Great place to start off your child's school journey! We've been with Latchkey for about two years…read morenow. My son started in the preschool (Teddy Bear) program and just graduated from the pre-K class (Dinosaurs). The staff are extremely nice and caring. Shoutout to Ms. Nicole, Mr. Matt, Ms. Sonia, Ms. Harris and all the other teachers who make Latchkey great. They've created a warm environment for my child to thrive. I'm confident that my child will be ready for Kindergarten this fall and all the friends he's made at Latchkey will carry on since it's attached to the elementary school. Tuition is very reasonable for the Bay Area ($1,515 per month at the time of this posting), and lunch/snacks are included. Hours are great for working families, basically the whole day from 7am-6pm. The facilities, which are two bungalows, seem to be on the older side, however, they do keep it tidy and feels homey. If you're in Daly City and looking for an affordable and family run preschool, Latchkey is the way to go! I will definitely send my second kid there once he's old enough.

We absolutely love the Latch Key Alternative Center! Mr. Matt and his team are truly outstanding…read more He is incredibly responsive, supportive, and genuinely cares about the families he serves. As a single mom, finding a reliable after-school program and summer camp is essential, and Mr. Matt went above and beyond to guide us through the enrollment process and help us get into the Latch Key Center. My children are currently enrolled in the summer program, and they have been having an amazing experience. The center offers a wide variety of activities and exciting field trips, keeping the kids engaged, active, and having fun. My kids are truly enjoying their summer this year. The entire staff is friendly, caring, and dedicated to creating a positive environment for the children. I cannot thank Mr. Matt enough for all of his support and assistance. We are so grateful to be part of the Latch Key family and highly recommend this program to other parents!

My son has been attending this daycare/preschool since he was 8 months old. He is now 2 years old…read more He loves it here and he loves his teachers. The rooms are all set up in a way to foster the kid's development and learning. Everything is so neat and clean, their sanitizing rules are always adhered to. Even the parents are asked to follow the procedures. I couldn't ask for more in a daycare. When he is happy, I am happy and that is all that matters. You can see that the teachers love what they are doing and this makes the environment very welcoming and enjoyable. I would never choose another school for my son. They have truly exceeded my expectations.

My daughter has attended the preschool program here for the last two semesters and we absolutely…read morelove it. The school follows a Reggio-Emilia (google it) philosophy and the teachers and staff are amazing. It is open to students, staff, and alumni of SFSU, and if there is space available they do accept children whose parents are not affiliated with the school. I have a special needs child and the school has made every effort to make the classroom accessible. They have really put a lot of energy into making sure she has a positive experience. There seems to me to be an emphasis on fostering a sense of community among the children and families. This includes having pot lucks, greening days, weekend outings, and family participation. Parent's must volunteer once a semester and can choose from a list of things that the school needs. For instance you can provide a snack for the teacher's meeting, mow the grass, or some other task that the school needs done. There is tuition assistance (that is provided by the ASI) for qualifying families. You must pack a lunch for your child as no lunch is provided by the school. However, they do provide two snacks a day and water is always available outside and inside the classroom. There is also a community fruit basket that each child is asked to contribute to which becomes part of the snacks. We have been very happy with this preschool. They have gone out of their way to provide services for my daughter and to make sure that her transition to kindergarten will be a smooth one.

Oh wow, my kid's former preschool on Yelp. Cool! It was a long time ago my son went here, but I…read morehave often thought about the positive experience he had at the Mission YMCA preschool. They offered a good blend of skill building in socialization, numbers, language, arts, and preparation for kindergarten. The price was right and the schedule was convenient. Most importantly the teachers were nice and communicative with parents. What I know now that I didn't know then is that the bottom line with preschools is what elementary schools are they getting accepted to. My son made it into our first choice, private school so Mission (YMCA) accomplished. ******* The reason for the mediocre star rating is because of the negative experience we had with the summer camp offered through this Y. My child turned five while in preschool and we were told he could go to their summer camp, so I agreed not knowing that it was not as nurturing of an environment as preschool. The facility in Glen Park was depressing, kind of like a pit of kids with dirty toys and the camp counselors were not friendly at all (not even a smile or a hello). It appeared as if they trolled prisons to recruit these camp counselors, as opposed to the norm of Early Child Development college students. He went for one day and then went back to preschool, for which they accommodated me immediately, and I learned to scrutinize day camps thoroughly from then on. So four stars for the preschool and one for the summer day camp. FYI the Embarcadero Y summer day camp is top rate.

I have never left a negative review anywhere or on anything, but after several weeks of concerns…read moreand an upsetting experience today, I feel parents deserve to know what our experience has been. My four-year-old attended the Mission Branch YMCA summer camp for much of the summer, beginning at the Dolores Huerta site and later transitioning to the Mission YMCA location. I want to emphasize that I tried very hard throughout the summer to be patient and understanding. I know camps are busy, unexpected things happen, and working with young children is challenging. I gave the staff the benefit of the doubt repeatedly because I genuinely wanted this program to work. Unfortunately, today's experience was the last straw. While there were some counselors who were kind, the overall leadership and communication left me feeling increasingly uneasy as a parent. Throughout the summer: * When my daughter was struggling socially, I reached out for support but never felt I received meaningful guidance or follow-up. * During difficult drop-offs, I would ask how she recovered later in the day and was often told, "I don't know, I wasn't with them," leaving me with very little information about how my preschooler was doing. * One field trip changed locations after the children had already left, and parents were never notified. * On another field trip, the buses returned approximately 30 minutes late, and parents waiting at pickup received no communication about the delay. * I also overheard a counselor speaking to the children in a way that I found concerning, telling them how "terrible" they were behaving. Today's incident was the final straw. We arrived approximately five minutes late for a field trip. I understand there may be safety procedures around attendance and transportation. However, we were told that my daughter could not attend camp at all that day. After reviewing the camp emails and handbook, it clearly stated that if you are late on an excursion day and miss the bus, you will need to drop your camper off at the excursion location. The bus hadn't even left yet and the camp director told us that my daughter wouldn't be able to attend that day, with very little explanation. More disappointing than the decision itself was the response when I tried to discuss it. Rather than acknowledging my concerns or taking a moment to understand why I was upset, I left feeling dismissed. Had someone simply acknowledged my frustration and explained this decision with empathy, this review likely would not exist. As a parent of a four-year-old, I don't expect perfection. I do expect clear communication, professionalism, and a collaborative relationship with families. Unfortunately, that was not our experience. After leaving today, I looked through other reviews and was disappointed to see that many parents described concerns very similar to my own. I sincerely hope the YMCA takes those patterns seriously because this has the potential to be a wonderful program with stronger leadership, better communication, and a greater commitment to partnering with families.

My son is a student at Garden Gate and loooooves it! We recently transitioned from a much larger…read morepreschool and are so happy we made the switch. Michelle and Shannon take such great care of the kids and nurture their individual interests. They are easy to communicate with and create opportunities for us to be part of the school activities as much as we can. The monthly calendar they put together has something fun planned for each day. There are field trips and visits from tree frog treks once a month, as well as community get togethers for the families to get to know each other. I highly recommend Garden Gate Preschool!

I never thought I could find a full time preschool that I would feel 100% about, but this one is…read more110%. Curriculum: every month there is a theme, every day of the month they explore something that fits with the theme, example: March is music month and yesterday they made an adorable music video from the song thriller! The kids were in zombie face paint and dancing to the song--they also picked the song! It's mixed age so my 2 year old is learning with 2-5 year olds. It's such a great experience for him. Teachers: so sweet and chill, yet structured and fun. They send photos or videos from time to time of our kiddo in action, and always respond to texts or concerns immediately. They are flexible and kind yet firm with important things. Space: it's actually quite large compared to how many kids they have, I toured a preschool that had 3x the kids with the same amount of space. There's a small kitchenette, designated eating area, "the rumpus room" with mats, swings and disco lights and music where they also sleep, and there are also two other toy / play areas. There's a garden with a play structure, mud kitchen and playhouse. It's small, so various times in the day they go out on the 15ft wide sidewalk and put up cones on the edges, the kids can zoom the ride on cars and bikes along the 100ft back and forth. It's a quiet street so it's perfect! The other thing is we were truly appreciate the community that is created through this place. I really LOVE garden gate. It's seriously amazing. Affordable, trustworthy, safe, fun, checks all the boxes.

We Feel So Lucky to Have Found Happy Days!…read more I'm truly moved by the love and attention my almost 4-year-old son has received at Happy Days. If we have more children in the future, they will definitely be going here as well -- without question. There are a few things that make this preschool really special: 1. Welcoming to All Stages Happy Days is one of the few preschools in the area that accepts toddlers who are not yet potty trained. Our son started attending when he was about 20 months old, and he was nowhere near potty trained at the time. The school welcomed him with open arms and supported him through this phase with great patience. 2. Truly Above and Beyond Care The standard pick-up time is already quite generous at 6:00 pm, but when Head Teacher Mindy learned about our demanding work schedules, she graciously offered to take our son home in the evenings so we could pick him up at 8:00 pm. Over the past two years, Mindy and her husband have become like grandparents to our son -- a bond we will forever treasure. We honestly don't think we could find this level of love and care anywhere else. 3. Wonderful Development Our son has grown into a smart, happy, and outgoing little boy. He was well-prepared for kindergarten -- he performed very well in school interviews and was accepted to every private school we applied to. Most importantly, he loves learning: he enjoys school, homework, his teachers, and his classmates. 4. Incredible Value For all of this, the tuition is very reasonable. In fact, many of my friends are paying more at other schools -- and in my view, they're receiving less in terms of personal attention and genuine care.

The teachers here are very attentive to the children's need…read more They helped me with my daughters potty training and putting on a face mask as she wouldn't listen to us, parents. My daughter's cognitive and comprehension skills increased tremendously after starting daycare here.

Brilliant Kids School the best! My only wish is that Ms. Barbara could teach my kids until they…read morereach college. Haha! Only joking, but one can dream. When we were first touring preschools, I was looking for a couple things: - Cantonese immersion - Assisted with potty training - Provided meals - Respectful environment We toured many places, and knew right away that this would be the one when we met Ms. Barbara, Joe, and Serena. First of all, in setting up the initial meeting, they were very responsive. Second of all, Ms. Barbara was very excited to explain everything about the program, from the daily schedule, to mealtimes, to how she supports the kids' emotional development. She even gave us details like how they chose the flooring and furniture. I could tell right away that she was very invested in the students and the school. Finally, the best part was how well they interacted with my kids. Even from the first meeting, they were very caring and patient. For their day-to-day curriculum, they have a great schedule with outdoor time, art projects, schoolwork, and exercise. They also garden, go to the playground, and make food. My kids taught me how to make spam musubi and ants on a log after they learned from school! They also do naptime - Ms. Barbara can get my kids to nap regularly, much better than I can. For mealtimes, I don't have to worry about anything. They provide 3 delicious home-cooked, balanced meals with variety of vegetables, grains, and meat. They also taught my kids how to eat independently. Ms. Barbara sends us pictures and videos every day, so we get to see what the kids are up to. In the beginning, we were anxious because our kids had never been outside of our care before. But the messages calmed our worries; we could see them having fun doing so many different activities. I just checked my WhatsApp -- Ms. Barbara has sent me 4,293 pictures and videos of my kids over the past 2 years! Over the past 2 years, my son has flourished at Brilliant Kids. - On the language learning, he started out knowing almost no Cantonese. Now he holds full conversations in Cantonese, jabbering on with his grandparents and even random people like his haircutter. He even got 95/100 on the SFUSD language test! I attribute that all to Brilliant Kids, because it's truly an immersion school. Even the students speak to each other in Chinese during playtime. - On the academic side, he started off not knowing how to hold a pencil. Now he can write all his letters and numbers, and he's even starting to read and spell some simple words. They also learn Chinese characters. Brilliant Kids prepared him very well for kindergarten. - Most importantly, on the social development side, he has matured so much. Of course some of it is developmental, but most of it is due to his teachers. My son has some VERY challenging behaviors with huge outbursts, and we were very worried about him. Ms. Barbara and the teachers were patient yet firm with him and taught him many techniques to calm down. He can recite it now: "breathe deep, count to 10, think about something happy." At home, he is better at sharing, helping out, and letting go of things that used to bother him. One time, he started to get angry, but he paused and started breathing in and out. I was so impressed! We will always be grateful for the teachers who lovingly worked with him even through his crazy explosions. In addition, Ms. Barbara goes above and beyond to show care for the children and families: - During Halloween, she organized a family field trip to pumpkin patch, and gave us pumpkin, goodie bags, and yummy food - During Christmas, the kids performed songs and got visit from Santa. She also sends home gifts for the family (for example, canvas print of our family from the pumpkin patch) - During birthdays, she makes the kids feel very special. She has them do a birthday project, buys cake for the kids, and has everybody sing a song. She also sends the kids home with a special gift and balloon! One unfortunate thing is that my daughter got sick on the day of her birthday celebration, so she couldn't go to school. Ms. Barbara offered to deliver the cake and gift to us so my daughter wouldn't miss out! - For graduation, the kids practice for months on their songs and speech. The result was so amazing and adorable. She also gives each graduate a graduation gift, framed picture, graduation certificate, and big photo album filled with their pictures from Brilliant Kids. This preschool photo album is now my son's favorite book to "read" at bedtime. Another good sign is that I notice many current students are younger siblings of previous students. Families come back and stay at Brilliant Kids for many years. We are lucky to have a younger daughter, so we get to stay at Brilliant Kids for a couple more years too! My kids love their teachers and friends at Brilliant Kids. I am thankful that they had such a great start to their education.

This is the first school that my first child has attended since she was 3 years old. Can't say…read moreenough great things about everything here. Brilliant kids school is an amazing school. The facility is clean and well organized. My experience with Barbara was wonderful. She is very kind and thoughtful. My daughter cried on the very first days and after a week, she was so excited to go to the class. I couldn't be happier to know that my daughter has many great memories here. She was graduated on this June and is now attending kindergarten. She keeps saying that she misses Barbara and her friends at Brilliant Kids Childcare and that she wants to come visit her teacher. Barbara is the best teacher ever.

Our family has loved our time at this school. It is ideal for parents looking for a play-based…read moremodel and who want to be heavily involved. The co-op model is pretty great (for us). We are a teaching family, which means we have one parent show up once a week to help supervise and support the teachers. Every two-parent family is responsible for 45 hours of volunteer service throughout the school year and one-parent has to do 25 hours. We've found that working together has built a very open, kind and respectful community of families, and it really feels like a partnership with the staff to care for our children.. together. It also doesn't hurt that the tuition can remain lower because the families are helping! The physical school is great, highlighted by the giant sandbox/playground. There are two sections, the younger 2-3 year olds and then the 4 year-olds who are just a year away from kindergarten. Our child is happy, loves the teachers, kids and parents. And the chickens. We've witnessed so much growth and couldn't be happier!

We LOVE this school. Yes, the idea of a co-op was a little daunting at first, given that my husband…read moreworks full time and I work 36 hours a week. But seeing how much my child loves his school and how much he has grown intellectually, socially, and emotionally, every hour I worked and every meeting I went to was absolutely worth it (and spread over a years time, it's really not that much work). First of all, the massive outdoor space cannot be found anywhere else in San Francisco. It's huuuuuge and we all know kids age 2.5-5 need to have a safe and fun space to let that energy out. Second, Playmates' teachers, staff, and community are committed to the children. It really defines what a co-op is. As much as we have to contribute to a co-op, we've also gained so much: friendships, parenting skills, the ability to be a kid again on your working day. Third, the teachers are freaking awesome. They have a way of connecting with the children so that they want to learn, they want to go to school. It's not a typical schedule of everyone sitting at desks or at a table, it's really a lot of child-led curriculum. And I love that. My kid comes home and tells me about the climbing wall, or making volcanoes in the sandbox, or getting a visit from a beekeeper. My favorite thing about Playmates is the focus on teaching our children to be kind human beings. Learning how to resolve conflicts with one another, how to deal with interpersonal relationships. Learning how to care for one another. Learning that people are different, yet not all that different. These life skills and the exposure to diversity is what makes us love this school. It serves as a great foundation for our children to become leaders and good people.

Inquired for daycare services and was routed to so many different locations when I was referred to…read morethe pacifica location and was told by the regional manager there was spaces for my child. Upon arrival for my tour that was not the case... they took a $25 waitlist fee and the rates provided to me over email were not the rates provided to me upon my visit. Also when I did visit the facility the care takers or teachers looked as if there were in some sort of tension or disagreement. All in all it didn't seem like a peaceful environment I would want my child to be admitted to. Unfortunately building kids isn't for me and the can keep my $25 waitlist fee I guess.

We could not love BK more! The teachers are kind, caring, and nurturing, and you can tell they love…read morewhat they do. Parents are kept in the loop and there are regular updates in the school app. Plus the staff plans fun, themed days for the kids.