We joined Wild Rose, a Wildflower offspring, at the early stage and grew together over the years…read more WR started with 9 kids and now has over 40, with about half in primary and the rest in elementary. The teachers are kind and experienced, helping kids learn more about social values instead of test taking. Kids are given autonomy and expected to contribute to the school system by shopping for food, cooking, cleaning up the classroom, setting up projects, etc. We experienced some growing pains but overall was well worth it. Parents are expected to be involved but this has been reduced to about once a month instead of per week. The low teacher to kid ratio ensures more attention and opportunity to aid the kids in their weaker areas. The school is looking to grow into middle school (grade 5+) and is actively looking for children aged 9-11 for the next academic year. It is well worth taking a tour to see if it is the right fit for your family!

My 5yo son attends Wild Rose. The things that I think make it special are:…read more - it's deliberately a small, one-classroom, shopfront school. So it's a very close-knit group and the teachers have a lot of autonomy and passion for making the best school they can. - it's true to the Montessori tradition without falling into dogma -- observation and experimentation are important elements. The school cooperates with researchers at the MIT Media Lab that are studying new methods and materials. - it's a mixed-age classroom. This creates so many wonderful opportunities for younger children to learn from older children and for older children to practice being leaders and teachers.

If you are looking for a preschool in the Belmont area - look no further!!! This school has been…read morearound for 78 YEARS and has offered wonderful, exceptional and one of a kind care. The longevity of the caring staff, varied curriculum, bright and sunny classrooms as well as the huge outdoor playground make this school unique and special. The curriculum is play-based with themes based on the children's interests. They also have specialists visit the classrooms - such as music, science and movement! Your child also has an option to stay later for an extended day program - where they are able to learn about fun topics such as art and artists. You should see some of the art they create! Trust me - Your child will be in the best hands if they attend Plymouth Nursery School.

My daughter has had the most ideal preschool experience here. From mimicking Jackson Pollack…read morepaintings to marching in a Chinese New Years parade around Belmont Center, she has gotten to experience creative and challenging activities that have her excited to go to school each day. Most importantly, it is done in a warm, truly nurturing setting. I felt that from day one when I met the teachers on our tour. (It actually brought tears to my eyes.) In addition, being a coop, we parents have gotten to participate and have definitely become a community. We chat outside every morning during drop off and have had multiple school-wide activities and play dates. We truly feel lucky to have found this school.

Wildflower Montessori is an incredible school community. All three of our children have attended…read moreand thrived in this warm, supportive, unique Montessori environment over the past 5 years. Our youngest is currently in her second year. As parents, we have seen each of our children develop strong, secure relationships with the amazing teachers and with the kind friends in their class. We have also cherished the friendships we have made with other families in this close-knit community. Recommend 100%!

This is literally the most beautiful interior space I have ever seen for children and educators and…read moreparents. It looks more like a curiosity filled art and living park than a traditional school- which can be depressing and feel stifling and even boring inside. At Wildflower, the school feels like a pastoral space where learning and exploring are a natural and engaging (fun) part of life and the world.

My son attended the school for 2 years and from ages 3-5. The teachers are very/very mature,…read morecaring, and organized. Their arts and crafts followed the seasons, events, and holidays. I was consistently impressed with the art work he brought home. In addition, the children would write their own names-every day. This repetition gave him confidence and joy to write. The Director is very accessible, friendly and hand-on. I would highly recommend this preschool.

My daughter has been in the preschool program for a year and my son just entered the toddler…read moreprogram last month. I am impressed every single day at how the director and teachers pour their heart and soul into what they do. I love how every week is an interesting theme and the kids come home with multiple creative projects that they make each day. In addition, the toddlers focus on learning 2-3 letters and a number each month along with a shape and a color and the preschoolers practice tracing their names, letters, and numbers along with scissor skills and lacing. The teachers are so wonderful and nurturing and the kids are stimulated, learning, having fun, and so proud of themselves. I couldn't be happier with this school.

When we were considering Lesley Ellis for preschool, we asked around on the playground, and just…read moreabout every parent we talked to told us, "It's excellent! The only negative is the cost." That matched our experience perfectly. The tuition is steep - though financial aid is available! - but everything else was fantastic, and we were consistently impressed with the teachers, curriculum, field trips, awareness of kids as individuals, interaction with administration, and more. My mom worked for decades in early childhood education, and (as an interested and involved grandparent) was also very impressed. They welcomed/encouraged heavy parent involvement, from "come into the classroom to talk about something you're knowledgeable/passionate about" to occasional parent-meetups-over-coffee in the morning and more. But I was never, ever made to feel guilty about not being able to participate heavily, which was the norm once we had our second kid. (Who also went to LES for preschool, once old enough.) We can't speak to their K-8 experience, but for preschool/pre-K/TK they were fantastic.

Lesley Ellis is an independent school from pre-school to grade 6, but expanding soon to 8th. Our…read moredaughter is in her third year there and we have been delighted with the program. The teachers are an outstanding group and attuned to the needs of each individual student. The administration is truly exceptional as they create an environment where parents, children and the school come together to form a nurturing and vibrant community.

My daughter completed the three-year primary program at Violeta. It was an outstanding experience…read morefor our family. Her first interaction with Violeta was a picnic for incoming families, followed by an individual home visit by her teachers before the first school year began. From day 1, the teachers and students are not strangers, thanks to the introductory events. Here's how Violeta continued to support my child's development: The mixed-age model was very effective at giving her practice leading and taking leadership from other children. In the first year, she mimicked the advanced children and took interest in more advanced tasks. By her third year, she was proud of receiving the more difficult presentations from the teachers (like division) and assisting younger classmates in learning skills she was already proficient with (like tracing, grading colors, and phonetics). I am thrilled to see my daughter, at age 6, already has teaching experience herself. Setting the table, using a napkin to wipe her mouth between messy bites, doing dishes, washing napkins, pouring her own glass of water from a pitcher, sewing with a needle and thread, tying her shoes, preparing a snack for herself and a friend, planting and harvesting from the garden, asking for help and helping others. Every day the teachers did this with the children, so my daughter's life skills are second nature now. The teachers are very thoughtful in how they design and prepare the environment to allow every student to practice at their own level before advancing to more challenging tasks and skills. Perhaps most importantly, Violeta has cultivated my daughter's motivation to learn, her skill to learn through observation and hands-on practice (standard in Montessori), and her ability to focus. At home, she self-initiates projects and remains on task without losing focus. She is attentive to her environment, thoughtful about what is around her, and happy to spend a day without screens. Violeta does not use screens. The school offers many ways for children to experience all their senses: smelling distinct scents in bottles, listening to world music with headphones, tending to living plants and animals, exploring the outdoors twice a day, and working with natural materials like arranging flowers for display. With bilingual instruction reinforced by proactive daily practice (e.g., Spanish mealtime conversations, workbooks, audiobooks, bedtime stories and more) beyond school hours, my daughter's language development has thrived. She has learned to do math, read, write, and build relationships with all ages in Spanish and English. For her, fluency has been a natural outcome of bilingual practice at home and at school.

My daughter is nearing the end of her 2nd year at Violeta. The current teachers are great at…read morelearning what each individual child needs. My daughter was very reserved and quiet when she began and has blossomed socially, now able to speak up and stand up for herself. The learning environment is beautiful and well maintained by the teachers. They encourage parent involvement and the kids are all a tight knit group. Highly recommend this school for anyone who wants to see their young child flourish!

TLDR: Triple check your start date, go out of your way to make sure they've sent you any paperwork…read morethey need, ask for a supervisor if they won't attempt to rectify their mistake . I would not use Kindercare in the future because of their poor communication and I hope that people in the future do not have issues like I had. -- In July 2022 when I was in my second trimester of pregnancy, I sent in an application and $200 registration fee for this daycare. I asked for a start date in April 2023 and they agreed that was likely. Later I got an email that there was a new director. When my baby was born, I emailed the new director to say, yes we still want that spot. No response after a few tries. After calling the center, I learned there was another new director. She and I communicated and she told me in writing that she confirms my spot for April. No mention of paperwork or next steps except that I could come for a tour if I wanted. It was December so I figured she'd ask for the extra paperwork closer to the start date. In February I reached out to her to ask about paperwork. No response. I learned from a friend that they have yet another director so I got her email and asked about next steps. She told me there's actually no April spot. This was very worrisome since I was going back to work in April. The July/August start date they offered would not work for me because we would moving out of the area. She declined giving back the $200 since it's not technically used to the "hold" the spot. I understand that the 200 is not a guarantee of a spot but after they told me I had a spot how would I as a first time parent know if there was even more to do? Even now I don't see what more steps I could have taken to ensure that they kept their word. The director basically agreed with me and said they dropped the ball but would not give me a refund when I asked a second time either. After asking to speak to a supervisor she agreed to send the $200 back. Whatever she did didn't work so when I reached out about the status she connected me to a support team who was able to send me a check. All this to say, I had to be very, very proactive to get any information or anything moving along. Also to clarify, after the first email communicating a director change, the subsequent changes happened without any notification. One more thing - at least one other parent I know was promised an April spot and then told there isn't one. Now I think and hope these issues won't happen when there's a consistent director. I understand that this is not the fault of the current director. I think it's appalling that they can put parents in this position without childcare by their own mistake and then not even offer to refund money deposited. I would not use Kindercare in the future because of their poor communication and I hope that people in the future do not have issues like I had. I gave 2 stars instead of only 1 because I do think some parents/kids have a good experience there and the people I spoke to were at least polite.

We brought our son here when he was 3 months old and stayed until we moved out of the city (~11…read moremonths old). Our experience at this Kindercare was excellent, and our appreciation for this place only strengthened after enrolling our son at a new day care in the 'burbs. The staff here is friendly and caring; they're always happy to see your child in the morning and to tell you about his/her day in the evening. They were very communicative both ways (I can't stress the importance of this enough). They really felt like extended family. We also appreciated that they had curriculum which, although it seems silly for an infant, provided structure and gave us comfort that they were assisting our child's development. Suffice it to say, we really miss this place.

We chose GMS-Belmont as our son's first school at 16 months old (over a year ago) & have had such a…read morepositive experience. The teachers are so patient and loving as they help incoming children settle into a new routine. They work so hard to cultivate a deep love for learning/exploration, and a sense of confidence and independence in children. The Montessori method is put into effective practice each day through work-cycle & thoughtful, creative activities. The teachers have a lot of experience implementing healthy practices to help children with emotional regulation and social aspects of learning. During the academic year, the school has a rich curriculum spanning language, math, science, practical life, sensorial, and gross/fine motor - the teachers create this and share via monthly newsletters. Two major highlights of the year are the holiday & summer concerts where all children in the school perform together - this is a tremendous undertaking and months of preparation by the teachers for a most delightful family-oriented tradition! Director Ms. Sahar and co-director Ms. Jenn are fully present and so dedicated - they know each child by name, each family, and are always on the ground to ensure smooth daily functioning. There is little-to-no staff turnover and the teachers have a wealth of experience. Our family is super grateful for the strong foundation and core values that the teachers have given our son, and again, highly recommend GMS-Belmont!

We had a very positive experience at this school! Our son spent his first primary year of…read moreMontessori education at GMS and he so clearly thrived in the environment nurtured by his teachers and Miss Sahar/Tara. He joined at the age of 3.5 and within a few weeks made significant strides in terms of his learning & development, independence (such as dressing himself, cleaning up after play time, and helping out around the house), and overall curiosity on reading / writing / coloring. GMS still has that small community feel even as the classes continue to grow and the system becomes more mature over time. We are sad to have only learned of this school late in our time in the greater Boston area and wish we could've stayed for the full 3-year cycle.