I am a co-teacher/mom at Austin Classical and fall more in love with the school and community each…read moreday. The classical curriculum is not only engaging and challenging but has shown me that this is how children are meant to learn (especially after experiencing a public school education). The community is one of love and support, each family is there for a deeper purpose and that shines in the relationships that are built not only in the children, but in the adults as well. "For Christ and His glory" goes much beyond a motto and is truly the cornerstone and mission of ACS. We are so thankful to be a part of this beautiful school and community!

Austin Classical School has been an incredible blessing for our family. We changed schools half way…read morethrough the educational journey part of our parenthood and came in cautiously after having a poor experience elsewhere. Austin Classical met and exceeded every hope and expectation we could have for our 4 children who are different learners. I couldn't name all the wonderful things but: incredible leadership, quality educators, beautiful and thorough curriculum, and stellar community are true benefits of this school. My children are thriving and love school. We are so grateful for ACS!

We are so thankful for this program. Our daughter just completed her first year there and the…read moregrowth and development we see in her is incredible. Monica is not only an amazing teacher, but an incredible support for helping us raise our children in the best possible way. Our daughter is so confident, has learned how to play independently and be at ease in a way we never saw before. Her imagination and love for art have grown so much, as well as her physical strength. She can climb trees, and play with just about any rock or stick anywhere we go. The love and dedication Monica put into this program and all the children is very clear, and the amazing bonus has been the great community of caring parents we have met through the school. We will always be grateful to have found Maestra Monica, our daughter looks forward to school everyday and we look forward to the years ahead being a part of this community.

Banyan Forest Kindergarten is a magical place! The kindergarten combines two of the most important…read morethings we were looking for that we couldn't find in any other school in the Austin area - a true forest school where the children are outside all day and a Waldorf teaching philosophy. Monica Martinez is an exceptional teacher - she is experienced, thoughtful, and intentional with her guidance to the children and to us as parents. Banyan effortlessly combines a true Waldorf curriculum (woodwork, knitting, watercolor) with a true forest school (almost the entire day in nature, kids climbing trees, playing in mud, running in the forest, jumping in puddles) -- it is a dream of a school & we are so grateful to have found this community!

Good place just a lot of discipline but I can't complain I'm getting an education. There are some…read moreteachers who are really good teachers but the students are the ones who don't listen that's why I keep to myself and get good grades.

Our experience at Paragon did not align with the individualized, child-centered education that was…read morepresented when we enrolled. While the school offers a structured and academically rigorous environment, we found that the approach was not as personalized as we had hoped for our child's specific learning needs. The Valor program, which was described as providing additional support, functioned primarily as a quiet space for students to complete homework rather than a program focused on building executive functioning skills, learning strategies, or individualized academic support. Paragon's curriculum moves at a fast pace, with significant homework and testing expectations. For some students, especially those who require a more tailored approach, this can mean parents may need to provide additional instruction and support at home in order for their child to keep pace. We also found that the staff's experience and approach to supporting a wide range of learning profiles varied, and the level of individualized support did not meet what we had hoped to find. That being said, Paragon's main strength is its activity calendar. The school provides a wide range of activities throughout the year, and we found both the teachers and students to be kind and welcoming. For families looking for a traditional, academically challenging environment with a strong focus on homework, testing, and keeping students on pace, Paragon may be a good fit. However, for families seeking a highly individualized, child-centered experience designed around diverse learning needs, I would encourage them to ask detailed questions about the specific supports available before enrolling.

The staff at Paragon make all the difference. You can see their commitment to the school and…read morepassion for the kids. We have 2 kids attending and like the diversity, high expectations, and school culture. They both love this school and enjoy events like "roller skating week", pool parties, lots of after school sport options and overnight trips. This helps them bond with both students and teachers. Paragon offers high academic standards mixed with life skills. We like the focus on a well-rounded education with academics at least 1 grade level above the standard. In elementary, they are also developing good social skills, learning responsibilities, and planning skills for future academic success. (For example, Paragon gives kids a daily planner to track their homework assignments and get parent signatures for visibility). In middle school, there are lots of team projects, hands-on opportunities, presentations, and field trips. (Projects like running a small business during lunch and breaks.) There are many resources for parents and a great community within and around the school. We recommend this school to friends also.

Dr. Harper has been my daughter and my sons' educational advocate for over 10 years. My daughter…read morehas Down Syndrome and my son is high-functioning Autism. She has helped create creative and functional goals that have extremely benefited my children. Not too many advocates have not only been a special education teacher in various grades but also have a child with special needs herself. Her specialty is Advocacy, and she knows the ins and outs of what is reasonable to ask of a school and what the school's responsibility is to provide. Her presence at each one of my kids' ARD meetings has allowed me to be a mom and let her advocate for what's best for my children's future. I can't say enough about my experience working with Harper Advocacy. I'm not sure my children would have received the resources they needed without her. Her knowledge and advice are worth every penny! I'm glad to have Dr. Harper in my corner during this journey.

As a parent of young children, I primarily rely on the good word and referrals from other parents…read morewhen it comes to care and school for my kids. At the height of Delta infections, I was seeking a new school for my toddlers. All the schools I knew of in my area did not have openings. It was the first time since my kids were born I relied solely on a brief tour, and the listed childcare license at the TX department of human services website to enroll my kids at GAP-PLC. Therefore, I'm writing a review for any other parents looking to enroll their kids at this school given there are no online reviews available. I will start with what we appreciated about this school. My spouse and I are avid community members and both work in the social services field. So when we read the mission of GAP-PLC we were excited about what they were building and providing for the Austin community. The tuition for GAP-PLC is also incredibly affordable and they also provide 3 meals a day which was very convenient for busy parents. Her website says the children need to be 3 and above to attend. Our children were under 3 and the owner was flexible in allowing our twins to still enroll. When our children were scared after reading the Three Little Bears, she bought them stuffed animal bears to help them navigate their fears. Lastly, the school's policy requires all children to wear collared shirts, she gave us two as a donation since we didn't have any on hand. Unfortunately, many aspects of the school did not work for our family. Once we started, we received written notice about something that was wrong almost every week. The notices were always very formal and were not prompted by any informal discussion. This type of communication felt very rigid, cold, and transactional in nature. Not the type of communication we are used to or expected from a school that is working to build strong relationships with parents. Second, these 'written notices' were about what our children were not doing right by the school's standards. In these notices, we were told that our children were not acting in a way that was developmentally appropriate for GAP-PLC (not going to the bathroom as self-sufficient students and not communicating during circle time). Our children were 2.5 years old. Instead of recognizing where our children were at developmentally (which was incredibly normal for their age), GAP-PLC informed us that if our kids did not comply they would be kicked out of the school. I can't force my kids to wipe themselves when they physically don't have the dexterity to do so and I can't force them to talk in a space where they don't want to. The final straw was when she sent us a written notice inappropriately labeling our children as selectively mute and was going to separate our twins from each other and put them on a behavior plan. Fortunately, we are actually mental health professionals who knew our children were not mute in any way (but other parents may have accepted this unqualified and misdiagnosis as truth) and were incredibly frustrated with how inappropriate this entire exchange was. It is in my years of experience in social policy that education performance being driven by test scores is what actually furthers inequities in our education system, which would be the antithesis of GAP-PLC's mission. When we expressed our genuine concern over the phone with the owner of the school, she emailed us the next morning saying our children had to leave the school. Fortunately, she did say we could finish out the month while we found a new place. I was so angry I wanted to just pull them out, but our daughters did enjoy the school and we really had no other options at the time. We lasted six weeks and the entire experience left us hurt and stressed. Luckily, we found a school right in our neighborhood that our children were able to enroll into quickly. Within days, the owners noted how brilliant our children were and how much they talked at school. It's just a reminder that your kids will thrive in a place that is developmentally appropriate and safe for them.

Dr Hicks is absolutely amazing!! My husband and I could not be more pleased with the school and…read moreamazed at how much growth our son as shown. Dr Hicks is a stickler of the policies for her school, which we like as some parents think they can get by with the things and when they are called out on it have an issue with the policies. So happy we were referred to this school.

This school is a hidden gem and offers a holistic education! I encourage interested parents to…read morevisit the school to better understand what the school offers. The curriculum is taught in both german and english. It's been a great way for our child to gain fluency in german even though no one in our family is a native speaker.

We were referred to Michal by my daughter's college counselor.   As soon as we met with Michal, we…read moreknew he was the tutor to go with for ACT prep.  He worked with my daughter over ~6 months and during that time helped her raise her ACT score by 5 points.   We are very thankful for Michal and his very effective tutoring process.   I highly recommend his services.   With some hard work and Michal's expertise, you'll get the results you are looking for!

I took the GRE test prep over this summer and am so happy I did! The price for the class is…read moreunbeatable and I scoured the web trying to find classes that could beat theirs. In addition, the personal attention and constant help you will receive from these teachers is outstanding. Michal and Daniel truly care about your success not only in the class but also your success in the admissions process and life after your exam! I took the GRE one time after taking their course and used that exam score to apply to graduate schools for a Master's in Business Administration. I was very excited to receive my acceptance letter a week after applying to the Business Graduate school of Texas State University in San Marcos, TX that I had been accepted to start my graduate education in the Spring of 2015! Super thankful for ATX Test Prep and the professional and kind service of these teachers and advisers.