflicts with our son and between children. The program has a loose daily schedule and curriculum that is perfect for toddlers. With daily discovery activities, weekly yoga and music, and plenty of free play, there's just the right amount of structure while still leaving room to follow the children's interests and lead. Leaving at the end of this month is going to be really hard, but I am confident that our time at Pea Pod has built a solid foundation for our son to enter a "big kid preschool". I am infinitely grateful for the time we spent in this community! read more

Pea Pod is an amazing co-op childcare program run by an incredibly kind, passionate, and patient executive director / parent coach. This program is as much about learning to communicate effectively with your kiddo as it is about social emotional training for the littles. The added bonus is the weekly childcare provided by a lovely diverse community that you will get to know and love! The room and playground are both clean, organized, and visually stimulating. The daily schedule gently guides the group of kiddos throughout a range of activities which include fine and gross motor play time (inside and outside), music, art, books, yoga, Spanish story time, snack, and lunch. My husband and I are so grateful we had the chance to be a part of this community. We have met families who will be longtime friends. We have struggled through developmental milestones right alongside other parents going through the same things. And most importantly, we've seen Tara model successful communication techniques that we've used outside of Pea Pod over and over. I don't know how we would have made it through years 2 and 3 without Tara's coaching. If you are an open minded, flexible family looking to learn with other parents and to gain a few hours a few days a week for yourself, then take a tour and get on the waiting list! read more

My son has been going to Pea Pod for about a year and we love it. We have all learned so much and feel that we couldn't have chosen a better fit for our needs. Tara is an excellent 'teacher' as she is so consistent with the children as far as dealing with conflicts, general communication, and routine. Also, as the Parent Coach, she has taught me so much; how to effectively communicate with my son through his toddler journey, how to handle conflicts with my son at home, and to utilize "shame-free" parenting tools in frustrating situations with my son. It has made me a far more patient and understanding parent. I will be sad when my son ages out of this program but feel that the friends I have made, and the friends my son has made, will be friendships we will have for a very long time! read more

My family recently joined the Pea Pod playschool, and we feel lucky to have found it! As a cooperative, the playschool is parent run, and an extraordinary executive director and board of directors oversee the program and offer support. My two-year-old son's world has gotten so much bigger and more interesting, and Pea Pod provides a caring, knowledgeable, and self-aware community for parents, too. It's a wonderful learning experience! read more

My love for Pea Pod makes it overwhelming to write this review. I don't know where to begin. My daughter just finished there after 2+ years and I appreciate that it got better and better as we went there. The "we" is a very important part of Pea Pod as it is a coop playschool. This means you are involved in its operations, as well as its success, in some capacity. I loved how involved I got to be in my daughters play and learning there. The parent coach, Tara, is incredible with the kids and a superb example of respectful and gentle parenting. I never questioned that my daughter would feel like a whole and complete person while in her care. Tara is also the director of the program and is always trying to improve and enrich the program. We LOVE this place! If you have a somewhat flexible schedule and are looking for a community of lovely parents with which to trudge through the toddler years, I seriously can't recommend this playschool enough! read more

Our youngest blossomed while attending Pea Pod, and our second has just started there as well. A *great* play school, and a fantastic community -- I feel lucky to be a part of it! read more