I love Amy Lynn's paint parties. She customizes them to suit you and your group and lets you do…read moreyour own thing if you are that type! Very relaxing and fun way to get together. She's also fine if you want to just follow along. Very easy going and talented artist and teacher!

What a great time we had. Amy provided wine, cheese and all the materials needed for a great night…read moreof painting. Better then any other place we've gone. Amy allowed us to use on own creative paths (not the usual "first do this then this" approach), and was incredibly encouraging. An amazing time had by all. We will see her again

If you are looking for private art lessons for your child, look no further than Rachel Fine Art…read more Our 10-year old absolutely loves her weekly class with Rachel. Our daughter has been into drawing since she was a small child, and so, for a few years, we had her in various group classes But as she got a little older, and she really started to excel, we decided she would benefit more from private classes. And were we right. Our daughter's skills have been improving by leaps and bounds since she started classes with Rachel. As my daughter says, "She's awesome!"

Dance Ojai at the Ojai Art Center is INCREDIBLE. I found out about them online when I was looking…read morefor activities for my friend's bachelorette party. I reached out to Isha from their website, and was blown away by how kind and helpful she was. I was toying with the idea of doing a private dance class, and she was eager to help, but unfortunately the timing wasn't quite right. In the end, we decided to attend the Beginners Bollywood Dance class together. I could not believe it was only $5. If I lived in Ojai, I'd be there every week, and telling all my friends about it! The class was energetic, approachable, fun, and a great work out. We had SO MUCH FUN. And Isha was an incredible instructor. She helped us take some cute pictures before the class began, and allowed our group to do the choreography together just us so we could record it. I cannot recommend Dance Ojai highly enough!

Free museum with interesting artwork from local artists. We met & spoke with two of the artists. It…read morewas fascinating speaking with Ted Gall, a well known sculptor in Ojai. He's 83 years old & he's still creating art. He told us a little about his life & his artwork. He even let us touch one of his sculpture in the glass case. We saw his art at the Ojai Valley of History and Art & the OVA arts store too. We spoke with his sister Laurie Byrne & learned about her art displayed, technique & inspirations.

An incredible space for young people to find out who they are and what they're here to do. We are…read moreso grateful for this "school!" My 10 year old son started at RTS a year ago after several years at a public school in the county. He was so anxious at the public school: most of the kids there would run out the gate at 3pm wanting to get out of there, with my son being very upset if I was even a few minutes late. His clothes were frayed at the wrist and knees from him chewing anxiously on them, he was labeled the class clown because he was always trying to lighten the mood. Most of the "teachers" kept asking if he had ADHD or another learning disability. We knew that he did not, and so decided to try changing his environment. We started in January (so glad that we were able to start mid-year) and the dramatic difference in his happiness, behavior, sense of connection and community has been VAST. It's such a testament to the incredibly thoughtful space Natasha and Jim Bailey have co-created. The kids can choose what they do each day, with climbing trees or chatting with friends being a perfectly valid activity (there's so much learning in everything.) My son is building things, mastering design and 3D printing, playing 3 instruments without any lessons (and no urging to practice), has created his own small business and is learning entrepreneurialism and team management. All at the age of 10. (What was he learning in the other school? How to survive the day and do what other people told him to do...) The Rock Tree Sky model (or Sudbury model, the first democratic school) isn't for everyone, but we've found it more appropriate in preparing our son for life during this modern time than traditional school was. If you have any doubts or concerns about this model, a great book I was recommended was Peter Gray's Free To Learn. Note that there are no formal lessons, no strictly age-segmented classrooms (amazing), and no "teachers" only "mentors". There are rules of conduct and there are offerings each day that kids can choose from: cooking, carpentry, sewing, gardening, pottery etc. but most of them choose their own adventure each day. Isn't that what we're all doing? Isn't that what life is about?! I can only speak with the utmost respect for this learning environment and warm community. I know that the kids here are destined for brilliant things, with so many supportive people gently guiding and cheering them along the way. Ps. You can apply to the Summit program via OUSD, which is a homeschool program integrated into RTS, which also subsidizes some of the tuition and offers a more traditional classroom experience for a couple of hours a week. It's incredibly affordable compared to other private schools here, but again - it's not for everyone. If your family values self-directed learning (and living), we highly recommend RTS!

Jim Bailey and Natasha Efross put together this amazing school that both my 9 & 11 year olds…read moreattend. "Self Directed Education" and that's exactly what it is. The school sits in 2 beautiful locations in upper Ojai and your finding space for your little one may prove to be slightly difficult, so I highly recommend that you get on that wait list STAT. The teachers/mentors are the very best of the best and the kids are amazing. This is one of those schools that your child will never want to leave. I honestly don't have the ability to write all that needs to be said so I will leave it to you to go and give it a visit. Oh, their logo happens to be pretty damn beautiful too. 5 stars.

I took a painting class with Adonna and it was so much fun and she really helped me paint a…read morestunning painting when I had never painted before in my entire life. The class was so enjoyable and she is a great teacher. I am going to take more classes with her. Everyone thought my painting was amazing and I am so proud of it. You absolutely have to take a class with her!!!

Glitter Barn is an incredible magical place! I wish there was something like this when I was a kid…read more I discovered Glitter Barn at a homeschooling park event. My kids absolutely loved it, and I was thrilled by the concept of combining art and science. They also have history and art sessions, as well as other exciting events. Every week, my kids eagerly show me their latest projects. They've learned so much from their wonderful teacher, Benicia, about science in a fun and engaging way. Not only do they learn fascinating science facts, but they also get to play and interact with their friends. Teacher Benicia is truly exceptional, and I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to bring my kids to this amazing class.

The Glitter Barn was so amazing. My book club wanted a chill fun activity that we could all do…read moretogether. The staff at the Glitter Barn provided options for us to choose from, and with their help we selected a Halloween themed wreath class. The class was reasonably priced, they were able to accommodate our whole party, and they made the entire experience just lovely. I would 100% recommend booking something with them and will for sure do so again in the future.

This program is absolutely amazing. My son has been going to LadyBug Music since he was about six…read moremonths old, and absolutely loves the music, loves the teachers, enjoys how interactive it is with all the parents, enjoy spending time with the other kids that are older and younger. He even recognizes the music now! The welcome song is one of his favorites, and when I sing it at home, he taps along to it. This program is for everybody, not just music lovers, not just moms, and not just the babies... You are not stuck with the traditional nursery rhymes that can get a little tedious after a while (let's be honest). The music is actually really good, and super catchy! Fair warning, you will 100% have the songs stuck in your head. Luckily it's good! When we moved to Ventura County from LA, I wasn't sure how the transition would go with my almost one year-old. But knowing that there was a LadyBug Music program out here, made me feel so much better! We loved it in the valley, and out here it has made a little community for us as well. I look forward to going every single week. And I know my son gets really excited when we are walking in. It's like he already knows that he will get to play with Musical instruments, see and play with other kids, and even get some dancing in! We love this program so much. I could not recommend it more!

Entertaining, fun and great for development! My child has had a wonderful experience at Lady Bug…read moreMusic classes. We have taken three sessions starting at the age of 6 months till she is now almost three. Over that time my child has learned to clap with the music, shake the shakers, drum with sticks and dance to a rhythm and have an overall great time with music. Emily is a great teacher who interacts with each child, plays guitar an and sings. We go through about eight different songs per class and each song has an interactive element. I would highly recommend this class for young children. My child's love for music has blossomed because of this class.

This is week 3 and needless to say our 3 year old is addicted! While she has been in gymnastics and…read moretumbling since she was 2 she became fearful of doing forward rolls so while searching for something to get her creative energy rolling we found Ballet Academy Ventura. We stopped in for the free class of creative movement and what started as nerves and sitting around for the first half of the class to fully engaged the second half. After that trial she couldn't stop talking about it. We enrolled into the classes and it's been a blast to start each saturday with this. The instructors are patient and keep classes rolling and are very engaging to get those who aren't feeling the early morning start. I can't wait to see what the program has to offer and the ease and flexibility of everything makes it too simple.

My daughter just recently started attending ballet classes here and she already loves it so much!…read moreThe teachers are all very professional and nice. Very clean studios and they seem to be very put together. I can't wait to see her first recital!