The owner saved my life when I was a child here. Literally. I was a baby, stopped breathing due to…read morea seizure, and she did mouth to mouth as another teacher called 911.
When I had my son nearly 30 years later and moved back to Spokane, we were lucky enough to get a spot here. My son had been to three other day cares (kinder care, then another center in CA, and a military child care facility). Out of all three day care centers, this one is by far the best. My son has separation anxiety from all our moves, but the staff here are wonderful and supportive. I stayed with my son for a few hours the first few days to help him adjust, and was very impressed with what I saw from the teachers and children.
Whenever he had a hard time at drop-off, they scooped him up, re-directed him or comforted him. By the end of the day he didn't want to leave because he was having so much fun!
The teachers are experienced and have great relationships with the kids; they teach them how to be good friends to each other and how to behave well to keep everyone safe.This was the place where my son learned how to play nicely with other children and start empathizing. When a child does misbehave the teachers are firm, but they still respect the child; all the kids see this and understand. They are truly treated like independent individuals, and the teachers help them realize that they can make good decisions on their own.
While mine was their worst medical emergency (hopefully it stays that way), my son had his own mishap there. They called to tell me that he had bitten his tongue open when he fell, and it was a sizable wound. Of course I was very worried about him, and distressed that he got injured. But I knew they were more than capable of taking care of him while I drove over, and that they would have called 911 if it had been necessary. He didn't need stitches, and they were wonderful about warming up the mush I brought for him as his tongue healed.
In addition to the social and safety aspects, this child development center and its teachers offer wonderful activities that run the spectrum of artistic, academic, physical, and more. My son always came home with inventive art projects, letters that he had practiced, and would sing new songs he had learned that day. They also give the kids plenty of time to run and play outside, even holding water play days and transportation days (where the kids can bring their tricycles to ride around outside).
We are military, and unfortunately had to move. We were lucky enough to have our son at Fantasy Farm for a little over a year. If we had been able to stay in Spokane, I would have kept him there until he started elementary school, and probably would have had him in the after school and summer programs as well.
This review might sound too good to be true, but if you visit and observe the classes, the kids and the teachers, you'll see for yourself that it is a fantastic place. I recommend Fantasy Farm to anyone without reservation.
