We worked with Lauren for our 5-year-old who had always struggled with "big feelings" but suddenly…read morehad an aggressive behavioral change. We were walking on eggshells, bracing for violent outbursts, and had run out of strategies (books, podcasts, and Instagram posts could only take us so far!). We contacted Lauren as a referral from our pediatrician and she came within a couple of days. She was direct, honest, flexible, and honored our personal constraints. Within an hour, she had connected with our kiddo and reset the tone for our family. We committed to Lauren's approach. Over the course of several weeks, we saw dramatic improvements in behavior and breakthrough moments that brought tears to my eyes--calming his body, being kind to his little brother, and demonstrating patience. We not only regained control of our household, we learned how to be much more positive and resilient parents. As we reflected back, we spent the prior year+ losing our sh** and thinking that was normal (it probably is "normal"). Lauren was the intervention we didn't realize existed. We are now more equipped, in a way that is customized and works for our very special child. Thank you Lauren!!

Lauren truly is an exceptional behavioral consultant. I can't recommend her enough!…read more She has the ability to strike just the right balance of cool aunt and drill sergeant while working with children. She's so good at what she does that she's able to get the behavioral changes needed while maintaining a positive relationship. Not to mention the children walk away feeling really good about themselves. When speaking with children she truly humanizes their experiences and makes it so relatable for them. She has been instrumental in working with our school and has provided guidance and strategies for the school that are both novel and impactful. This has made a remarkable difference. Finally, she has been immensely helpful in teaching me how to manage behavior at home.

It has been over 1.5 years since my last review, and we love the school as much as we did when our…read morechild started school 2+ years ago! Everyone on staff has been incredibly easy and pleasant to collaborate with, and responsive to my questions. The school expanded over the summer to add 2 more classrooms, so that Burkard now has 6 classrooms: K/1, 2/3, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7/8th. Having experienced a few private schools and a public school between my 2 kids, I am confident this is the best environment for my child, for both academic differentiation and SEL support. It's often lamented that parents have to choose the least bad educational option for their 2e kids, but I truly believe this is a great option. We were fortunate enough to be with his amazing 2/3 teachers for 2 years, and have a new set of teachers we love this year, too. Speaking with parents across grades, they also think highly of their teaching teams. My son continues to thrive academically (measured by his overall engagement, as well as MAP testing), and we are very happy with the math differentiation he receives. Each year, I have been pleased with the attention and care the staff takes to make sure he's challenged at the right level. They take great care to plan engaging lessons across ELA, science, social studies and SEL, and incorporate hands on projects regularly to extend their learning. My son regularly shares interesting facts he learned in class! Math is a subject he continues to be passionate about, so I reach out to the school annually for math acceleration. He is given math assessments at the start of each year to determine the appropriate placement, and is given the option of joining a higher level class, or doing independent study in his classroom. We opted this year to have him join the higher level math class on a modified schedule, and we are grateful for the ability to choose the right option for him. The daily SEL teaching is also very well done. Many schools don't have the ability to go in-depth with SEL, but our BT has devised fun games and exercises for the kids to put their SEL knowledge into practice. It was so sweet to hear that my son's 4th grade class taught new recess games to the K/1 class! The BT's keep a close watch throughout the day, so the students are able to learn and play in a physically and emotionally safe environment. When conflicts arise, the staff is there to help the students resolve the issue in an appropriate way. We get daily reports, and twice monthly newsletters sharing what he's learning, so I know he's receiving a high quality education. If your child is at a school that is not meeting their needs, I encourage you to tour the Burkard School. It is truly a gem of a school!

We found TBS about three years ago and it is quite surprising that there aren't more schools for…read morebright kids who have significant social & emotional challenges, including mood disorders. We unfortunately found very little real understanding and expertise along the way, moving from program to program, from school to school, in every case deeply involved with the IEP process. Then we decided to try TBS. The results have been nothing short of amazing. Our student's self-esteem and emotional intelligence started to grow from the start and has continued to grow ever since. No more calls asking us to come quickly, the benefits to our entire household have been pretty incredible, across parents, siblings, and friends alike. When your student talks to you about how the kids at school are 'just like me', when they express a sense of belonging and common purpose to thrive in the face of big emotions, you can only smile and reflect on the journey. ...and imagine what it's like for other parents to understand you, understand your child, and understand so much of the details of the journey. The TBS community, made up of students, teachers, and parents is one that sees your child as deserving, powerful, and good.

I love this place its my home. I have gone through all of there programs emt and now paramedic. All…read moreI can say is that I would never go anywhere else and honestly hope I can teach there one day.

SEPTAR is one of the few Special Education PTAs in the state of California...and of course I have…read moreto say it rocks since I was a charter member. But seriously folks, if you have a special needs kid in Redwood City, or nearby, or you don't even have a special needs kid, but you want to be around great people who really care about kids and their community, come on down and sign up! Meetings are generally on the 3rd Thursday of the month. Check out the website for more information

My daughter spent 3 years at Stanbridge Academy, the education is definitely a little behind, but…read moremy biggest concern with this school is safety. My daughter was assaulted by male student on campus repeatedly and my daughter informed the principal and several staff members and zero of them reported this to us as her parents or police. In fact when I brought it up to the school they blamed my daughter for the assault, this floored me given this is no where near the truth. If you have a daughter especially please be very careful, no child should have to experience what mine went through and is still going to therapy for 9 months later. The head of the school Julie is the one who blamed my daughter for being assaulted and claimed her word was less credible due to her being autistic, these people are supposed to be keeping our children safe and us as parents informed. Please be careful sending your children here

This school was very helpful for my disabilities. As I first came here in 2012, it was a difficult…read moretime getting to know everyone there at first, but as the years passed by, it got better.

I know this school is built for people with learning disabilities and ASD, but I feel like the…read morestudents here don't reach their full potential. This is not necessarily the faculty's fault, but I think the curriculum here is way too slow and dumbed down for students. My daughter struggled in this school because it was too slow for her, and she was way ahead of her classmates despite having ASD. The accommodations were great, but I believe the school didn't provide my daughter education she actually learned. She would come home and talk about how much she played on an iPad or a device, which is just unacceptable. Why are kids playing video games in class? This is school, they need to be learning different subjects. My kid talked about how their classmates were playing mobile games on their iPads that they brought to school. I think this school can be better if they focused more on pushing kids beyond what is expected, because if we keep holding our children's hands throughout life because they have autism, it invalidates that people with ASD are actually extremely capable of succeeding. I pulled my daughter out of this school, and I believe it was the best decision. She is now an undergraduate and researcher at the University of California, and I notice that no one from Hope Technology school attends the University of California, nor do any of the staff members graduate from there.

Out son had a wonderful experience at HTS that helped prepare him for public high school…read more Incredibly dedicated staff.

This is a fantastic private school for childen with mild to moderate challenges…read more My little 9 year has been in this special needs school for over 3 years. Partial Scholarships can be requesed but, you must qualify. This excellent school is great for children on the Spectrum; includes social, speech, behavorial, occupational, academics. call 650-631-9999 for my info. a satisfied parent

Not only did my brother grow up through the ALLS and Arbor Bay programs but he thrived. It really…read morefelt like a second home. The therapists and teachers know their stuff and care so deeply for each child. You really get the sense that Arbor Bay is a school founded on passion. It has been a staple in the Bay Area community years and I could not recommend a place for your child more highly. Their Teachers, OT's, BT's and SLP's are top of the line. Their classes are honestly amazing for all young children. With the curriculum Arbor Bay provides, your child will develop a STRONG basis for language and intellect in a way THEY can learn, and retain the teachings.

Our son joined Nueva's Upper School this year as a 9th grader (class of 2021). We like Nueva's…read morerigorous high school curriculum; a number of advanced courses can be deemed college-level. Its math sequence is very well thought out (e.g., one track for pure math and one for applied math) and allows plenty of room for advanced students to progress beyond calculus. We are pleased to see that our son has been spending a good amount of time at the I-Lab before/after school (helped greatly by his new found independence via the bike+Caltrain combination) and loves every minute of it! Nueva's Upper School teachers are helpful and highly qualified; many are practitioners/experts in their field. Our son's Japanese language teacher has a wonderful sense of Japanese humor that makes language learning so much more enjoyable. The Upper School has an advisory system that allows small groups of students to interact with their advisors, who in turn provide feedback to parents (especially new families!) on how their kids are doing at school from time to time. It's a great way to integrate incoming 9th graders (i.e., many new friends were made over a 3-day camping trip before start of school) and build strong ties between school and families from the get-go. Our son has a great start of the year with Nueva. Its Upper School is one we would highly recommend for families looking for a well-rounded STEM education and great teachers in a supportive environment for their kids.

I initially became interested in The Nueva School after subscribing to receive job postings. What…read moreimmediately stood out to me was how frequently new openings were being posted -- sometimes seemingly every week. As an educator, that naturally made me wonder about staff turnover. Eventually, I applied for a position and interviewed with someone who honestly seemed very kind and thoughtful. I left the interview feeling optimistic, especially because I was told I would hear back by the end of the week. In education hiring, timelines usually move quickly because schools want to secure teachers for the upcoming school year before candidates accept other opportunities. Weeks went by with complete silence. No follow-up, no rejection email, nothing. Wanting to close the loop professionally, I eventually emailed to thank the interviewer for her time and wish her and her team the best for the upcoming year. Oddly, the message bounced back, even though I had been communicating through that exact same email thread previously. At that point, I honestly began wondering whether the communication had somehow been compromised or whether I had fallen into some strange scam situation. I even called the school directly to verify that the interviewer actually worked there, and thankfully she did. The school then provided me with another email address associated with their official domain. I forwarded my message there as well, but once again received no response at all. Whether the message reached her or not, the overall experience felt surprisingly unprofessional and dismissive, especially after what had initially seemed like such a warm interaction. After later reading additional reviews and experiences from others, I ultimately realized this probably was not the right fit for me anyway. Still, basic communication and professional courtesy go a long way, particularly in education, where relationships and respect matter.

There are two parts to the New Family Program: the Mother-Baby mornings from 0-6 months and the…read moreMovers and Shakers group for babies 5-18 months. The 0-6 month group meets at 10:30am on Tuesday mornings, and the 5-18 month group meets at 11am on Mondays. The older group used to have a small, one-time fee, but both groups are now free. I've been attending the Mother-Baby mornings for the past 4.5 months, and I can't say enough good things about it. The sessions are led by either Marilyn (a RN and lactation consultant) or Nancy (a family therapist), or sometimes both. The moms sit around in a circle with their babies and we go around and say how our babies are doing and we ask each other and the group facilitators all the questions (that Google can't answer) about babies, baby development, poop, pee, milk v formula, sleep, etc. Most of the moms worked before having a baby, and intend to go back to work again -- so there is a career advice and professional networking component as well. When I came to the group for the first time, baby was only 4 weeks old and it was the first time that we had left the house alone together, but this group was totally worth it. The advice is invaluable (particularly to first time moms like me) and I've made a bunch of friends, and having a little bit of structure to the week really helps.

I was in need of a speech therapist with some urgency. Not only was Jackie responsive, she did…read morethorough assessments within a three-week turnaround including observation at my child's school. She was also great at educating us parents on strategies we could implement right away and gave us a framework for understanding the recommendations of other speech therapists. Months later, her recommendations still match our hospital's high standards and her techniques have more depth than even the premier hospital-provided speech sessions we've learned from. Her bedside manner was great with both us as adults and our child, and I'm impressed at her ability to adapt to build trust with our child.

Jackie was our daughter's speech therapist until she turned three. We loved having her come over…read morewith her positivity and encouragement! She made such a big impact in our lives and we are so grateful to her! We highly recommend her services and professionality.