Starbright is the VERY BEST preschool that a parent who wants the best for their child(ren) can…read morechoose! There are a LOT of options available in ATX, and preschool paves the way to the future: This is a HUGE decision for parents of young children to make! If you want your child to embrace their childhood exposed to and graced with age-appropriate experiences and learning opportunities, to learn about who they are and how to interact with & respect others, and to know what it's like to be loved and appreciated for who they are as an individual, then you found the best that Austin offers! I call Starbright the "Waldorf Prep School," as this is the underlying premise/"curriculum." My children now attend AISD vs. Waldorf, because we don't necessarily ascribe to Waldorf concepts when it comes to grade-school education/philosophy vs. the overall public school experience. For a preschool-age child, the freedom to be a kid --having fun, learning life-skills and experiencing Life, having bountiful learning opportunities, and feeling secure and cared for-- matters! Obviously for a Waldorf-minded parent, this is your preschool! For a parent wanting a preschool to solely/directly to "mold"/"prep" their child for their grueling academic future (which I personally believe subtracts from ultimate well-roundedness and childhood development), then Starbright is NOT for you. For a parent wanting your child to learn, grow, have fun, and be ready for public/private school, keep reading! The Director and the teachers at Starbright: The Director is AMAZING! Her experiential learning and degreed background (well over 30 yrs) as a teacher and guidance counselor are a big part of WHY Starbright is so awesome. She highly scrutinizes and hand-picks each staff teacher, identifying matching qualities included in their background/educational degree, and for a "whole person" concept and presence that exudes love, caring, and respect for others on all levels. Believe me, if a staff member doesn't "measure up," they won't last long at Starbright. But more importantly for a parent "shopping" for a preschool, rest assured that turnover rates are really low because the selection of staff members is so stringent. The teachers/staff at Starbright are there for 1 united purpose: To provide the very best growing/learning experience for the children at Starbright, period. Parental-involvement greatly enhances your child's experience at Starbright, just as it "should be" in the development of your own child. The more you can contribute in any capacity, the more the class (& your child) excels as a whole. I don't want to say it's a "make or break" (for those who have full-time working parents), but some of the extraordinary events that happen at Starbright REQUIRE parental involvement for the greatest experience overall. We attended for years (from 22 months to 6 yrs old x 2 kids approx. 2 yrs apart - both at Starbright) that included a plethora of involved parents: Our experience was far & beyond anything we could have imagined possible in a preschool! Bottom-line: YOUR involvement is what helps Starbright to fulfill its mission & vision FULLY! Starbright Preschool is an extremely valuable, enriching, and loving experience that I wish I had as part of my own childhood. It's not the cheapest, and it's not a specifically academically-focussed preschool. But what it IS at its core -what it provides to each child, your child - is a safe, fun, kid-based/age-appropriate learning environment that develops your child as a WHOLE person, adequately preparing your child for all-around success in grade school, Life, and the future. This review was written as my kids are currently in 3rd & 5th grade. I felt the need to post this after seeing fellow parents of Starbright "graduates" at a middle school (MS) for the writing test portion of application to the MS Academy. We parents couldn't stop talking about how much we loved and appreciated Starbright Preschool!!!

I waited a few years to write this review to have clarity on the situation and not just write with…read moreemotion. Four years later, I still have an extremely negative impression of this school. The blame, I believe, lies entirely with the director at the time, Jean. Perhaps she's still there. I get the feeling my son was accepted for an afternoon slot so Jean and Starbright could get extra money. There was no other explanation for why a new toddler would be accepted if there was no support available for him. My wife took him to the preschool for only 1.5 hours of the 3 hours we paid the first week so everyone could get used to the new situation. She would stay after to talk with teachers and let our son play on the playground. The second week, our son was there for 2 hours. At each pick up, we checked in with the teachers who assured us that our son was progressing as expected. This was his first experience with out-of-home child care. We knew he cried when we left, and we left quickly to make the transition easier for all. We also let everyone at the school know our son cries loudly and they should not be alarmed. On the Friday of the second week, we were pulled into Jean's office and told "this is not working out." She said that one teacher was out pushing him on the swings for the two hours he was in the school's care. The other teacher was with the rest of the kids. I don't blame the teachers, who seemed to lack experience, but the director for putting us and the teachers in such a situation, then not keeping us in the loop and "firing" us with no notice. And when she asked us not to return, she didn't even know our son's name! Our son went on to a fabulous preschool after this horrid place for 2 wonderful years and is now a successful elementary student. I strongly urge you to reconsider when thinking of this school.

My children attend this program and love it. I think so highly of this program that I wanted to…read moreshare with others. The ratio of teachers to children is low and I know that my kids are getting tons of attention when they are there. I stopped by today to grab something I had forgotten and they had the toddler class out in the courtyard for circle time with a child development specialist and the 3 teachers in that classroom doing dance and movement. I felt like I was witnessing something very special and unique. The thing is they do that every week in each classroom. Every day I get a detailed written and verbal report on what kind of day my kids had. My experience communicating with the staff and teachers the is truly exceptional. I receive emails on a weekly basis and know that I can ask anything and have all my questions answered in a timely manner. If you are a parent looking for a loving and learning environment for you child I strongly recommend calling or stopping by St Louis for more information.

The rooms at this facility are really small and the food they serve is not something I want my kids…read moreeating everyday. It also lacks in structure and curriculum. My son also came home with dried snot on his face everyday that they obviously had not tended to all day. The teachers were nice, but this isn't somewhere I wanted my child to be long term.

This is a great establishment. My children come home happy and the school helps with their…read morecognitive development. This is a great place and I recommend.

My infant and toddler attend My Big Brain and WE LOVE IT! We have been there almost a year and am…read moreso thankful we found them. They are friendly, caring, compassionate, and attentive. The teachers are the same there is NO turnover here compared to other large daycares. Our kids never have been sent home sick due to how clean they are. My son and daughter are always fed and well taken care of. They have a posted menu to view what they have ate that day. I am glad I can drop my kids off somewhere and they are so excited to be there. Finding affordable AMAZING childcare is almost impossible. We are so blessed to have them care for our children.

Best school EVER! Initially, it was so disappointing looking for a quality standard of childcare…read moremoving to Cedar Creek from Austin. I was discouraged and at first wanted to judge this little home by its cover. I thought it wasn't much. After actually meeting Mrs. Margret and Mrs. Vivian I felt comfortable......but after seeing day after day how happy Devon was there, this school earned my favor BY FAR. They do something fun EVERY day and cook every Thursday. I feel as though they are part of my family in a way and have earned a place in my heart. I can't express how grateful I am for a school like this; a school that genuinely runs on love. When you find a good school it changes the way you feel about childcare......That is what this school has done for me. If you are looking for excellent childcare you will not be disappointed. Great staff with great hearts.

My child currently attends, and I have a feeling that she's the "zombie" a previous reviewer spoke…read moreabout in the 18-24 month class. My child is special needs, and has a developmental delay. The teachers have always been really great about participating in her therapy, and even taking the suggestions the therapists give to help all of the kids in the class learn more independence and self sufficiency. They've made the necessary accommodations where and when needed, and I know that they love the kids under their care.

I HATE this place. Seriously- take your kid anywhere else…read more My kid has been out of this place for quite a while now so I've calmed down quite a bit before writing this article. My son started here when he was a year old and it was his first day care experience. They made it seem like they have such a demand and there is a 'giant' waiting list. Bull shit. The teachers seemed really nice and seemed to know what they were doing- even though there were MANY misspelled words on his take home sheet. (snacks would be snakes, green would be grean) From the people that are teaching my child. We learned very quickly that this place will try to take every penny, nickle, and dime that you have. They tried to charge us for pool use when it clearly stated the pool was only used on Fridays and he only went on Tuesdays. They used all of our supplies on other children then charged us a $65 supply fee twice in three months. One time, I went to drop my kid off and noticed another child in his class clearly upset from being ill and blowing giant green snot bubbles. Nice. Her mother, a teacher in that class was telling another teacher that the night before she had had a high fever. FANTASTIC. Of course, my son got sick then the rest of us, causing missed work and school. I picked him up one afternoon and when I got him home, I noticed that he had a giant bite mark on his shoulder. It was so bad that it had bled through his shirt. When I asked his teacher, she just said that they had a couple biters in the room and it tends to happen. She THEN mentioned that my son had all of a sudden been hysterically the day he was bit, now we know why. There was no incident report! We put in the one month notice and they continued to bill us for the next 3 months. We called to inquire about our $200 deposit since we had found a new and amazing day care and needed that money. The horrible owner said we wouldn't get it back and we were welcome to hire a lawyer. Hopefully this helps you steer clear of this crap hole.

Excellent customer service, not. I had an appointment with the immigration service for my child,…read morenow the USCIS are a federal agency and if they require you to be somewhere you'd better be there or get deported. As a result, my child was late and because it was after 9 am, the policy is no admittance without a doctors note, so I had to take the whole day off work, something that we cannot do without jeopardizing our employment. Turns out a doctors note carries more weight than a federal agency request. As a result, my child will probably have to miss his next appointment and the children may well get to see ICE agents arrest and deport their friend.

This is a great child care center. I'm totally impressed with the staff and quality of the program…read more The care and concern for the children seems very personable. Julia is very warm and caring with the children. And I love the curriculum. Would definitely recommend!

I wanted to respond to Anon Y review which unfairly criticizes Eco Kids. My son has been attending…read morethere for four years and in that time I never heard a teacher bad mouth a child. Actually one of the reasons I kept him there even after moving further away is because of the great relationship he has with all of the teachers. I have made it a point of asking him from time to time is the teachers are mean and his reply is that they are nice and his best friends. Almost every day I have a hard time getting him to leave because he wants to stay at school longer. The teachers are friendly, sweet and loving toward all of the children. It is unfair to characterize them as a "nasty group of women." Being by a gas station doesn't take away from the fresh and mostly organic food that is served every day. Anon Y gives the impression that she doesn't play a role in helping her child learn. My son knew his alphabet, numbers to 10 and the primary colors and shapes by the age of 18 months. That was also due to us practicing at home, which you need to do no matter what school a child is in. My child is three and speaks in complete sentences and is beginning to come up with his own made up stories. He knows his planets and beginning to do math. I urge you to decide for yourself if Eco Kids has the positive environment to help your child learn and develop into a confident child.

Do not send your infant to ECO-KIDS!! They over promise and under deliver. The first day of…read moreschool they fed my 7 month old daughter french fries. They discourage parents from visiting their children during the day to the point that they LOCK THE DOORS to all parents during certain hours. If you plan on breastfeeding, know that the breastfeeding room is also the employee break/nap room and smells like old curry and arm pits. The infant teachers and director have very low communication and problem solving skills. The daily infant sheets are optional and rarely filled out completely. The "healthy and organic food" they rave about is actually chicken nuggets and french fries but you really wouldn't know what they are feeding your child because they will write "food" on the daily sheet rather then specifics. Don't dare inquire about anything, have any concerns, or worry about your child because the director will smile in your face, tell you they solved the issues and do absolutely nothing to help you. I encourage parents to review schools first by looking at DFPS before sending your kids. There is a reason that ECO-KIDS has so many violations and that many of those are for not having a "qualified director." The place lacks management. I gave 2 stars because the place is VERY clean and some of the older ladies that work there are really very sweet even though they are often overwhelmed.