We absolutely love Guidepost! Our toddler has been so happy here, and it's amazing to see how much…read morehe's learned and developed in such a short time. The teachers are incredibly caring, attentive, and truly invested in his development. They truly understand toddlers and create a warm, nurturing environment where little ones feel safe, supported, and excited to explore. We've seen our little guy become more independent, confident, and curious every day, which has been so rewarding to watch. The Montessori approach is thoughtfully implemented, encouraging independence, curiosity, and a genuine love of learning. We've seen such amazing growth in our toddler. The school is also exceptionally clean and well-maintained, which gives us so much peace of mind. Everything feels organized, safe, and thoughtfully cared for. Communication with families is fantastic. We always feel informed, included, and supported, which makes a huge difference. The sense of community here is strong, and it really feels like an extension of our family. We're incredibly sad to be leaving as we're moving. It was honestly one of the hardest parts of our decision--Guidepost made it so difficult to go. That alone says so much about the impact it's had on our family. We're so grateful to have been part of this community and couldn't recommend it more highly!

We're about to mark one year at Guidepost in Mahwah and our experience has been great over that…read moreyear. Erika, Jessica, the lead guides in the classrooms, the floaters, and everyone we've interacted with have always left a positive impression on us. Our child is growing and learning so much from the guides at Guidepost. We've learned so much along the way about Montessori thanks to the team there, there are endless opportunities to meet other families and connect over events that happen every month, it has truly been a great experience for us. We were in a different school prior to Guidepost and I don't feel like it's even fair to compare the two. The care and thoughtfulness at Guidepost is different than anywhere else, the attention to details and how much our child has gained from Guidepost has been so impactful to watch. I'll also mention for any caregivers who have children with allergies or dietary restrictions - Guidepost is extremely thoughtful with our Vegan child. Whenever there are events, they go out of their way to tell us about them and make sure our child is included with a vegan option, they keep vegan treats when the class is having ice cream or cupcakes, the guides are constantly in contact with us about the snacks and substitutes that we can bring in, it's been a really wonderful experience compared to the last school we were in and we appreciate how thorough they have been with our family and always making sure our child is included.

A really nice school for K-12 that is very student centric. Very good college placement. Each…read morestudent is respected as an individual. Staff and teachers will know each student and family. Lots of opportunities to participate in any sports or activities. Our son had a marvelous group of friends when he attended. Social life spilled out to parties and fun club travel and events like Ski Club or France immersion in Europe. The location in Saddle River is bucolic. Siblings can easily attend the area public schools or Catholic schools which are both good. Saddle River is a wonderful place to live within 25 miles of New York City- lovely large properties / relatively low property taxes with everything in reach in a few minutes rather than having to ride a tedious train or hassle with disappearing bus schedules. Easy access to Teterboro or Westchester and about 45 minutes down to Newark Airport. New York State residents get free bus transportation.

My daughter attended this school for 4 years, and I found the education adequate. The class choices…read morewere limited. The students were sweet but entitled. The campus is beautiful. However, the administration was horrible. The college counselor only suggested low ranking colleges so they can brag all their students went to colleges. She ended up being admitted to a top ranked college despite this college counselor. Whenever I had a complaint, because my daughter was a full scholarship student and I was not one of their rich donors, I was dismissed. The head of the school was very patronizing. They needed smart students so they offered full scholarships to new high school freshman to raise their scores, many of the students from China. There are many fine public schools in the area. I should have taken her out, but I had already displaced her from her friends in Texas so her sister could attend the pre college program at Juilliard, and could not do it to her a second time. I do not recommend this high school at all.

I think it is disgusting the news aired the past two days 3 guys of Don Bosco making $2-$4k…read moreshoveling for people today and yesterday. On news, even asking their priest for a day off today to finish. They advertised their car detailing side business. Are they a REGISTERED BUSINESS? ARE THEY PAYING THE IRS TAXES. THIS NEED BE LOOKED INTO. Shame on them. Heck of a lot of money to make in a day. Shame on them to advertise them on news. Shame on the priest and principal to allow this.

Instead of attending the 9th Avenue Food Festival in Manhattan, my partner and I came this…read moreafternoon to the Don Bosco Community Food Truck Festival held next to Charles I. Granatell Athletic Stadium by Just Jersey Festival inside a 35-acre park-like campus of Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey. This event is a benefit for Don Bosco Fathers Club and features 17 gourmet food trucks, music from DJ Louis, beer and pony rides, a petting zoo, and a bounce house for children. We managed to grab a culinary taste of mac and cheese, eggplant parmesan garlic knot slider, skirt steak sandwich and coleslaw (Argentina), ground beef lomo style empanada (Peru), and peanut butter cup cupcake. To walk off our meal, we managed to tour around the campus, which comprises three academic buildings and two athletic complexes. It was a nice day spent outdoors.

Outstanding nursery and pre-k school. We have had 2 children come up through these halls and they…read moreare the best in the area. Our kids have received top notch care and leave positioned to excel as they make their transition to the elementary school. The owner Mr Jim runs a very professional organization, is fair but firm and we are thankful to to have this wonderful establishment we have continued to count on.

My daughter attended Lollipop for almost a year (due to COVID, her time was cut short). However the…read morestaff is phenomenal, the facility is clean, and there were many opportunities for parental involvement. With such a great establishment, I think they would greatly benefit from diversity outreach- both staff & students.

Beautiful Roman Catholic Church. Modern interior. Priest was wonderful in his compassion and…read moresermon. Great staff. Plenty of parking.

Great sporting fields. IF your kids play soccer or baseball you are lucky. I've seen other fields…read moreand Monvale town has one of the best.

My School is closing!!…read morehttp://www.northjersey.com/education/educationnews/Hackensack_Catholic_school_to_close.html Hackensack Catholic school to close Wednesday, February 18, 2009 BY JOHN CHADWICK NorthJersey.com STAFF WRITERS A Catholic elementary school in Hackensack will close in June because of declining enrollment, the Newark Archdiocese said today. Holy Trinity School, on Maple Avenue, has experienced about a 24 percent decline in students since 2000 and currently has an enrollment of 183, said Jim Goodness, a spokesman for the archdiocese. Church officials plan to merge Holy Trinity with St. Francis School, a parish school on South Main Street that also has suffered enrollment loss and is down to about 118 students. The archdiocese decided that St. Francis School would be the one to stay open because it has received extensive renovations in recent years. The school is under a flight path for Teterboro Airport and received government grants for soundproofing, Goodness said. "To try and level off the costs of providing education and stabilizing enrollment, which has fallen at both schools, the natural solution is that the parishes should combine their schools into one," Goodness said, adding that such issues as transportation and staffing were still being worked out. Holy Trinity is the sixth parish school that the archdiocese plans to close this year and the only one in Bergen County. The other schools are in Hudson, Essex and Union counties. Goodness said that schools with declining enrollments typically turn to the parish for financial assistance. But with parishes also struggling with changing demographics and increased costs, their ability to support schools is limited. "It is reaching the point in some parishes where they cannot support the school in the way they might have in the past," Goodness said. The pastor at Holy Trinity said the parish was contributing about $150,000 to $200,000 to the school, but the enrollment was still falling. The tuition is about $3,200 a year for parish families. **************************** How could I *not* give my Elementary school five stars? (Especially if it's Religious!) No, seriously. All kidding aside, this was a Catholic K-8 school, complete with boys and girls in plaid uniforms, nuns in habits, and daily assembly outside in the parking lot (YES, even in the SNOW) to 'line up' and take attendance. Though I was never baptised and never raised Catholic, I thought this was a great place. The teachers and sisters at this place ran a TIGHT ship. You wouldn't ever THINK of smack talking, much less bring stuff to school that didn't belong. The fear of the cruxifix at the front of each classroom was enough to set you straight, regardless of your religion. Looking back, for a faculty of ALL women, these ladies knew what they were doing- they did NOT take crap from us kids! AND, I even learned a few things, science and math, and they even had art and music class. Gym in those uniforms was pretty uncomfortable, though I was only there from 3rd through 5th grade ... and THEN I went to public school in Southern California! Oh, the horror!

I also attended Holy Trinity (K - 7th) from 1959 - 1966. Am…read moresorry to hear of its closing. It played an important part in my life.

I'm really surprised by the review about the Seedlings Classroom below. My son just started in the…read moreSeedlings Classroom this year and so far our experience has been wonderful. There was a simple miscommunication when it came to his diapers (super minor) and the teacher rectified it right away and contacted me to clarify/discuss. The teacher and/or school are always reaching out, even for something simple, to keep me and my husband apprised and informed. We appreciate this so much and truly find it to be a reflection of those they hire to nurture and educate the children. We find their COVID protocols very well followed, and we're not nervous sending our son here a few days a week. The staff, teachers and administration always greet us at pick up/drop off and make us feel like our sons going to a special place and loved. In reference to the other comment on curriculum, they're under 2 years. They are just getting acclimated to going to school, let alone the ability to do a true art masterpiece. I think that's a bit unrealistic when it comes to an expectation of artistic ability at that age. Our son has come home with some really great art projects and we're really happy with his progress being he's not even 18 months old. He's learning so much already and we're grateful. Overall, we're very happy with Ridgewood Montessori and will continue to send our son for years to come (as long as everything stays as great as it's been!). In addition, once our daughter is age appropriate we would love to continue the legacy with her attendance as well. Thanks RW for a great experience and for showing our son love, attention, and teaching him every week. We're proud to be part of this school!

My son has been at Ridgewood Montessori School since 2018. He began in 3rd grade and is now in 6th…read moreand I can't say enough positive things about the personalized education he is receiving. From the incredible teacher to student ratio, personal education plan for each child, and all students in the elementary school even learn a real instrument (mine is learning guitar) ... the list goes on and on. I have even been impressed by the amazing handling of the past 2 years of Covid protocol.... All impressive!! I personally feel that these children have had the most "normal" school experience possible during the past two years giving them support and consistency that children need. Teachers are very responsive to emails and always make themselves available both before and after school for any concerns both in person and via zoom. Administration knows all the children by name and engages with them regularly. We came from another private school where our experience was disheartening and are so happy to have found our Ridgewood Montessori School Family!