Our kiddos have been attending Gilden Woods Okemos for years and we all (parents and kiddos) love…read moreit! The structure and play balance is ideal, and the learning involved for the kids from infancy through pre-K is age appropriate and children-centered. Our kids have always felt safe, and have made beautiful friendships with their peers at Gilden Woods. The staff are competent, kind, and supportive- it's evident that they really care about the kids and making school a place they want to be.

Our daughter has been attending Gilden Woods since she was 3 months old. After over 3 years, my…read morehusband and I still believe it was the best choice we could have made for her regarding her care and education. The staff is wonderful! We are always so surprised by how much she is learning every day and are grateful for the individual care and attention she receives. The cherry on top is that the center is open at 6am for those of us who need to get our day started early.

Appletree has been such a blessing to our family! Both of my…read morechildren have come to the school and I know that each day when they are dropped off, they are going to have a positive learning experience while being in a safe and nurturing environment !!

Appletree has been great for both our children. The admin team is very helpful and the teachers…read morehave loved our kids.

Stepping Stones is an excellent school. I find Montessori schools refreshing among the choices…read moretoday. I enrolled my son here at 18 months old when he joined the toddler casa. He is currently a second year in the primary class. He has thrived in this atmosphere and without question stands out from his non Montessori peers. Stepping Stones is a private entity with reasonable tuition rates. I love the fact the lead guides have been there for a long time and are really invested in the welfare (saftey and development) of the students. There is a focus on the environment/nature, foreign language (Spanish), music, art and Yoga. This place is pretty impressive. Many parents send their children to traditional day cares where they learn little. You just have to observe to believe that the Montessori method works. I come from a traditional schooling approach and am amazed by this school, faculty, instruction and the resulting kids.

Colleen Carlson is a wonderful head of school! An amazing school with a staff full of caring, smart…read moreand exemplarily people!

Were there for four weeks in the toddler room-end of May through end of June 2018…read more Issues included: no continuity of care, 3 hours without a diaper check/change, unable to verify if child ate food presented (and were unsure if fed any snacks), and being told that my child "deserved" to be bitten by another toddler. It appears to me that the issues were top down starting with the directors as the toddler room had a lead turn over three times in the month that we were there.

If you have google I updated my review their as well. I am altering my initial 5 stars due to how…read morepoorly things ended with care of my 5 year old son. I think this place in theory is wonderful and such a good start for children before school. In reality the providers are tired, short fused, and unable to recognize that they are not helping parents navigate big emotions and changes in behavior. The reaction from the teachers and center director to my sons behavior was to isolate him, allowed my son to be labeled the "bad kid" and ultimately was (from my perspective) a bid to kick him out. It took us 6 months to bring our child back to center and encourage him to communicate his frustration instead of shut down. I wish I noticed how much my son had been made to feel like the "bad" kid sooner. He isn't an angel and I hope this review doesn't come off like I'm excusing anything from his end that happened. I am however disappointed in how the adults, myself included, handled my 5 year old. Disappointed in how uninterested the providers were in helping him, or my husband and I, get past this development stage. This daycare is not cheap, and I was expecting providers that cared to give a resource or provide some kind of guidance other then what actually happened. I left three stars on here because Ms. Mandy is a gem, and of the two years we were there the first year was wonderful. The things they teach the kids and the summer program are great too. It's really just the extremely poor way our time ended.

This place is awesome and the owner and her team are fantastic. I'm so grateful to have this…read moreeducational and fun resource in our town. They always greet my son my name and seem genuinely happy to see him. Love the camps. My mind was blown by the giant sandbox they were planning and actually made happen. Wish I had the creativity and drive that Melissa and team have!

DANGEROUS and NEGLIGENT. Do not leave your children here!…read moreReview: If I could give Tinkerlab zero stars, I would. We pulled our son out after only three days, and honestly, I regret not trusting my gut the moment I walked in. This place is a lawsuit waiting to happen. Safety is non-existent. On Tuesday, when I arrived for pickup, the front door was propped wide open with a brick, and there was no one at the front desk. Any stranger could have walked in, or a child could have walked right out into the parking lot. When I finally found a staff member, she was sitting in the corner on her phone with her back to the room while two toddlers were fighting over a pair of adult-sized scissors that had been left on a low table. The hygiene is appalling. The floors looked like they hadn't been swept in a week. There were sticky spills everywhere, and the "nap area" smelled strongly of mildew. I saw one of the assistants change a diaper and then immediately go back to preparing snacks without washing her hands. Unprofessional Management. When I tried to speak to the director about these safety concerns, she was incredibly defensive and rude. She told me I was "overreacting" and that "kids get messy." There is a difference between messy and hazardous. There is no curriculum, no structure, and zero accountability. Save yourself the stress and keep your children safe--take them literally anywhere else.

This is a wonderful place to take your children! A group of teachers that truly love the children…read morethey care for and their jobs. It's a very fun environment and a great learning atmosphere! 10/10 would recommend!

I would highly caution you from sending your children here. The facility constantly has something…read moregoing around and kids are always getting sick. Becky sent an infant home with what she believed was pink eye. After a trip to the doctor it was determined that the infant had conjunctivitis. Not surprising given that they used wet ones and ran her face under the sink instead of using a washcloth that was provided by the parent. Hand foot mouth also went around the daycare. It was brought in my one of the workers and her child who went there. Employees called in saying they had it then were back the next day. This disease cannot be cured or healed over night. In the summer the place is a sauna. There is only air conditioning in one room. So be prepared to have to change your child's clothes when you pick them up. Ms Karen is verbally abusive to certain children. She also walked in on a 5 year old who was using the restroom. Nikki and Samantha spoke inappropriately about a child's grandparent saying how hot they thought he was. If you try to confront Becky about any of these issues she will likely avoid you or avoid the issue all together. She hates confrontation and dodges parents. Very seldom will you find Becky at the day care during drop off or pick up times for these reasons. Parents have had to result in leaving letters on her desk in order to make her aware of issues. This daycare is unbelievably cheap but you get what you pay for. If you're okay with your child being in a dirty facility with unfit providers and a director who will avoid you then look no further you've found the place for you.

Our almost 2 year old daughter is on her third month at Looking Glass Child Development Center and…read morewe have been thrilled with our experience thus far. I was so nervous for her to start care as I stayed home with her until recently. I communicated this with the staff and they were so kind and attentive, making the transition for her (and me!) go smoothly. The facility is brand new and very clean. Each classroom has age appropriate toys, encouraging development and appropriate play. There are several outdoor play areas that are utilized on a regular basis, weather permitting. The food served is of high quality and very nutritious. They host special events for holidays (Muffins with Mom, Donuts with Dad etc.) which are so fun to attend. Another great perk is that you can communicate with your child's teacher via an app. I receive updates daily, which I greatly appreciate. There are security cameras monitoring the facility and classrooms, however they are not accessible via a website etc. This is fine with me, as it provides a piece of mind knowing that there is an additional layer of security. Speaking of that, the front door is security code controlled, limiting who can enter the facility. The staff is wonderful and has really gotten to know our daughter's personality as well as our entire family. I feel like they genuinely care about her well being and happiness, which is the best feeling for a parent. Being away during the day is difficult but it's much easier when you know your child is in good hands. Thanks, LGCDC!

Let me begin my review by saying the only thing Looking Glass Child Development Center did…read morecorrectly was refund me some of the astronomical fees we had to pay up front to begin my son's care with them. This daycare has caused so much emotional distress on myself and my family in the three days my son was in their care, I would NEVER recommend them to anyone. My son's first day came, and he was actually super excited to be there. Normally drop off for daycare was difficult in the past, but he seemed to settle right in. He immediately hugged his new teacher, found a toy to play with and was all set for my husband and I to leave. I breathed a sigh of relief, and we left. I called mid-day to see how he was doing, I was told "he's a little handsy with his friends" but again I was assured it was part of the transition process and they would keep an eye on it. The next day came, a similar review on the day. My son's enthusiasm for the daycare at home was reassuring to us, he couldn't wait to go and see his friends. When the third day came, we were completely blindsided. I got a call in the morning that my son had been hitting, and if there was ONE more instance he would need to be picked up. I understood, as this was a procedure we had dealt with in the past and we understand the need to keep all of the children safe. Lunch time came and went, nap time came and went, I thought he had finally gotten his mood turned around. At 4pm (approximately one hour before he would normally be picked up), I got a call that he had hit again and needed to be picked up. I rushed to leave work early so I could pick up my son, arriving only about 30 minutes before his normal pick up time due to the proximity to my work. When I arrived, I was greeted in the lobby by the director, the teacher from my son's room, and my son. I was told briefly (but not really in great detail, and nobody could really tell me the details leading up to the hitting) of what happened. The director (who mind you, is NOT a medical professional) told me she was noticing some red flags in my son's behavior and listed off 3 things that concerned her. She told me my son was not welcome back for care in the facility until we had a formal evaluation with a medical professional on how to proceed with his "angry outbursts". At the time, she made it seem like it would be such a simple thing to do, I agreed and left. Not having any experience with this type of evaluation, I figured he would be out for a few days at most. This was Wednesday, December 6th. Since this day, we have had to have family members watch our son, tried out new daycares, and have ultimately settled on having a friend watch our son in home. It has been so stressful on us, but also on my almost 3 year old son who hasn't been able to settle back into a normal routine for over a month, all thanks to this daycare. We have had him evaluated by both his pediatrician and a psychologist, spoken to at least 5 other professionals in the special education field, who all agree that 3 days in a brand new daycare was not enough time to have a toddler settle in, let alone have the staff of this daycare (who again, are NOT medical professionals) suggest that our son has a disability. Nearly a month and a half from the day he was dismissed, I am happy to say that after several professional evaluations, our son has been cleared for the concerns that the daycare had mentioned concern for. After speaking with other parents from this daycare, it sounds as if this is a trend of theirs. If your child doesn't fit into their perfect mold, and they feel your child will be too difficult to work with, they find a way to have your child removed from their program. So if you plan to enroll your child with them, keep this in mind that it may be a very temporary and costly decision on your part.

The 2s room at PCP is excellent. The teachers are wonderful. They're patient, loving, creative…read moreand fun. We had an excellent experience and highly recommend the program.

People's Church Preschool offers a comfortable, nurturing, child-centered environment in which…read morechildren can learn, explore, play, and build relationships. As a parent, I feel such a sense of peace when dropping my daughter off and a sense of excitement about picking her up and learning about her experience for the day. The emphasis on nature, communication with parents, kid friendly outings, and education through play is unique and valuable. I would highly recommend this program.