Inspire Kids Montessori is the best preschool, daycare, and kindergarten around! Both of our sons have attended the school for the past four years and we have experienced all forms of their care from infancy through kindergarten. They communicate very well, have taught our sons so many life skills, and taught us to be better parents. My oldest is starting first grade and is extremely well prepared for gradeschool and beyond. His reading comprehension tested at second grade level here at IKM. We love all the staff there and trust them with our family. I looked at all preschools and daycares in the area, and inspire kids Montessori is by far the best! There are several cheaper and more expensive options in both Montessori and traditional daycare, and I toured the five closest, and IKM was the best and cleanest hands-down. We give our full whole-hearted recommendation to IKM and suggest anyone with children to come here. read more

We have been at this school for 3 years and have loved it! The teachers, staff, and curriculum are fantastic. They follow Montessori approaches closely which has been a great fit for my two children. My kindergartener is doing multiplication, fractions, and writing in cursive. We also LOVE their music program! read more

I almost gave 1 star but instead gave 2 stars because the lead teachers while at the school (my son had 5 teachers in 5 months) they really taught my son so much and 4 of those teachers hold a special place in my heart for a few reasons. Also Ms. Erin, in charge of enrollments, is probably one of the kindest souls you will ever meet. Now on a more serious note: I had a horrible experience with the "HR rep" and Director of the school, and it's tough for me to write this because I wanted to like this school, and I'm still in shock a bit on how things ended. My 2yr old son had several accidents at this school, majority of which caused injuries to the face - one of which resulted in him losing a tooth, another had his nose looking like he was in a boxing match. Now, any parent knows that accidents happen, the frustration is with the vague incident reports and communication regarding these accidents. I.e telling me "a friend scratched his nose"... then upon pickup his nose was so swollen, his pediatrician recommended I take him to the ER for imaging. At the ER the nurses and Doctor questioned the story and asked if maybe an older child was involved, if it was a closed fist hit, an hit with an object, or maybe even a fall because the "scratch" was more of a scrape on the entire right side of the nose (no little finger nail marks). I brought these concerns to the school, and in short their response was an apology for the "scratch on his nose" and they unenrolled (kicked out) my son from the school due to me "questioning his care". I sent pictures via email of his bruising that was developing as the swelling went down (the inner corners of his eyes and all around the bridge of his nose had greenish bluish bruising), and they told me I "wasn't a doctor" and to "leave the diagnosis to a professional". NOTE: The ER held off on imaging because despite the blood inside his nose, and all the swelling, they could see he was able breathe through his nose so they advised to let the swelling go down and then maybe see and ENT specialist after that. They diagnosed him with a nasal abrasion and nasal contusion, and advised that I question the school more because it was not "just a scratch".... but since I'm not a "professional" to IKM (the HR Rep and Director) my questions and words weren't valid. The ER papers I guess didn't really matter either. My son is 2 years old and despite all the changes with the many teachers, he thrived education wise at that school and IKM said (via email) that maybe I needed "1 on 1" care for my son and all they could offer is a class of "21 - 26 student with 2 teachers". I had requested an in person meeting, and they refused to meet with me, they repeated to me when my sons last day would be, and stated that there "was nothing further to discuss". If you choose this school, I pray you and your child have a better more kind and compassionate experience than I did. Remember that HR and Management (the Director/owner) are the backbone to the school. Without having a solid backbone/foundation that's leading with their hearts - horrible experiences like this will continue to happen. That's not okay. read more

I am so impressed with this Inspire and their staff. My husband and I refer to Inspire as the "Harvard of daycare". The love and compassion they have for the children is wonderful. The teachers and staff are welcoming and give me a peace of mind knowing my daughter is safe and cared for. I get daily updates, pictures and communication with how her day is going. My daughter is thriving and meeting her milestones thanks to Inspire. I can't rave enough about what a great school this is. You will not regret choosing Inspire! read more

My Son attended IKM, Ahwatukee campus. Since he was at home for first 20months due to covid pandemic, he had a tough time initially to adjust. However Ms. Jasmine and Ms. Sahara, were very patient with him and helped him adjust. He later adjusted and started liking going to school. He also started learning new words including some rhymes. We also got feedback from him teachers everyday on how he did for the day along with some photos from the procare app. They will be fondly remembered as his first care givers outside of family. read more

We couldn't be happier with our decision to enroll our son at IKM. It was a long drawn out process of researching, reading reviews, and visiting schools but in the end I believe we have made the best decision for our son. On my first visit to the school, Ms. Diana greeted me for a tour of the classrooms. As we toured the building, I was impressed that she knew each student's name and I saw more than one student come up to give her a hug or show her what they were working on. I could tell that she takes a hands-on approach as owner. I was also impressed by the beautiful and clean classroom environment. The rooms are well set up to encourage the children to explore on their own in the true Montessori fashion. It was better done here than at some of the other schools I toured. Ms. Kim's class was busy at work - all of the children engaged in their own activities. I did have an opportunity to talk with her and was happy to discover that she has 10 years of Montessori teaching experience. What also stood out to me about this school is that they put a great deal of thought into their aftercare program. My husband and I both work full time and we needed a preschool that offered extended care for working parents. At some of the schools I toured, the children went to a separate room to play with toys until their parents arrived. Not so at IKM, they have a structured program with activities scheduled every day. It could be a cooking activity, a science experiment, an art project, etc. My son loves going to school every day and his progress has been astounding! At three, he is able to recognize sight words and sound out words and he is working on handwriting as well as basic math concepts. More than that, his social development has improved. He did struggle with sharing and had some aggression problems. But the staff at IKM, especially his teacher, Ms. Kim, has been patient and loving, helping him to use his words and redirecting him to other tasks. My son adores her and even asked if he can invite her and Ms. Dulce (her assistant teacher) to his birthday party! We get weekly updates from Ms. Kim as well as twice yearly parent/teacher conferences. I can email any of the staff at any time and always get a prompt response. All in all, this first year has been a wonderful experience and we can't wait to see what next year will bring! read more

I recommend this preschool, my 3 year old son is really happy! He wake up excited in the mornings and loves his teacher Ms. Theresa, who has done an excellent job! We are very happy with the preschool, it is a very friendly place! read more

Inspire Kids Montessori is such an awesome place for children to grow and learn the right way. I have two Daughters who love going to IKM every day. Ms.Sapana is amazing with the infants. She will get to know your baby and is heavily involved with each infant's development individually. you can see the passion she has for what she does. Miss Kim is also on another level with the Primary class. My daughter loves her teacher and cannot wait to tell me what they learn each day. Ms.Fify and Ms.Diana are also extremely helpful and friendly in the front office. You immediately get the feeling they know what they're doing and are confident leaving your little ones here. read more

This place is so unprofessional, don't work here! The teachers are great but the main bosses in charge are awful, and they make you feel horrible about yourself! read more

My almost 5 year old daughter has been with IKM for a little over 2.5 years already. My 17 month old son just started with them this January. So these alone says a lot how much we love this school. It's amazing to see what my daughter can do at PreK - read chapter books, spell, write and construct sentences, she can do 3 digit addition (with regrouping), subtraction and a plethora of other things I didn't expect kids her age can do. A lot of her friends at IKM are pretty much in the same boat-- way ahead of the game academically and socially. Imagine what Kindergarteners had been doing at IKM - it's just amazing how much they learn. Not only that, kids LOVE to learn. The teachers are the soul of this school. They are awesome! Ms Ashley (my daughter's teacher) is very open and we can talk to her anytime if we have questions and/or concerns. She knows my daughter so well she gives recommendations on what things my daughter should focus on :) Ms Lidia (my son's teacher) is very sweet and very good at welcoming and gaining my son's trust especially that he's not the very social one. We have absolutely no doubt my son would grow and flourish in IKM as how our daughter still does. It's just been 3 weeks since he started and my oh my, we have seen the difference at home already :) One older review says that they send homework to kids 4 years and above. Yes they do, once a week, on Fridays. To my family, this is a good thing. This give us a gauge at what kind of work my daughter is involved in school. We always look forward what kind of homework my child brings home, yay! IKM is truly a "home-away-from-home" for my kids. With them, we feel like we are family. You can see how much they care and love the kids. Ms Diana, Ms Fify and the teachers are just that to us- like a family. I am not sure why Yelp had filtered the other positive reviews for IKM. I am not surprised if the negative review was done by an active member of Yelp so her reviews are not filtered out. But if you look at the hidden/filtered reviews of the school, you would see what other parents like us, who appreciate and love IKM, had to say. We highly recommend this school. read more

My nephew has been attending for about a year and his parents are over the moon. The staff is kind and nurturing, communication is excellent and he is learning so much! We have seen an amazing jump in his verbal skills, communication and knowledge. It is difficult when making these kinds of decisions as we all want the best for our kids, but in the long run this has been excellent and I would definitely recommend this location and it's staff. read more

I am still very happy with our choice on IKM for a school for our daughter. We have been with IKM since 2011, and we have been so very happy with how she has grown and developed. I love that Ms Diana knows all the kids names, and that so many of the kids hug her. It tells me that she loves the kids and that they love her too. Routinely when we go to leave, I have to wait for my daughter to give all her teachers hugs. My friends routinely tell us that she is doing work above her age. read more

We are future kiddie and we conduct our computer class (after school program) over IKM for couple years now. I can honestly say that the school holds & delivers a very high standard for the academy learning on their students. As an educator ourself, we are very impressive how much IKM's students have learned at the school. I was also impressed by the clean neat classroom environment being set up. The rooms are well set up to encourage the children to explore on their own in the true Montessori fashion. It was better done here than at some of the other schools we conduct our classes. IKM really offer their uniquely designed montessori teaching to help their students to be a better learner. I will highly recommend IKM to families who are looking to expand their child's learning. read more

Not a fit for my son. The director and the teacher had no sense of nurturing or true passion for children. It was so evident in the energy of the school. I would walk in, and instead of feeling "inspired", I felt oppressed. The biggest reason is that I taught my son to prioritize the exact opposite of what is being taught in this particular school. All of these attributes are important, however, this school honors authoritarianism far more so than independence. 4 Parenting Questions: Which is a bigger priority to teach your child? 1. More important for your child to be INDEPENDENT or RESPECTING ELDERS 2. More important for your child to be OBEDIENT or SELF-RELIANT 3. More important for your child to have CURIOSITY or GOOD MANNERS 4. More important for your child to be CONSIDERATE or WELL-BEHAVED I'm not by any means discounting any of these above attributes, just stating that what I taught my 3 year old son was independence, self-reliance, curiosity and to be considerate. He went to that school and within days, was labeled as "defiant", and that all his manners and behavior issues stemmed from the home. BULLSH*&!! He never displayed this behavior in my home because my expectations of him were as above. But, the school's expectations were respecting elders, obedience, good manners and well-behaved. They had the gall to expect the children NEVER TO SAY NO TO AN AUTHORITY FIGURE. Are you kidding me???? What if the authority figure doesn't have the child's best interest at heart???? I did NOT raise my son to believe in authoritarian figures (military style). He fought them tooth and nail over there. He came home deflated, and he was labeled someone with "poor behavior". If he had stayed much longer, his true AYDIN spirit would have been CRUSHED. I saw it slowly dissipate every day he'd come home. In hindsight, part of me is glad we had this experience, to understand how the fit of a school can be life changing for a child. It happened to my husband Bo, as a preschooler, he was labeled as someone with learning difficulties. That was also BS, but unfortunately, at the time, he grew to believe this, and it has definitely affected his efforts in pursuing education, his self confidence in his ability to learn new things, and his perception of himself. I realize how labeling children can be a very DANGEROUS game. Since then, I have enrolled my son in SUMMIT SCHOOL OF AHWATUKEE. We couldn't be happier. He is celebrated. He is special. He comes home with a smile, empowered, jubilant, and spirited, just like he always was. He's been there a few weeks and NOT ONCE have his teachers called to tell me they were concerned about his behavior. My advice??? Use your gut instinct when you walk into a school that is prospective for your child. Does it FEEL right in there? I actually want to be a student at Summit, I was so impressed. The energy of all the children was so positive! I'm glad there's a happy ending to this story. Montessori, or at least INSPIRE KIDS MONTESSORI is not a fit for the GREGORY FAMILY! read more

Miss Sapana and Miss Kim in the infant room are the most amazing caregivers a mother could ask for. The amount of care and nurturing attention they provided my daughter was of the upmost excellence and I would highly recommend them to any mother who is worried about leaving their fussy, high needs child with a loving caregiver such as either of them. I wish we could afford the tuition because I have had a hard time replacing them. read more

After months of research to find a caring yet intellectually challenging school, we made the best decision for our 1 year old when we enrolled him in Inspire. Our son flourished under the loving & caring environment that his teachers created for him on a daily basis. Ms. Hannah was the kindest teacher who helped our son feel the love he needed and the patience he demanded as his grew from a baby to a toddler. Their curriculum created by Ms. Veronique is unique, challenging and creative and I saw my son become more disciplined and a good listener. He also increased his vocabulary and his confidence simultaneously while he became a puzzle master at 2 years old :) I also want to point out that Inspire is a community and family ...Ms. Fifi at the front desk and Miss Veronique pay close attention to ensuring every interaction they have with you and your children is possitive and engaging. I highly recommend Inspire to parents looking for a true Montessori experience for their toddlers at a young age ! read more

My wife and I also did a great deal of research, and visited many pre-schools before selecting Inspire Kids Montessori for our daughter at the beginning of last year (Fall 2012). As teachers ourselves, we were impressed by the entire staff, from the administrator, Ms. Diana, to the teachers and classroom aids. They were professional, cared about Montessori education, and - most importantly - clearly cared about the children. We have not been disappointed. Ms. Diana and her staff clearly want to make Inspire Kids Montessori the best that it can be, constantly improving supplies and facilities, partnering with other programs to add value to the children's educational experience, and continuing Montessori training to grow as professionals in this particular educational philosophy and process. Just a few examples of improvements over the past year include: 1. A move into a new facility with added space and two outdoor playgrounds - one for toddlers and a separate one for pre-school/kindergarten. 2. All brand-new playground equipment and landscaping that is shaded, secure, and safe for the children. New play equipment continues to be added on a regular basis. 3. Ongoing training for professional development. One teacher even spent her summer studying Montessori education in Spain. We have the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time getting to know the children and staff, and we have been quite impressed with this as a positive learning community. Parents are given the opportunity to help out and participate with the children, which has provided plenty of opportunity for my wife and I observe the care given to the children. All of the staff do an excellent job of handling behavior problems, providing direction and encouraging better behavior choices. Finally, this is the second year that our daughter has been in Ms. Ashley's class, and we couldn't be more pleased. In addition to Ms. Ashley being a kind, gentle, patient, and caring caregiver, she is an excellent teacher, who is knowledgeable and dedicated to the Montessori method. On top of that, she has been very patient with us, as parents, as we have come to understand and embrace Montessori education - which is based on providing educational opportunities via an educationally rich environment, and encouraging the children's natural capacity for inquiry, learning, imaginative play, and creativity. Within this environment, our daughter has made excellent progress, frequently comes home excited about what she is doing in school, and shares what she is learning with us. We are thrilled to see that our daughter, barely 4 years old, is already learning to sound out and read simple words, and do math (adding). Needless to say, my wife and I are very please with Inspire Kids Montessori and give it our highest recommendation. read more

VERY CARING! Ms Diana and her staff really do invest 100% into your child and their best needs. My husband and I researched plenty of daycares and IKM stood out with the quality of care they provide and learning atmosphere. Aside from the obvious things we were looking for (clean facility, low teacher/student ratio, qualified educated teachers, safe environment, etc.), we were also looking for a place that would help our child develop and promote learning. IKM has it all!! The environment and classrooms are warm and inviting. They are one of few schools that actually do circle time in the infant classroom and we noticed a difference immediately. Ms Sapna and her assistants in the infant room are amazing! Our little girl was becoming more animated hitting milestones sooner than expected (she was born 5 weeks early.) The biggest difference and appreciation we have for this school was more apparent when we had to leave. I was recently relocated and we have to move our daughter closer to home. When I shared the news, the staff was GREAT in working with us until the new day care is opened (it's a brand new facility). They continue to work with our daughter and helped her move to the pre-primary room from the infant room. Our daughter has just flourished! She has become attached to the staff so it is heartbreaking we have to move her. If there were any other options, we would stay in a heartbeat! Whoever fills our daughter's spot will be WELL taken care of! THANK YOU INSPIRE KIDS MONTESSORI, WE WILL MISS YOU!! read more