We are so grateful to have found Mountain Boulevard Montessori School for our son. It's hard to…read morefind a daycare you can truly trust, especially when you're starting them at such a young age, but we immediately felt comforted by the staff's warmth and genuine care during our initial tour there. Our son started here at just two years old, and we have been amazed to watch him blossom over the years. The teachers and staff have not only provided a nurturing and loving environment but have also been deeply committed to the children's education. We've seen him learn and grow so much, and the curriculum has thoroughly prepared him for his start in grade school. Mountain Boulevard Montessori School is a truly special place, and we are so grateful for all the hard work they put in. We're so happy with our experience that we've already decided to bring our next child here when she is old enough. We couldn't recommend this school more highly.

I want to take a moment to recognize the Director Mr Dennis for his excellent customer service. I…read morereached out to a few Montessori schools with questions about their policies because I'm currently going through a custody battle. , the father enrolled our child in a Montessori school, and that school refused to provide me with any details--even after I made it clear there are no restrictions on custody. It made an already difficult situation even more frustrating, as it felt like they were siding with him or had been told not to share any information with me. Dennis, however, was incredibly helpful and went above and beyond . Even though my child isn't enrolled at his school, he took the time to clearly explain their policies and shared that all Montessori schools should follow the same principles. He emphasized that both parents should be treated equally and provided all the information I needed without hesitation. He even instructed me on what steps .which was incredibly thoughtful and supportive. Although I currently share 50/50 custody, if I had the choice, I would absolutely choose Mountain boulevard Montessori. It's clear that they genuinely care about the children and families they serve. They're not just focused on profits--they put people first.

Update: I posted this review before everything shut down…read morebecause of COVID. Luckily, we were able to stay with Lia and Apple Cheeks through it all. She did a *fantastic* job of wrangling our social bubble and keeping all of the families safe and feeling confident. I don't know how we would have gotten through the last year without her. We've decided to keep our son at Apple Cheeks another year to reduce our exposure. We feel so lucky that Lia is able to create a custom preschool curriculum for him and that he's continuing to flourish despite the pandemic.

You don't have to look much further than the smiling faces in the pictures above for thorough…read morereviews. Every morning, our daughter walks through the door with a smile on her face ready to play with her friends and to participate in whatever neat activities Lia's got planned for them. From story time to play time with lots of learning sprinkled in between you can tell Lia really connects with the kids. Beyond that, she really loves them and is genuinely interested in helping them grow in every way.

Our son was with Carmen and staff for over 3 years and she is the best! He learned so much and is…read moreso independent and thriving in TK now!can't thank the staff enough! Love you all

Carmen's daycare is a hidden gem! She has been running a small home daycare for over 20 years. Our…read morechild attended her daycare from age 1.5 to 3 years old, and thrived there. Carmen is loving, nurturing and treats the children as if they are part of her family. She encourages each child to be themselves and follow their interests. The days are structured and predictable. She runs the daycare more like a preschool, and would have been an amazing preschool teacher and principal. There is a daily activity schedule, themes (often initiated by child interest) and lots of outdoor time. She helped with potty training, and her experience was invaluable. Her staff (Shayla, the other Carmen) are kind, funny and care deeply about the children they care for. I recommend Carmen to almost any family looking for trustworthy childcare in Oakland. If you are looking for childcare with a slick app, the latest toys and trendy ideology- this place is not for you. Carmen has her way that she does things because it works. Logistics: Pros: the extended hours were critical for our family with 2 working parents. She provides healthy food! Very reasonably priced and my employer's FSA covered some of the cost. Children and employees are vaccinated. Cons: The school drop off traffic can be hectic if you are on the same schedule as Sequoia Elementary School across the street. We left because we moved out of state. Our child is still asking about Carmen and misses her dearly. We are so glad she was part of our lives. Do yourself a favor and see if Carmen's daycare is a good fit for your family!

We can't say enough positive things about Sunflowers Home Daycare. Our 3.5 year old has been there…read morefor a year now and the growth we've seen has been amazing. She knows letters, numbers, is beginning to spell, practicing tracing/writing. Her days are balanced with fun outdoor play, music, yoga, science/cooking/baking, and arts and crafts. The directors and teachers are so caring. We feel so lucky to have found this gem of a daycare/preschool!

We're thankful to have found Sunflowers! Our daughter has been there for a year and her younger…read morebrother has just joined her there. We like that there's a fun mix of different activities (cooking, yoga, music, outdoor play, nature walks) and learning. The kids play well together, I often hear about things like whose favorite color was what that day and cute songs I haven't heard before. The teachers are so wonderful and in tune with our kid's personality/needs/temperament and they make a point to nurture their interests.

We absolutely love Sakura Daycare. We have two children attending, and we are beyond grateful for…read morethe love, respect, and sense of adventure they receive there. Both of our children genuinely love going every day. Sakura Daycare has truly helped us raise our children while we are at work. Thanks to the constant learning and nurturing environment, our children are now trilingual. The kids sing songs, do little dances, cook, practice judo, bake, create art projects, and spend lots of time playing outside. The impact Sakura Daycare has had on our children has been immense. We are incredibly grateful for everything they have provided our family throughout the years.

Our kiddo started at Sakura at 7 months old and it has been a great fit. Chishiro, Maria, and…read moreEstela clearly have so much experience with kids/babies and love working with them. Now our son lights up when they open the door at drop-off in the morning. The teachers are warm and nurturing and so loved by the students. They get lots of language exposure as well as new foods, arts and crafts, judo, cooking, and outside play. We also appreciated that they provide 3 meals a day and diapers so we don't have to think about getting everything together every single day. When our child was under a year old, we also were able to give them the can of formula and they put it all together and washed bottles so we didn't have to mix/wash everything every day. We are grateful we found Sakura!

I love this school, it has an excellent school program. they always do different activities…read more the children learn Spanish very quickly. the teachers and administrative staff are very friendly.

Our children have attended OMES since Summer 2023 and we love the school! What especially sets OMES…read moreapart from other preschools is how welcoming and warm the teachers are - I see them care for my children as if they are their own. Karen and Jesus have done a wonderful job fostering a friendly and supportive staff/parent community that we love being a part of. Each day I know my children are engaging in fun and educational activities, and I love getting the daily updates on Brightwheel about their days. As a Spanish-immersion school, I'm incredibly impressed with the way my children have picked up the language and even use outside of school with other Spanish speakers.

I don't know where to start! We have sent our 2 boys to Cottage Playhouse (my youngest graduating…read moreend of July). We feel so incredibly lucky to have had Michelle and Chalena in our lives to share their love, care, encouragement, patience, fun, guidance, attentiveness and warmth with our boys. The kids LOVED going to Cottage, each went from before the age of 2 until they went on to Kinder or TK around age 4-5. Cottage is a special place and is hard to put into words. Its small size makes it feel so much more like a family where all kids of different ages support each other and play together. Michelle and Chalena have supported the boys in their learning from early on with letters, numbers, spelling, workbooks and math. The art projects are out of this world, frame worthy. My oldest was completely ready for Kinder and my youngest for TK. Don't hesitate (RUN!) to send your kiddo to this amazing group of kids and teachers. We are extremely sad to say goodbye but feel so fortunate to have had our boys thrive in this amazing community. THANK YOU MICHELLE AND CHALENA. WE LOVE YOU!

Our daughter has been at Cottage for a year and we love it. It was a surprisingly easy transition…read morefrom a nanny I think because the smaller size allows so much individualized attention for each kid. We toured other preschools in the area but they felt overwhelming especially for a sensitive two-year old. The school has several outdoor play areas and the kids do a ton of imaginative play and art. There is also weekly dance and music class which my daughter loves. She comes home with flowers she has planted, amazing paintings, and most recently the ability to describe her feelings! The other parents are great and often get together. It's a really special place! The main limitation is that the current hours are 8:30-3:00. We have arranged our work schedules to make this work because this preschool is so worth it.

My child has been at Mitzy's for almost 2 years, since he was about 20 months, and it has been a…read morewonderful place for him. The whole space is lovely, and is somehow exciting and calming at the same time - very much in keeping with Mitzy's own way of being. All of the maestras are warm, caring, and communicative, and have supported my child through many things, including potty training and the death of a pet. They are also great at supporting social and emotional learning. The kids have lots of time for unstructured play but also plenty to do each day - all kinds of activities including arts and crafts, sensory play, gardening, special birthday celebrations and holiday-related activities. At the end of the day, the kids are thrilled to see their parents, but none of them seem to want to go home, and I always want to linger in the backyard for a while, too. Highly recommend this program.

I am so happy and grateful that I found SquareCare! My son started the program soon after turning…read more2. Until then, he had only ever been cared for by his dad, grandmother, and me - no babysitters or nannies - so being away from us was a big adjustment. From the very beginning, the team at SquareCare was incredibly understanding and supportive. Mitzy created a thoughtful transition plan that truly set my son up for success. At first, I was able to stay with him at school so he could get comfortable with the new environment and teachers. Then, we gradually increased the time he spent there alone. Finally, once we all felt confident that he was happy and secure, he began napping at school as well. Now, my son loves school and attends full days three times a week. Mitzy, Yessi, and Tiara are so patient and genuinely invested in his success. We're all so proud of his progress and growth. I highly recommend this program! The teachers are not only caring and wonderful with the children, but the environment is exceptionally clean and inviting. Plus, there's a bunny and chickens--such a fun and unique touch that the kids absolutely love!

Great school!! Warm, patient and loving teachers and amazing Director…read more In addition the prices and hours are a very very reasonable!

We've had two of our kids join Smiles now, and we couldn't be more grateful for the experience. My…read morekids were both naturally shy, timid kids when they first enrolled, and I saw their confidence and curiosity blossom while at Smiles. The program administrator, Ms. Iona, has been running Smiles for 42yrs now, and many of the teachers have been there for well over 10yrs. Their tenure shows; it is an incredibly well run program and the curriculum for kids is impressive. The kids learn (and retain) the ability to count in multiple languages (Spanish, Mandarin, Korean, Russian, French), learn about solar systems, community workers, fun art, geography, etc. We've had our kids in multiple Montessori schools previously, and Smiles far exceeds them in development and a well-rounded experience. We had moved through the tunnel to Orinda during the school year, and we made the effort to commute so our son could stay enrolled at Smiles because it was that much better than any other Preschool program available locally. During the pandemic they were consistently open, mostly because they enforced strict masking and hand-washing. As a working parent during this time, I was so grateful for their dedication to preventative health standards which allowed them to stay open. I would recommend Smiles to any parent. Thank you Ms Iona and Smiles teachers for having such a positive impact on our kids, the local community, and setting our children up for success in grade school by giving them such an amazing foundation for learning.

Wonderful Preschool! We've been at Growing Light for the…read morelast few years and love the school, teachers, and other families. Ms. Awa (the school director) leads a fantastic staff of dedicated teachers and we always feel that our kids are cared for, safe, and getting a great education. So happy that we are part of the GLM community.

It took me a few months to write this review. Mainly because it's hard to publicly comment on a…read moreplace where kind, loving people have cared for your children. No one wants their words to be seen as coming from a place of bitterness. But after nearly three years at GLMS, I think it's important to share an honest account of our experience so other parents can make informed choices. The good: Our daughter learned a lot during their time at GLMS. She developed strong foundational skills in letters, number sense, music, and social topics. She loved kinderdance! Many of the teachers were warm, nurturing, and truly loving some with a grandmotherly kindness that made us feel our kids were genuinely cared for. These teachers are the heart and soul of the school and a reason why we stayed as long as we did. The challenges: The school is poorly managed and lacks transparency. Communication is reactive rather than proactive, and parents are kept at arm's length from the people who spend the most time with their children. Teachers frequently leave, often without clear explanation. It's telling that parent access to classrooms was restricted well after COVID had ended and only changed after intervention from California Childcare Licensing. Leadership, particularly the owner and directors, tightly control communication between teachers and parents. It's not uncommon for them to intercept or filter conversations, making it difficult to have an open, productive dialogue about your child's development with their teacher. Many teachers appear fearful of management, which makes it hard to trust that your child's best interests always come first. GLMS is extremely overpriced for what it offers. Tuition is among the highest in the area (+34k / year), and there's also a mandatory $900 per-year "supply fee." With roughly 78 students, that's nearly $70,000 collected annually--yet the snacks, art materials, classrooms, playground, parking experiences don't reflect that investment. It's hard to justify those costs when the school's operations and transparency remain so lacking. GLMS struggles to balance what it's legally required to do with what's simply right for families and children. It's a school with kind teachers but poor leadership, inconsistent quality, and a lack of accountability. Parents--please do your due diligence. Review the public state licensing records, ask hard questions, and advocate for more transparency. The children and teachers deserve better.