This daycare has changed my child's life !!! The staff are…read moreamazing they are so good with my child . My son looks forward to going unlike his last daycare when he would cry when he got there to now jumping with excitement . They have always been very pleasant and inclusive with my son who is on the autism spectrum. I cannot express how much I appreciate this daycare for the love and acceptance he has received I highly recommend this daycare I would give more then five stars if I could. Thanks for listening.

This daycare has been a dream. They have made my child feel like family. The daycare is incredibly…read moreclean, bright, new and open. There is a very cool play area for the kids behind the building in which my daughter calls the "wooded area" where they have part of the woods fenced off so the kids can play in there and still be safe. My daughter has learned so much thanks to the program they run and also how great the teachers are. The owner is a great caring person and is loved by all of the children. This is an around great place for children and I would recommend it in a heart beat.

I was in shambhala school from primary - 6 grade for the amount of money you would spend per year…read moreon education, it isn't better than public school education, which is free.

Attended primary-gr 7, elementary school was good. I highly suggest to put your kids in a different…read moreschool for grades above 5, very awful experiences had by myself and others in the higher grades.

Nova Scotia is lucky to have Audrey in Unforgettable Beginnings! So knowledgable in childcare, kind…read moreand compassionate. Her years of experience are evident in the care she's put into her business and the children she looks after.

We initially chose this daycare for our children because it's close to my wife and I's work…read more Saying that, as we've become used to this centre, there is a lot to like about it and it's a place that we would recommend to others who are looking for a licensed daycare spot. The classrooms are bright with lots of windows and have a lot of different toys and books for the children.While all daycares seem to have standard activity calendars and schedules, I think that the Y puts more effort into it and come up with some really good activities (both indoor and outdoor) to stimulate learning. The teachers are very approachable and caring. Our children have progressed through a couple of the age stages now and we haven't had any issue with any of the teachers. They look out for each child and are certainly willing to look out for any special needs or concerns that you have. Meals and snacks are always healthy. Another bonus is that there's a semi-regular newsletter that gets posted, so you have a good idea of what's going on with the centre as a whole. There has been some turnover (at times it has been quite high) among the staff, but from what I understand this is fairly typical in the childcare industry. Regardless, there is a core group that has been there for some time and the people who are hired seem to have to meet a standard as the quality of care doesn't change even when the people do. The staff seem to work really well together as there is always smiles and joking around amongst the staff whenever we're dropping our kids off. The Y takes infants starting at 6 months, toddlers (2 classrooms), pre-school, and has before and after school programs. I hear the waiting list is long, so it's a good idea to plan in advance if you're looking for a space. It's a great place and I'm glad my children are there.

"Words cannot describe how exceptional Ayesha is as a daycare provider. From our daughters' first…read moreday, she treated her like she's one of her own. Our daughter can't stop talking about everything she does while at daycare; between playing hide-and-seek in the playground to all the running games and slides, to playing with her friends and doing arts and crafts, she loves it there. Ayesha always sends pictures to us while they're playing; our daughter is always excited to come home and look at the pictures of her with her friends. Our daughter looks forward to going to Ayesha's each day and she is always happy when we pick her up, happily jumping around, singing and dancing, full of life, brimming with energy. "A great teacher takes a hand, opens a mind, and touches a heart." Ayesha has indeed made my daughter highly independent. Since my child joined Ayesha's daycare her level of confidence and cognitive and motor skills have improved. She now wears her own shoes, socks, gloves, jacket, is potty trained and can use toilet independently, knows how eat and drink by herself using fork and spoon, speaks very clearly, using sentences of five or more words, tells a story in complete sentences, understands the concept of time, knows how to recite poems, songs, stories, and rhymes, and to our surprise, she even baked a pizza for us at home and boxed it. She tells us about all the projects she did at the daycare pointing at each one of them in the activity book Ayesha sends home every Friday (particularly the snowman project), and we were so happy to learn that she has learnt so much. Special mention to the Father's Day project, our daddy is super happy to see #1 Best Dad in the world project that she did. Always puts a smile on his face when he sees it . She is ready to advance to preschool with confidence now and that's how incredible Ayesha has been. I think a role model is a mentor - someone you see daily, and you learn from them. Our daughter has indeed learnt a lot from Ayesha, and we are very grateful for the friendly atmosphere Ayesha provides at her daycare and sending our daughter to Ayesha has been the best decision for our lives. It's been an incredible experience for both us parents as well as the child. We feel so lucky to have found such a wonderful childcare provider. We more than HIGHLY recommend Ayesha as a daycare provider and thank you, Ayesha, for everything! "Humble on the Outside, Confident on the Inside". This quote is so true to what Ayesha truly is. She is so humble and kind on the outside and confident on the inside. This humble quality of her interspersed with warm and welcoming beautiful smile and brimming confidence is something we truly admire in her. A happy child is a happy family! Thank you for creating a second home for our daughter in your daycare and it is now indeed a home away from home. Thank you, Ayesha, for being a STAR and lighting up our family with so much of abundant joy and happiness. You are a "HERO" in our child's life! Thank you Ayeshah - Regards Mady and Arya

From the owner: A dayhome with a beautiful space for kids to play, learn and grow together.read more

We couldn't be happier with our decision to send our daughter to the Halifax Early Childhood School…read more(HECS). She has loved her 2 years of pre-school, and comes home with songs, crafts, stories and yoga moves which she enjoys sharing with the rest of the family. The teachers are superb and have a wonderful way with the children, encouraging them to work collaboratively, share creative ideas, grow in independence, and treat each other kindly. In addition to the sunny indoor space, there is a wonderful backyard playground so the children have outside play time. And during winter months, the indoor 'obstacle course' is a big hit. If you are looking for a nurturing, fun, organized pre-school, then look no further, HECS is the place. I highly recommend it.

This preschool is amazing. Our son went here for two years, and now our daughter is in her first…read moreyear. The school is a loving and caring environment where childrens' learning is continually fostered through play. The teachers are AMAZING!! They know all the kids so well, and tailor the curriculum to each of them and their individual needs at the time beautifully. The school also feels like a real community - there is a bi-annual backyard party in the beautiful, treed backyard playground, a weekly e-mail goes out with pictures of all the kids, and there is an annual beer and art show which is fun for the parents. We can't speak highly enough of this school and would certainly encourage any family looking for a half day preschool (rather than daycare) program to enroll their kids.

My daughter went here 20 years ago. Not sure if it is still open or run by the same people but it…read morewas tbe best decession i ever made to send my child there. It was recomended by a frend who used tbe day care for many years. My daughter would run throught tbe doors and would beg to stay longer when i picked her up. Lots of outtings and in-house programs. I was told when my daughter started school she was very advanced for her age. That speaks for itself. Very little to no staff change overs. Good to see consistency.

My concerns with Willowbrae is wholly about the corporate inflexibility and arguable gouging of…read morefamilies. The care our twins recieved there was good. Their teachers were caring, they were fed well and obviously nurtured. Routines were consistent, communication is solid. During the two weeks we were there, it was clear that there was some sense of community as there was a fundraiser going on for a family facing some severe health challenges. And perhaps that last point is what I find so frustrating about their corporate policies.Willowbrae is extremely expensive; amongst the highest in the city. There's certainly some perks (cameras, an app, fancy security, etc) that are being paid for with the fees. We moved to the city for my husband's work while I was pregnant. As our twins neared one year old my efforts to return to work picked up. When offered a very desirable job, I was asked to start in 3 weeks, giving me 2-3 weeks to find two infant childcare spots - which is kind of like looking for a unicorn. I called 17 providers. After a week, willowbrae returned my call with a unicorn. I went to look at it and was impressed. I was told that the pricing was competitive and in line with other providers. I was also told I had to make a decision quickly. So we did and signed the contract, paid registration and deposits. The night before the kids started, another daycare called; one that had been on my radar, that was more convenient on our commute and... Would save us $800 a month. As a non profit, family focused daycare, they did 3 things right off the bat that made it clear this we should make the move: - they agreed to hold the spots for 2 weeks so we could get SOME value for the $2500 we had paid to Willowbrae. - the do not require a registration fee or deposit - they told me that the spots had opened up for our two BC a mother had lost a job, and she was not charged anything for the sudden need to leave. We told Willowbrae the next morning, our first morning, that we would be leaving in 2 weeks. We acknowledged we owed them 30 days notice and expected to have to pay for the following 2 weeks after we left. Not good enough for them. They insisted they would have to charge us for the complete following month. See their policy for contact changes is 30 days notice beginning on the first day of the next month. So we told them on the 13th and they had us pay for the following 49 days. Had we told them on the 28th, we'd have owed 34 days. If we had said on the 3rd we had owed for 59 days. When each day was costing us over $100, this approach to contract changes which can sometimes be controlled by families but often cannot, is unfair - an opinion shared by most I talk to. We exchanged several phone calls and emails with local franchise administration who continually deferred to the corporate policy being immovable. Meanwhile the corporate office did not return any of my calls and the local franchise refused to give me direct contact information. I will - boldly but confidently - say that I ensured all conversations and communications were polite, aware of the uncomfortable conflict I was bringing to people. I assured them that I respected their people, appreciated their service, but needed them to consider my situation. In the following month I also confirmed that they aren't really all that competitive, running $100-400 more expensive a month for each infant space than EVERYONE else I talked to. The whole experience with Willowbrae cost us nearly $4000 for our 13 month old twins. And it was still worth it to us to move. We are extraordinarily happy in our new spot. My advice to others is, Willowbrae offers a great calibre of chilecare but customer service, family relation in this situation and flexibility is garbage. You must be confident in your choice - and many of you will have that luxury - and you must be committed to staying, because they are committed to making it miserable for you to leave.

Loved our time at WillowBrae! The facility is one of the best I've seen. My son was sad to leave…read more The web cams were a great plus - it helped knowing I could log on at anytime and see what was happening at the center. The facility is clean, the meals are great and the classes seemed to have enough resources. The improvements to the backyard were fantastic and the kids love to be outside. I only wish they spent more time outdoors. Some teachers took advantage of the trails behind the center and took the kids on little learning expeditions to see wild life! Great learning opportunity.

The Maple Tree Montessori School is a beautiful and calming space, designed lovingly for preschool…read moreaged children. I've been spending some time here lately, practicing yoga when class is not in session. The school is open-concept, consisting of one large room with hardwood floors and large south facing windows. There are lots of neat looking supplies for art projects, plus a full kitchen where I'm assuming fresh meals are prepared for the kids attending classes. If you're looking for a place to send your kiddies to preschool, you should look into the Montessori approach, which focuses on developing children's' skills in a safe and creative environment. If you have the chance to attend a yoga or meditation class here, you should take it. The space really is lovely and it's nice to be privy to different educational settings within the Halifax community.

Plus side, nice clean space and lots of creative supplies. Fresh baked muffins and healthy snacks…read more Montessori learning and kids yoga and music which is awesome. Teachers were very nice. Negative side, on top of a higher rate for this daycare, all food is not included; you must provide fresh fruit or vegetables daily for snack, there is no progress or feedback for individual students and they do not pack water for their daily park/playground trips as there no toilet in the park, and do not always get outside twice a day, as per standard. Also, the schedule is around the private school sked so if you are working parents, prepare to try to find care for your 4/5 yr old 18 days around Christmas, March break and the last two weeks of June (when there is no childcare camp program at that time of year). Felt like parent teacher night was just a general speech by the owner talking to/at everyone, only interaction with other parents was the last day, nothing to encourage relationships and friendships like other daycares I have experienced. Would be better if they gave individual feedback from teachers on how your child was doing, progress or creativity, even just something they did or if they had a good day, drop offs and pick ups could be warmer to make parents feel welcome.

Excellent daycare. The staff are attentive and nurturing, and my child looks forward to each day…read more Communication with parents is great, and the environment feels safe and welcoming.

As a parent I am an observer and keep myself attentive during the drop off and pick up time and…read morechanges my time of pickup to find whats happening behind the closed doors. You don't want to leave your children where they isolate crying and terrified children and shout at them to sit at one place. You are leaving the most precious part of your life to them and they would make sure to scar them for life. The teacher are so overwhelmed with work that they behave frustrated with children. I have encountered teachers shouting and leaving the classrooms with children alone( I wont believe anyone but I have seen it through my own eyes and heard teachers shouting) complained about it and feedback taken poorly owner saying it might be parents shouting when there were no parents inside when I arrived late to drop off my child. Can't believe my own eyes and ears.I am not sure on what basis government are providing them licenses to play with the little ones life. If I had the time to take them for a ride I would have strongly revolted their practices and complaint to the authority to close all the locations. Disheartened and frightened for the little ones lives. Complaint has been registered but as a parent I should inform you all. It is just not me there are other parents with same concern. Additionally, teachers are frequently engaged in cleaning tasks during critical playtime, which is essential for a child's development. This diversion of attention may limit meaningful interactions that foster growth and learning. There are significant concerns regarding the current practices at this daycare that could impact the well-being of children and the experiences of parents in the future. Reports of teachers raising their voices at children have been noted, suggesting a potential pattern that may continue. Parent feedback appears to be inadequately addressed by management, which could cultivate a growing frustration among families.