Our twins have been at RA for three magical years. It has been a joyful, nurturing place for our…read morefamily and we feel incredibly grateful that our children got to spend their preschool years here. We recommend RA wholeheartedly. The biggest change isn't just what our kids have learned, it's who they've become. They're confident, compassionate kids who love learning, and we know RA played an enormous role in that. Jiali is a loving director who is passionate about early childhood development, and also has extraordinary executive skills, so everything runs smoothly with the help of her, Jiawen, and their amazing staff.
Academics. Our kids are speaking and reading Mandarin, and we have been impressed by their language development over the years. It's amazing to hear them chatting with each other in Mandarin, singing songs around the house, and translating words for family members. Jiali and her staff find creative ways of making learning fun, like learning about metamorphosis by showing an actual caterpillar transform into a butterfly. RA has also taught them English letters and math, and the kids will enter school a year ahead academically. We're so grateful they have such a strong foundation and have the confidence to excel in school.
Responsibility. RA intentionally has times where the bigger kids interact with the smaller kids by helping them, fostering a care for others. Our kids have come home excited about what the "babies" did today and know several by name. RA has also taught our kids to clean up after themselves and did all the potty training (whenever friends ask us how we potty trained our twins, we shrug and say "preschool did it").
Communal care. RA has a low student-teacher ratio. Although each kid is assigned to a class with a teacher, all the teachers know all the kids' names. Over the years, our kids have come home with heartwarming stories of their interactions with all of the teachers. It's comforting that a collective group of caring adults is part of our village.
Safety. Our kids have extremely severe food allergies and started at RA at an age where they were still putting things in their mouths and too young to clearly communicate whether they were feeling bad. We weren't sure they'd be able to go to any preschool safely and were prepared to homeschool. During our tour, Jiali patiently walked through every safety protocol and and answered every question we had. She did this while playing with our kids, making them giggle and relax in a new environment. We left feeling confident in her ability to keep our kids safe. In three years, we've had 0 incidents, which is incredible.
RA is also a preschool that is great for parents:
Schedule and logistics. RA's schedule is convenient for busy parents. Even during breaks, parents have the option of paying a daily rate for care. RA provides healthy food for the kids (morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack which is functionally an early dinner), saving parents a lot of time and energy.
Communication. RA is great at communicating about illnesses, breaks, etc. It's easy to message them via the BrightWheel app or ask at pickup/drop off. RA sends monthly updates with pictures and videos, which is great because they're focusing on caring for the kids, but parents also get lovely updates to re-watch for years to come.
Community. We've become good friends with other families, and we know those relationships will continue long after preschool. There's a WhatsApp group where parents share helpful information too.
Peace of mind. More than anything, we're grateful for the love our children received every single day. Every teacher knew them, celebrated them, and cared for them as individuals. As parents, there is no greater gift than dropping your children off each morning knowing they're safe, loved, and excited to be there. We will always look back on our years at RA with gratitude.
