We love Oakwood Academy (preschool). Our son joined in October of 2025 as a 2.5 year old. The…read moreschool is very clean and organized with processes that support safety, stability and care for the kids. My son has already learned so much in less than 6 months. I love that they post the lesson plan so you can reinforce the learning at home. There is a lot of communication through the Class Dojo app and postings at school. He also was potty trained fully in 2 months which I was more than happy to pay the extra $25-30 a week for that guidance. They have fun activities like field trips, Christmas recitals, special guests like firemen, dentists, etc. He LOVES his teachers, Ms. Cynthia and Ms. Khalifa and we do too! They really understand each child and their personality nuances. I can share what is happening at home and they help guide and reinforce behavior changes at school. It takes a village to raise a child and I'm so thankful to have Oakwood Academy as part of mine!

We love Oakwood Academy and their staff. Our daughter has blossomed since she started attending…read moreOakwood. She is excited to go to school in the morning. The staff is so warm, loving and inviting. Academically they challenge my daughter and has her excelling in her schooling. Our daughter has meet a lot of new friends and love her OA family. There are so many great things about this school not enough space to type on this review. We also love the diversity of staff and students as well. So glad we found Oakwood

School is great. I actually go to the school so fun makes you do so much fun stuff and feels you…read moreprotected.

And although they are a little bit too sensitive with everyone's feelings, it's a great school and…read moreI love my kids teacher teachers

Birney is a hidden gem in Long Beach. I've seen such a change in this school in the 6 years my…read morechild has been there. There is now an active PTA that really forms the sense of community within the school that was previously lacking. Many staff members go above and beyond to take care of the students. Plus, the entire school was just remodeled. Get involved, you get out of it what you put into it.

If there was a zero that would be my rating. My opinion they are just baby sitting. If you want to…read morereceive a good education on this side of LBUSD Birney is not the school. Only three subjects are taught and forget homework, if it is given its not collected just glance by teacher, so why give homework? The adults can't handle ADHD students and do everything they can to make that student feel unwelcome. It doesn't matter if there is documentation from doctors that my granddaughter suffers from ADHD. This school can't handle her and complain that she is rude to adults because she speaks her mind and asks questions to the teacher, at least she is not throwing things or calling her names. Instead of trying to understand her they punish her. They make her feel as if she is unacceptable, this is not what education is supposed to be, all children should feel welcome.

My daughter is in 7th grade and very happy here. I have been so impressed with IVA since my…read moredaughter started last year. The communication from the school and the inclusiveness has made it a great experience for us. Students are respected, their voices are heard and they are made to feel like their opinions matter. The virtues are there to make them feel empowered as students. The weekly advisory meeting they have once a week for all students is great because it helps them understand and know the virtues and how to apply them to their work. Sixth grade is a learning curve and IVA gets that. One thing to know about the school is that since kids are coming from all different schools and school settings it's easier to make friends. There are no clicks in place. This year they also made it phone free. No phones at school. However, they can use them after school. I have read past reviews that said the school is not diverse and not for people of color. This from our experience is not true at all. Maybe in past years this was the case but it is no longer this way. IVA is very racially and socioeconomically diverse. It is a true representation of Long Beach in that regard. If you are a parent who wants to volunteer and see what is going on at the school there are plenty of opportunities, field trip opportunities, dances every year, a chili cook off, and family breakfast/lunches hosted by the school. There is a weekly newsletter, outlining all events coming up. How you can get involved, sports info, field trips etc... They make it very difficult for you to miss something. My daughter loved the dances last year. They are more like a fun party. There is no pressure to have a date or anything like that. They make them very low pressure like come in your PJ's etc... It's just an opportunity to hang out with friends outside of school. The staff and teachers will all know your child's name. I think this matters to my daughter. We live in Belmont Heights and had an opportunity to send her to Rogers as well. It's not quite our home school but it is a lot closer to us than IVA and I wanted her to go there. She would have had friends closer and I wanted that for her. However, after my daughter toured IVA in 5th grade, she made her mind up that she wanted to experience the smaller school and smaller class setting. She loved seeing students laughing in class with the teachers and sitting at little tables. The teachers were young and they didn't look miserable. The principal, Mrs. Bryant who led our tour was very dynamic and genuine. My daughter noticed these things and pushed for us to let her try IVA out. Her experience so far has not disappointed her. She has liked or loved almost all of her teachers. This is so important and this is coming from a student who struggles in school. She has an IEP for a reading disability. School is not easy for her. This is another reason I was hesitant on IVA. I wanted to her to have more options concerning her IEP and a bigger school can provide this. So far, her accommodations at IVA are working for her. She has also made friends with a great group of girls who are from all over Long Beach. In truth this is something I was also dreading but it's ok! She is happy! The parents of her friends are the type of parents who want the best for their kids. They will drive. This is how most of the parents are at this school as well. When volunteer sign ups come out for some event, the list gets filled up fast! Most of the parents at the school care. So far my daughter has joined Track and Cross Country. She also wants to play soccer this year. They do have team sports at IVA but it is on a smaller scale than a larger school. It's great for kids that want to try sports but might be intimidated at a bigger school with a lot of talented athletes. Not to say that there aren't some talented athletes here but it's not the focus of the school. If you're wondering about academics. I have heard wonderful things from parents who have had older siblings that graduated from IVA. One parent in particular shared with me that when her son started at his private High School (Bosco) after IVA, he was placed in honors classes which surprised her because her son was a B/C student at IVA. She felt the education he received at IVA was top notch, taught him how to be a student and actually engage in what he learned. Lastly, I just want to give a shout out to Mrs. Gordon, the dean of students and Mrs. Bryant the principal. These women care about your student. The love and dedication they put into their job is truly impressive.

its not the best school in the world but not the worst. The students are sort of rude to my child…read more If you really want your kid to go there so be it they have really good state teat results though. Try it for ur self

We are not year-round family at Westerly, but we consistently return for their summer camp…read more Our eleven-year-old son had attended all the local summer camps in Long Beach--JCC, 49'er camp, the city's parks and recs--over the past few years, and he ranks Westerly the highest among all camp experiences. The staff is accommodating, the hours are flexible (7:30 am to 5:30 pm), and he has a great time.

What can I say. Our family loves Westerly! Our eldest started at one of Long Beach's blue ribbon…read moreschools, but with the huge classes we decided to take a look at Westerly and we couldn't go back. Since then all our kids have thrived in their Westerly experience. It starts with a sizable campus with a beautiful grass field for sports and activities, newly constructed learning studios and the amazing arts village. What a great place to learn. Then the passionate teachers and staff deliver a whole child program, with a better than 10:1 student/teacher ratio. The Westerly program includes: Curriculum and instruction - Enthusiastic teachers with a well thought out curriculum and small class sizes enabling teachers to adapt the curriculum to the needs of your child. Technology/STEM - Westerly recently hired a full-time Director of Instructional Technology to enhance an already strong technology/STEM program throughout the curriculum. Think coding in class, 3D printing, science and engineering fairs, etc. Visual and performing arts - Incorporated in the curriculum is an annual school-wide play lead by the folks at TKTC. The visual arts program is second to none with the kids being exposed to public arts projects, ceramics in the new ceramics studio, mixed media, painting, photography, etc. I wish I could take the classes myself. Wildcat, the after school program is a blessing. Our kids beg to go to Wildcat to play with their friends, work on yearbook, take film, dance, music, robotics and other after school enrichment activities. Athletics - A legitimate, well-run PE program with enthusiastic instruction and basketball, volleyball, football teams throughout elementary and middle school. Music - Every child takes both general and instrumental music as part of their Westerly experience. Spanish - Kindergarten through 8th grade all the kids get introduced to the Spanish language through a dedicated Spanish instructor. Leadership - This is quite possibly one of the most amazing parts of the curriculum. Continuing on the theme of whole child education the Director of Student Affairs leads an amazing program that goes so beyond student council, creating leadership opportunities for so many children. Programs like student council, district representatives, green team, etc., start in Kindergarten and the kids grow in responsibility as the children grow themselves. Each child also gains leadership responsibilities as a student mentor, where each older student is paired with a younger student as a mentor. Service learning and field studies - As the kids grow in maturity so do the service learning and field studies. Our children have enjoyed trips to Catalina and other local camps, but the highlight of the program is a one week trip in 8th grade where the whole class travels to Nicaragua to conduct a service learning project, practice their spanish, and are exposed to a different culture and way of life that they are used to. Community - Westerly is a place where without question every family places a priority on securing a great, well-rounded education for their children. Being in an environment like this is so fantastic. Independent school is not cheap, but in our minds it's the best gift we can give to our children. Westerly also offers significant financial aid support, so if that is an issue be sure to discuss your situation with the school to see if they can make something work for your family. P.S. This may sound like a paid ad, but it's our true feelings about this place. It's really special.

I absolutely love the staff and how much they genuinely care for their children. My children love…read morecoming here and are making many friends . They are accepting of our children and help them grow as great community members. There are many positive role models at this school. We are grateful that our children have had them as their teachers. They feel this daycare is a second home to them. Early drop off and late pick up is great. They walk our school age kids to school and they also pick them up. This has been so convenient for us because we arr such busy, working parents. Would definitely recommend.

Both of my children attend the Children's Center for before and afterschool supervision. The…read morefacility actually takes, and picks up my kids from school which is a big deal if you are a working parent. The staff is fantastic, and management really listens to parents. They are absolutely an extension of our family. I highly recommend this facility.

I went to this school from 2015-2018 and from kindergarten to the time I left in third grade not…read moreonly was I discriminated against for my adhd but also bullied and all they did was blame me and get me in trouble in stead, idk if it has changed but all I do know is that if you have a kid with adhd or any special needs who can be seen as a annoyance than be careful but again this might have changed

This School do not Handel situations with bullying at all! My daughter has been bullied from…read morekindergarten until now 2nd grade and they do not do anything at all! The damn principal is no help either, she was also sexually harassed by a few kids (boys) had lifted up her skirt to look under her skirt, when we brung it up to her attention and she likes one ear out of the other and did not do anything at all about it. The damn staffs are no help either! Spoken to many teachers & no action until this day to the bully's still havent been taken.

The school it's self was ok but the lunch ladys were rude and impatient and can not wait and the…read morerec aids were rude the nice one is the old lady I love her sooooo much she needs a raise. But no hate to anyone but it is my opinion thank you.but pls I ask you to upgrade the park place but it is hice and I think all the students are grateful for the school and play place.

I went to this school and I loved it . The staff were excellent. I left the teachers. They were…read morevery nice.