Our whole family loves Star America so much! We took our son here when he was 1 (8 years ago!) until he was 4, and he learned so much, made so many friends, kept in touch with his teachers, etc. They have so many fun events too, like for Mother's & Father's Day, etc.! Fast forward to now, we put our daughter in Ms. Banu's class at 5 months old, and the transition was super easy because Ms. Banu is the BEST (she was at Star America when my son was there 8 years ago (though she didn't teach him directly because he started at age 1), but I remember she always had good vibes and was always so happy being with the babies, and because of her we commute to this location vs the one across the street from us). When you find amazing teachers, you stick with them!! The director Aaron is also amazing, and is always available to give tours, answer any questions, etc. We stayed in touch during the 4 years none of our kids were in daycare, and we were so glad to return to Star with our baby girl! The teachers are also always communicating with us about our baby's progress, they have a Tadpoles app where they upload photos, videos, and notes every day, and they provide extra classes like music, movement, etc. The entire staff does SO MUCH for the kids here, and you can tell they really love them and go above and beyond. Thank you so much Star America, for everything!! read more

Star America - an example of the cute artwork babies do! - Preschools Near Me - New York, New York

Going into our daycare search for our first child, my wife and I were extremely nervous and anxious with our options, because after all, we are entrusting a school with our child's well being. We visited around 10 schools, and landed on Star America. It was the school that was "just right," and after meeting Ms Banu (our child's teacher), we immediately felt comfort. As we left our visit, we spoke to a fellow parent whose child had been there for several months, and she confirmed our impression with the best testimony on Ms Banu and the rest of the Star America staff. Since then, we've never looked back. Ms Banu and team (Ms Tania, etc) look after our child as if they were their own, and their many many years of experience keeps on having us constantly get their input on the many challenges that come for first time parents. We've ourselves felt like Ms Banu's own children, as she has nurtured our anxiety and nervousness with calmness and confidence. The rest of the staff (Mr Aaron, Ms Althea) have shown the utmost professionalism and courtesy to us, and have always treated us in a way where we felt not like a customer, but part of their family. The program and curriculum they put in place have made our son comfortable with other infants and curious in all the good ways. Highly recommend! read more

I sent my two sons from 3-month old as soon as I returned to work. There is no place like Star America in midtown! Teachers are very welcoming and ready to communicate with parents. I love Ms. Banu, Ms. Danjela, and Ms. Lejda! Of course it has Mr. Aaron, the awesome director. Ms. Banu takes care of infant with love and care. I was so worried to leave my first child to a day care when I returned to work, but she took care of him so well based on development stage and he grew up well. So, I didn't worry for second child as long as Ms. Banu is there for us!! Ms. Danjela, a prek teacher, knows exactly what kids need in that age. She communicates with parents what your child needs and improves. Ms Lejda is also great!! We love teachers and school community. read more

We love Star America! We sent our two sons there since 2016. Both of them started when they were 3-months old. Ms. Banu from the infant class is the lifeblood of this place, and she is dedicated, and passionate caregivers. She really takes care of our two sons with love. Thank you Ms. Banu for helping our two sons love school and the day care experience so much! Star America is really the perfect combination of safe play, directed learning, and family-like attention and care. read more

We were looking for a daycare center for our toddler. This was going to be the first time we enrolled our child in a school, so we evaluated our options carefully. Our daughter started with the one-year-old group, and after five months, she transitioned to the toddlers' group. We were very happy with the care the teachers and the directors put into our child. We could also see how she learned and became a more social kid after the pandemic. We are glad we could connect and be part of the Star America community. I would recommend Star America without hesitation. read more

Our son attended Star America before the pandemic began and was in Ms. Banu's infant room. As nervous, first time parents leaving our child for the first time, Ms. Banu immediately put our concerns at ease. Her warm and loving spirit is contagious in her classroom and she treats each child with the utmost care. We left the neighborhood amidst quarantine and as all the daycares shut down in the city. I am so sad that he missed out on more time at Star America and especially with Ms. Banu! read more

We have now been part of the Star America community for a year and are very impressed with the curriculum and care that our 2 little girls are receiving. The teachers are great, especially Ms. Lejda. She has been instrumental in teaching our children about the ocean, sea creatures, abc's 123's, colors of the rainbow and so much more! The girls like pointing out their art projects that decorate the walls. It really is our second home and we are grateful for the direction the Director, Aaron, has taken with the school. Thank you for all that you do! read more

We can't say enough good things about Star America, Aaron (the director), Ms. Kit, Ms. Wendy, and all the rest of the staff. We sent our daughter there in the 18-24 months class with Ms. Kit for a little shy of 6 months (the place shut down during the pandemic, as all the daycares in the city did). We would definitely have continued and thought we would keep our daughter there until she went to preschool. Because of the pandemic, our plans changed and we've left the city, but we would otherwise have stayed with Star America. First off, the cost is extremely reasonable and affordable, particularly vis-a-vis competitor daycares in the area. It may look a little more outdated in terms of paint jobs, but that matches its less frou frou, no frills attitude, which we appreciated. The ability to include meals for $100/month is amazing, as we were with Bright Horizons before and the biggest stress was cooking, packing, and cleaning meals each day. The meals are extremely varied (everything from chicken tikka masala to sloppy joes to pasta dishes) and seemed pretty nutritious and healthy. Secondly, the staff and management are so very receptive and open to feedback. They held parent meetings pretty frequently where they kept all parents informed of current events and policies in the daycare, and parents voiced any concerns, which were actually listened to and taken into consideration. Every month when we'd submit tuition, Aaron would ask if there's anything they can do to improve, and genuinely cared to know. Thirdly, there's a strong sense of community and enrichment. They held many events for the kids, with special visits by singers, musicians, magicians, etc., and frequent potlucks with the class. We met a lot of our daughter's classmates' parents this way and it was nice to feel that sense of community and to be able to find friends for our kids and ourselves. :) Fourth, I cannot sing enough praises of Ms. Kit. She would go absolutely above and beyond for her class and for our daughter. She always had exciting, creative activities for the kids, she read to them, sang to them, and truly loved on each one. We could tell. She put so much care and effort into her daily reports, sent us pictures of our daughter often, was very professional with reporting any incidents or important updates, and it's so obvious she cares so much about her job and the children in her care. In addition, our daughter was an early potty trainee, and even though there's no kids' potty on the 2nd floor (they're on the 3rd floor for ages 2+), Ms. Kit took her to the staff restroom using a potty converter multiple times throughout the day. That's really over-the-top effort, care, and service, that is unsurprising from Ms. Kit b/c if you haven't gotten it by now, she REALLY cares! Thank you Ms. Kit!!! Ms. Wendy (the class assistant) was also very kind, welcoming, and sweet. Reminded me of a nice aunt figure. I think our daughter learned a few Chinese words through her, which we appreciated. Haha :) Fifth, they use the Tadpoles app and it is an extremely informative, engaging app. You get a daily report of meals, diaper changes, naps, etc. They take many photos of your kids throughout the day for you to see what they're up to, with detailed captions. You can also view the weekly menu on the app so you know what your kid is eating that day. So in sum, Star America is awesome all around and we loved our experience there. For the cherry on top, when we got our deposit back, they sent it along with such a sweet send-off note with golden stars on it. We were pleasantly surprised by the note but also not surprised b/c it matches this place's character. Thank you everyone at Star America! We will miss you! read more

***Update*** The school hired a new food vendor who provides healthier options. This says a lot about the management team who seem to genuinely value feedback and want to improve. I haven't seen a lot of plants to improve air quality and the extra classes offered remain the same. Not a big deal. I realize maybe some parents really enjoy the classes offered. And maybe we didn't see the plants in the classroom. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Good -The head teachers are nice and engaging. -The cost is affordable. -My son is enjoys attending. Bad -There seems to moderate turnover problem. The Director (Nikki) just left, and she seemed to be a very good/qualified director. Some of the teacher assistants have recently left. -The teaching assistants generally seem very disinterested (e.g. on their phone, or always looking bored). -Some of the teaching assistants do not speak English very well, which is a problem for toddlers learning to articulate their thoughts. -The food provided by the school is very unhealthy. They serve all the things that parents try to avoid (sugary fruit juices, pancakes with syrup, processed meats). -The building feels very stuffy (bad air quality) with so many kids under one roof. They should buy some plants to help with the air quality. -Extra curricular classes aren't very useful. They offer yoga for an extra fee. I have no problem with the fee. However, it would be much better if they offered a language class like Spanish than yoga b/c kids at that age are already flexible and can't follow Yoga instructions. it's hard enough for adults to follow yoga instructions. Recommendation -They should increase tuition by $50 to $100 to improve food quality, get better assistant teachers and/or offer meaningful language classes. -Alternatively, they should just stop serving breakfast and use those funds to offer a better lunch. Also, STOP serving fruit juices. Kids can drink the water that the parents send with their kids each day. read more

We had our son at Star America for almost 2.5 years, recently moving him to a daycare closer to our new home in Queens just for sake of convenience. We would have kept him at Star America if we were still in the neighborhood, as it is a really loving daycare at a reasonable price. We had a good experience with Star America from the beginning. My son started when he was 4.5 months old, and his teachers from infancy on were loving and engaged. For awhile, I would go in and nurse him once a day, and I was always welcomed and got to observe the teachers reading, playing music, singing songs, and otherwise taking great care of all of the babies. Everyday when I would pick him up, his teachers would tell me all about his day and have a funny story about something he did or something he liked. I really appreciated this effort to engage me as a parent, and it gave me something to talk about with him on the way home everyday. We in particular developed a close relationship with Ms. Luz, who was my son's teacher from age 1-1.5. This was a particularly challenging age for my son, as after he started to walk, he also started to run and climb with coordination well beyond a child of his age. Ms. Luz and the teaching assistant Ms. Shirley created a safe environment for my son to develop physically, emotionally, and intellectually and took his high energy level with good spirits, and Ms. Luz continued to follow his development and engage with us every after our son left her classroom. We indeed had positive experiences with all of my son's teachers, including Ms. Vivian, Ms. Banu, Ms. Kit, Ms. Sophia, and Ms, Lejda, who were all very engaged and loving and who mostly continue to teach at Star America. The one point of slight dissatisfaction we had with Star America was that staff were frequently moved around, such that our son (and his parents!) frequently had to get to know new teachers. The vast majority of the teachers, however, stayed at Star America but were just promoted to new classrooms with more responsibility or to roles in the administration. We thought it was great that there was so little turnover in the teaching staff but just wished there had been more continuity in the individual classrooms. read more

Our daughter has been attending Star America three days a week for the past four months. She started in the Itty Bitty Room and is now in the Bugaboos Room. All of her teachers are fantastic. They are warm and affectionate and I trust them completely. They've all made the effort to get to know my daughter and take an interest in her personal development. She loves coming to school and clearly has had a great time when I pick her up. The school is very accommodating to our schedule. My husband and I both work full-time and it's amazing to have found a place so easy to work with. read more

This is an update from staff member Alicia R. since it does not allow me to reply to her message. UPDATE: Hi Alicia, My accusations were not false. Your school was and is still a nightmare. Very unprofessional and poorly ran. It does not matter how long it took for me to respond. Oddly there was a similar post on here and it has vanished. The fact is what Ms. Luz Cabrera and Aaron Ye did is true. I had several meetings with ACS and with the detective from the police department and both agencies watched the video AGREED what Ms. Luz did on camera was inappropriate and mistreatment of my son. I actually did speak with parents from the school and they did not have positive things to say and explained the reason they still send their children to your school is the affordable tuition. Most of the reviews on yelp look false. You also need to educate yourself and know the difference between maltreatment and mistreatment! The reason why the investigation closed because my son was not in IMMINENT DANGER OF MALTREATMENT although it was INAPPROPRIATE. Like I mentioned before your staff mistreated my child. Aaron Ye admitted the mistreatment in person and in email which I have kept and shown ACS as well. Please do not battle me on the incompetence of your school, or staff. I am a mother first and care about my child and paying more money for HIGHER QUALITY CARE was needed and I done just that. GOOD DAY AND GOOD LUCK! Parents if you are considering this school for piece of mind do not send your children here. read more

My daughter started attending full time last July.  Immediately I could tell she was learning things faster than hanging out with me at home.  The teachers were very caring and immediately eased my worries about leaving my daughter at daycare.  Over the past 7 months, she has enjoyed many different experiences.  Her pediatrician is amazed at how quickly she picks up new things and developing social skills.  The reason I wrote this is because we are going to move to the south next month. I had a great chat with the director and teachers. They make me feel like at home. Thank you Star America, we will miss you. read more

I'm so grateful to have found this little preschool. My daughter has been attending for the last 2 years and loves going to school in the morning. The teachers are warm and caring and always have creative new activities planned. My daughter esp loves Ms. Lejda and I can tell she really tries to make sure it's a fun environment for all the kids. I love that they offer music, dance and fitness classes as well! read more

We had a great experience with our son. The teachers are warm and caring. and the whole school is managed very well. Highly recommended.

My son has been attending Star America for a year and a half now. The school recently re-opened after lockdown and I am impressed with the precautions they have put in place to keep everyone as safe as possible while providing excellent care for the kids. The teachers are wonderful and the tuition is affordable. I highly recommend the school. read more

Do yourself and your child a big favor: go elsewhere.. The director of the school has been changing the staff members and teachers regularly which we found to be concerning. We then heard from other staff members about licensing issues. The director of the school kicked us out of the school the same day we called the Department of Health since we had a bad feeling about staffing and licensing. We got an e-mail with "proof" that there were no violations and a letter stating that they are terminating our child's enrollment effective immediately!! Can you be anymore unprofessional than this??? We asked to speak to the owner and we were told he is on vacation and when I asked to speak to him on the phone he never answered the phone. I can't wait to see the response I will get form Dana who cannot take responsibility and will tell you this came from management and she has nothing to do with that. Our beautiful child is enrolled in a great school around the corner. In short, we are happy to be out of this school and happy to be in a professional run business. read more

This is the best pre-school I could ever think of. My Maria has been there for 3 years, 5 days a week and she loved every minute spent there. The teachers are fabulous! They have given us so much love and support. They make this place feel like home. If not this school and its patient, enthusiastic and creative teachers, our Maria wouldn't pass the Gifted&Talented exam scoring 98th percentile. My wife and I truly appreciate all of their hard work! I can't imagine a better place for a child. I'd like to give special thanks to Ms. Paulina, Ms. Miriam and Ms. Banu. All above could not have been accomplished without you!!! We miss you a lot! Adam and Ewelina PS: I have just read below an exchange of emails of someone who didn't like the school. I'm shocked. I can assure all readers that this person is just harassing the school with no reason. I know all parents that had their children in the same class that my Maria was in and I know that all of them absolutely love the school. We (i.e. parents) have met a few times off school, in a park, just for our kids to play together. We have talked about SA endless times, everyone loves them. I sent my child to SA 3 years ago based on recommendation of my best friend (named Marquez) who had 2 of his kids there for 3 years. He absolutely loved the school too and this is how I found it. I will ask him to write about his experience here to prove what I say. read more

A coworker recommended using this daycare. She took her son here as an infant, shortly after leaving he got into a school for gifted children in Manhattan. We have been taking our son here since he was 6 months old. He's almost 3 years old now and is reading short sentences. Our second son who is nearly one is also attending. From the infant room all the way up to the 4 year old class, the teachers are great and the environment is comfortable. The location is convenient and the price is better than anything we've seen in the city. It's perfect for the new parent that would like to stop in to see his or her kids on lunch break. read more

I'm a current parent at Star America and I LOVE this school, so does my 2 year old. She's learned so much in the past 14 months here. The teachers are very caring and the administrators very involved. The classrooms are large and clean and the children get to learn from each other! My little one has never had more than 7-10 classmates. I love it most because she is close to me while I'm working, just 1 block away, so I can get there easily if she needs me! We'll be here through pre-k! read more

This is clearly one of the best day cares in Manhattan. The focus is to educate the kids through play based learning. The kids have great facilities and great teachers. There are ballet classes, soccer classes, and trips to the library. Very friendly teachers. A wonderful director. It's a great place for children to play and learn. The four's class is amazing. Miss Paulina is a miracle worker. She teaches the kids through activities. I am so impressed at how much my son has learnt. Small classes so each child is given a lot of individual attention. Each kids excels at kindergarden after Miss Paulina's class. The other teachers are also fabulous and cater to each child. Both my sons love it here. read more

We enrolled my daughter into Star America for 3 days a week, while she attended another school closer to our home for 2 days a week. We needed the spot urgently as my wife started work and we needed our daughter to be in school for 5 days. Start America was very receptive and helped us get settled into the school very quickly. The children and teachers there are great and we've seen a lot of great improvement with our daughter over the last couple of months. One of the key activities that sparks our daughters interest is the Critter Nanny program they have. A chance for the child to touch and learn about little animals. Great program! Great school with great teachers. Recommend it to other parents. read more

This is a really great place. I enrolled my six month old son few months ago. Whenever I am there the babies are all happy as could be with no tears in sight! The staff is really nurturing, loving and patient. I have found the staff really fast to respond to emails or any other inquiries we have. I'd would absolutely recommend. read more

I have to say it is hard to find a nice daycare around my new working place for my 25 months boy. I didn't expect to find here before i walked passing by 8th Ave for my lunch couple months ago. Generally speaking I am very satisfy about the staff and facility here. One thing I really appreciate is that director Nikki taught me alot about child care knowledge from parent-child sharing reading to toddler body strentch tips. Hope my boy can enjoy everyday here! read more

Honestly, I don't know where to start. I can't possibly say enough good things about Star America. From the second we put our 1 year old daughter into the school, we have seen her grow and blossom into such a smart, sweet and confident toddler. The Little Bears teachers are simply amazing, and Mrs. Banu is a blessing and always lended a helping hand for after care. We look forward to their care, and watching our future babies too! Thanks SO much, from the bottom of our hearts! You guys ROCK!! read more

The teachers are caring and attentive, and our daughter is very happy to go to school every day. The administration has changed once in the last 6 months we've been part of the school, but seems for the better - communication has improved, and lots of extracurricular activities are being added. It is a convenient school for working parents as breakfast and lunch are offered at the school. Lastly, our daughter seems to be learning a lot - she knows her ABCs and numbers at 20 months! We are very happy with the school. read more

My daughter had stayed with Star America from 2.5 years-old through 4.5 years-old. I highly recommend this school to all parents in NYC. The school is a great hybrid of educational and daycare facilities. Excellent teachers, thanks especially to Ms. Nikki, Mrs. Paulina, Ms. Regina, and Ms. Banu. I was always amazed with the amount of worldly knowledge she brings home with. Her intelligence... had been well enriched with her experience at star America! My daughter is starting her Pre-K at the nearby public school in this coming September. I am strongly confident that Star America has prepared her well for such a new challenge. So, thank you read more

No words can express how happy I was with Star America. The staff members are very caring and always put up with my many requests. Every month there are activities for me to complete with my child, which I enjoy very much. It helps me bond with my child and be a part of my child's education. The new enrichment classes are also a bonus, since we did not have to pay extra. My son comes home every Tuesday showing me he can point and flex and the new ballet moves he learned. He recent took up Spanish as a foreign language and we learn a few words from him. We definitely recommend this preschool! read more

I highly recommend Star America. Nikki the director is very nice and accommodating. It was my sons first time going to daycare and she made sure to keep me up to date on how my son was doing and reassure me he was having a great time. He was in Ms Luz class who is the absolute best!! All the teachers there are very caring and really love the children. It is a great place! read more

I have gone to plenty of preschool prior to enrolling my son in this school and I must say this is the full package! This Preschool covers numbers, letters, science, lots of art and many more... The director and teachers makes it a point to display all of the kids art work and does seasonal/ event bulletin boards! This is an amazing experience for my son. The school is well-managed by the director and even though the daycare is big it has accommodated all of my wife and I special requests personally. I can't say enough about this wonderful establishment. I can't wait for my second child to go to this school. read more

I was looking for a preschool for my daughter, and comparing to all local places this one is by far the best! As soon as I walked in I felt a good vibe from the stuff and the director. She is very professional and knowledgeable and had answers to all of my questions. The teachers are friendly and I like the fact that they take the kids out to the park often. Every time I pick up Sophia, she has a smile on her face and brings home new art projects. The director is very creative with that. I would highly recommend Star America to my friends and family read more

My daughter and son both attend Star America and we felt in love with the place. My children loved the teachers and teacher assistants. They were safe and always had new art projects for us. My children made friend and had playdates. Great place for working parents and for babies and toddlers to socialize. Some of the parents and I were concerns about staff switching classroom or once you were comfortable with teachers they would leave and new staff will come. They same with directors. As parents we never got notification of staff leaving or new teacher arriving in the classroom. The director never seem to have a direct answer and always said she will speak to owner or upper management, but no actual results. School management was unreliable and unprofessional. This does make it difficult for parent to prepare our little ones for school. I did pull out my children for a better school in the neighborhood. read more

Star America is just that- a star school! The classrooms are beautiful- big and bright. It's not a big school so that makes it even better, you get to know the kids by name after only a short while. The teachers are amazing- Ms. Regina and Ms. Banu!! I can't rave enough about the director of the school Nikki, who has really added to the value of this institution. She is extremely down to earth, VERY UNDERSTANDING, and super professional. I am so glad I came across this school. My child is safe, happy and in good hands. Breakfast and lunch are catered and they actually have separate bathrooms for boys and girls (which my daughter's previous school didn't have). I would give it 10 stars if that were an option. read more

I use Star America once a week as backup daycare. My daughter (6 months old) loves it here! It is clean and organized and has great toys and activities for babies. The teachers are very sweet and patient and I can tell my daughter likes it there as she starts smiling when she sees the teachers. Every time I've stopped in (they have an open door policy) the babies are happy and everyone is calm and well cared for. The report I get at the end of the day is helpful for knowing what kind of day my daughter had - what she ate, how many diapers she had, what she did (rattle games, story time, etc) and what her mood was like. The only con I could say is that its sometimes hard to get through on the telephone if you need to speak with the director, but she is always quick to call back and she is very professional, polite and sweet. read more

The school is falling apart with leakes in the ceiling in the classrooms. The elevators to the building are constantly broken which is a very big concern when you have babies , carriages, and a daycare in a building. What I really found very disturbing was...The smell of poop & urine when you first walk in the daycare. The changing table for the babies theirs no privacy nor door . Which everyone can see you changing the children when they first walk in. Very disorganized, dirty toys, and not a clean environment where I would put my child. read more

I cannot say enough wonderful things about this school. This was my son's first school experience, and I am thankful that Star America provided him with such a warm, welcoming, and nurturing environment. His teachers and the director were patient and kind, and they gave my son the attention and love that he needed. He was greeted warmly every morning, and everyone there knew his name. He learned so much from them- both academically and personally. I especially like how he learned how to be an independent problem solver and participate socially with his peers. We recently moved out of town and we were so sad to say goodbye to everyone. I can only hope that our next experience will be as positive and memorable as Star America! read more

Our son attended Star America for 9 months starting around the time he turned one. We picked Star America because the location was right near my work, the price was right, and we fell in love with the school when we took the tour. We were SO incredibly happy during our time there. The teachers were all positively lovely and I know my son had a great time while also learning so much. He made so many leaps even in the first month he was there. The school is very good at including the parents for special parties and events and was also excellent at communicating with us about how our son's day to day was going... How he was eating, what he was doing developmentally, etc. I never once questioned his safety or care at Star America. There were days I went to pick him up and he would not want to leave! The only reason we aren't still at Star America is because I unfortunately lost my job and it no longer made sense to commute all the way into midtown just to drop him off at school when we live in Brooklyn. We were devastated to leave! Highly recommend this school! read more