We've been sending our keiki here since they were 10 weeks old and we love it here. These people…read moreare absolutely amazing. The staff and teachers truly care about each individual keiki and it's such a loving and warm environment to be in. The teachers are thorough and helpful, not only for the kids but for the parents as well. They are so kind and reassuring towards the parents. They helped and aided us with stopping the pacifier habits, switching to solids, using utensils, communication (sign language and verbal), dressing themselves, and potty training. Kiddie Academy has been there all the way. They also have video feeds in each room so you can check in and see what your keiki is up to during the day. But...if they aren't in their classrooms, it's because they are doing other fun and educational activities else where. The teachers are always planning fun activities for the kids. They have a play nook, which is an huge open space filled with a bunch of different play sets and toys for more physical activity. They also provide outdoor activities and excursions for the kids, such as going to the library, the farmers market, the post office, and more. They also teach them skills like cleaning up, wiping things, etc (this came as a pleasant surprise when our keiki started cleaning our house on their own). We have seen our keiki thrive and grow so much here. It's amazing to hear all the things they learned and saw while spending their day at Kiddie Academy. One day they came home and just started counting in Spanish! Kiddie Academy also provides breakfast, lunch and snacks but also give you the option to bring your own food. The teachers log what the kids ate on the Tadpoles app, and I'll tell you, these kids eat really good food! Most of time, their lunch sounds better than mines. The facility is very clean and secured. There are parking stalls for drop off and pick up and parking has never been an issue for us. The staff and administration are extremely helpful and responsive. It is very easy to communicate with them and they are readily available. If you are looking for a day care for your keiki, I would 100% recommend this place. Thank you Kiddie Academy of Honolulu for everything you do!

Our daughter started at KA at 10 weeks old, very shortly after KA first opened, and (a blink…read morelater!) is now soon to graduate and head to preschool. KA has been spectacular through and through. The school is loving, nurturing, supportive, clean and full of fun activities. My daughter has thrived, with so many great friends and teachers, and so many fun things each day. She loves the play nook, book corner and circle time. Meals are all coordinated from a neighboring restaurant, so the kids eat well and with a healthy variety. They have a "book library" you can borrow from. AND They have parent-accessible cameras so you can check in on your kiddo through the day! We feel so lucky to have been a part of the KA 'Ohana and are so thankful. When I was dropping off my baby so I could head to work, I always knew that she would be loved, well fed, clean and cared for. After over 2.5yrs, they have done and been so much more. In addition to the amazing teachers, the management at KA are incredible. They are hands-on, friendly and accommodating, and truly care about the daycare and the children. When a child is hurt or sick or having a tough day, they will often be found on the laps of Ronna (the owner) or Keesha (the manager), so they can get some extra attention to help ease whatever the issue. We cannot recommend KA enough for your little one! Ps. Tell Keesha I say hi!!

The office admin is extremely rude/childish and bossy. Every time I brought up any concerns to her…read moreshe gave me mechanical and cold responses. My impression is that she does not like to handle anything and she is just hoping everyone obeys her.

My child went to this school for over two years. Unfortunatley it took me a while to find out that…read morethe traditional values I value are not supported by this school. The kids are also sent home with bags of candy multiple time per week, do to some special occasion. If I had it to do again I would choose more wisely.

We love this preschool! Everyone is so nice and caring. It starts from 7:30am and finishes at…read more4:00pm everyday. You only have to pay one fee for the whole day. I know many other preschools charge you extra if your child stays after 2:00pm. You don't have to worry about that here. The school communicates with parents via the Brightwheel app, so you get updates about events, classes, and how your child is doing throughout the day. We love seeing our son bonding with all his classmates and teachers over the past year and a couple months. There are events and field trips to educate the children and they allow parents to interact with their children every month or two. We get to see how our son is learning to do things independently and become more social with his peers. They also have a nice playground for the kids to play at in between classes and after school while all the kids wait for their parents to pick them up. The Director Ms. Nancy and her team of teachers are always willing to talk with parents about what the kids are learning or if you have any concerns.

I've had two kids at this preschool, and although during my daughter's time there (2010-2013) the…read moreschool went through some turnover of teachers, this is still a fairly new school (started in 2008) and I think it probably takes time to find the right fit for things and get the foundation you need for long lasting relationships. I think and hope that their teacher roster has finally settled in, as I love the teachers there now and think each and every one of them are compassionate, creative and have invested themselves in these kids just as a good teacher should. My son is now in the 3-4 year old class and his teacher, Ms. Zyrah is awesome! (His 2's teacher, Ms. Mika, was also wonderful). Ms. Zyrah is so creative and has so many hands on activities for the kids to learn from and experience. We get an email every day on how my son's day went and although last year, my daughter would often get two or three sentences at most, Ms. Zyrah always paints a great picture of my son's day, and gives us not only the standard notes such as how much he ate, if he took a nap, etc, but also provides us with a nice idea of what he is showing strengths in and what he is still working on. For things she works on with him, she always lets us know what works and what doesn't, and this helps us work with him at home too. She also always points out nice things he says or helpful and respectful choices he makes and gives us insight into times in his day that we would love to be able to see, but of course cannot be there to witness :). She also finds time to send us pictures when they go on field trips of participate in special events and we really appreciate that. The school overall is small - which was one of the reasons we chose the school. There's just 6 kids in the 2 year old class and no more than 12 in the older classes. The kids wear uniforms (which I think is great - no hassle in the morning to get dressed!) Each year, they add more to their program and this year, the director even had a shade tent structure built over the playground - which is makes me feel so much better when I forget to put sunscreen on my son! Their playground is small, but beautiful, with nice green grass and a great hill the kids love rolling things down on...even themselves! The director also tries out different things for the special events and this year they are even having an "open mic" for Thanksgiving lunch that lets the kids or even parents sing or share any talents they may have. They also do different things for May Day and even have a grandparents tea party and Sweethearts ball for Valentines day that is so cute...just like a toddler prom! And possibly one of the best things - for me anyway - is that the school is the cleanest preschool I've ever been too! And although their sick policy is pretty strict, as a parent, I appreciate their efforts as I've been to other preschools where half the class has green snot running down their face and the teachers do nothing about it! yuck. I would recommend this preschool to anyone who is looking for a smaller class size, warm and caring teachers and staff, and a strong foundation in Christian values. Last year, I would have given 4 stars due to the high turnover, but giving 5 stars in hopes that the teachers will remain next year as my sons enters the pre-k class!

Aloha to those reading this! I'd like to just share my own experience here. I've taken 3 out of my…read more4 children to this location in a span of 8 years. The Aunties or your children's teachers are wonderful here, For starters they are gentle, passionate about what they do and are caring for infants til their ready for Kindergarten. My youngest son has been with them from 6 weeks old til this present day, he is now 4 yrs. old. All my children are smarter and more confident because of this full time Daycare. My youngest has learned so much, learned to talk more coherently and use the potty on his own. He's become more independent and has built a stronger social skills with the help of his peers. Most importantly, they care about the parents too, with offering advice, support and assisting with resources.

My daughter has been going here for 16 months and she absolutely LOVE school! The staff are…read morewonderful with the children. They are welcoming and care a great deal about the kids. My daughter wake everyday eager to go to Alewa Heights Kamaaina Kids Preschool. She is proud of her school. Meals and snacks are provided. I whole heartedly trust this school and the staff with my daughter, which brings peace of mind while we're at work. I'm very Happy with this school. Thanks Alewa Heights Kamaaina Kids!!! My daughter can go as early as 6am and stay as late as 6pm. This time frame helps out a lot for people like me (who work all types of hours). They HELP potty train (such a plus). Sing songs, have story time, outside play, indoor play and much more. She is my youngest out of 8 children. I'm still amaze how much she has learned at a young age being at her preschool. Awesome staff! Awesome school! Overjoyed that my toddler is having a great experience at this school! Mahalo again Alewa Heights Kamaaina Kids Preschool. Sincerely, Cherrisa Rivera

Please be very careful about enrolling your child here. I was so excited when my child was able to…read moreget a spot at Cole. I overlooked a lot of things that bothered me for years because of that. I told myself I was too sensitive when the teacher in the infant class told me that my child was far behind developmentally and needed to be much farther along. I was point-blank asked if I was not doing enough at home to help further her along. (Now that I have a second child I see that what my first child lacked in gross motor skills at an early age she more than made up for in communication skills.) I told myself that maybe the teacher in the toddler class was right when, after a week of my daughter being bitten daily by another kid, I was asked if anything in our home life had changed to cause my daughter to want to get bitten. (Blaming the victim starts early, I guess). I told myself it was just another parent overreacting on the day that a father saw his daughter screaming from being cold. She had doused herself in water from the bathroom and was soaking wet and shivering when he stopped by. The sight he saw prompted him to have a very loud argument with the teachers in front of me and my kid. I really wish they had moved him away from the main classroom to have their discussion. From that day on for the next 6 months she was terrified of any new male she came across. But then she broke her toe and my vision finally shifted. At first, I only knew my side of the story. The side where I came to school to pick up my daughter and she was standing alone screaming. Now, I'll be the first to admit that she's a little dramatic. So I shrugged and grabbed her hand to lead her away. She crippled over in pain and clearly couldn't put any pressure on her foot. That's when I started to panic. I picked her up and raced her to the car where I took off her shoes to see what the problem was. The problem was her foot had been shoved into the shoe to the point where her baby toe had been folded at a 90-degree angle and broken. The toe was pinched right where it connects with the rest of the foot, cutting off circulation and turning blue. I was terrified she would lose the toe. After rushing her to a doctor and finding out her toe was in fact broken, we spent weeks splinting it until it was healed. We spoke to the school to find out their side of the story. At that point, there was a 70% chance that I would pull her out of the school after slowly looking at other daycare options. There was also a 30% chance that we would stay. It all depended on what the school told us. The school said they would view camera footage (I didn't know there were cameras!) and let us know what happened. They got back to us several days later. They said that her toe hadn't been broken. They said there was no sign of anyone coming near her prior to her crying. They said the reason she had been crying was that a father had come to pick up his kid and they cited the aforementioned male stranger anxiety. (That anxiety had finally gone away 3-months before her toe was broken, by the way.) Yes, despite the fact that we had medical proof that her toe was in fact broken and that I had seen that the cause of the broken toe was her toe being caught on something on a shoe that had been put on at the school by someone other than her parents, Cole opted to completely deny the fact that her toe was broken. That was their only response to our inquiry. At least they let us pull our daughter out of daycare the same day they came back with their "findings" (despite their rule of 30-day notice). They even paid us back for her last month of lunch that we had prepaid. Maybe they are just really generous to upset parents. I think it's more likely that they knew they had broken her toe and just wanted to hush us up and get us out of there.

Our daughter is now 1 year old! Today!! And she's been at the Cole Academy for 9 months now…read more Wanted to updated my review and say that Cole Academy has been awesome. Miss Qiara and Miss Aida are so wonderful with our daughter, they truly are a big part of our daughter's life and I'm so thankful for them. Infant Room A is where it's at baby!! We are so happy with it that we just got a tattoo on our daughter back that says "INFANT ROOM A FOREVAH" as a reminder for the rest of her life. (I kid I kid) The director Miss Cassandra and associate director Miss Sara are also great. All the staff we encounter know our daughter's name and say hi to her whenever they see her. The days that Cole Academy are closed (which isn't often) line up with our company holidays so we almost never have to take off work either. We are very happy with Cole academy and I think it's an excellent value.

Our 5 yr old daughter learned more in a half year at Chaminade University Montessori Lab School…read morethan she has in her previous 4.5 years of life! OK, I may be exaggerating a bit, but I really wanted to sing the praises of the incredible staff at CUMLS. My daughter comes home and asks when she can go to school next. She's constantly amazing us with her vocabulary. She actually taught me the definition of an archipelligo. Maybe she can teach me how to spell it too? What's truly important too is that this year's current crew of teachers are so loving to our kids. I can feel how much they care for the kids as if they are all Ohana. They grow herbs in their garden and my daughter brings home kalo chips, hummus, and other wonderful things that were from the things grown on campus. Extra Kudos to Kristie Sakai who provided a safe space for our keiki and gave us the flexibility to stay distanced during Covid and welcoming us when we were ready to go back to in-person learning. The logistics and coordination are not taken for granted. I'm especially emotional about this fine school since this is our daughter's last day and she'll be moving on to a different school. Our many, many thanks to Ms. Claire, Ms. Megan, Ms. Veronica, and Ms. Kristie for their love and care of our most valued treasures. We will miss CUMLS!

Our third son just finished his last year of preschool at Chaminade University Montessori Lab…read moreSchool and our fourth son is going to be starting this upcoming school year for 2019. All four of our sons will have attended preschool here - which shows clearly how much we have appreciated everything about the school, including the teachers, the program, the campus, the fun night events where parents are invited to visit the school and see students' projects, the security, the shaded and safe playground, convenient school hours, ample parking, and the beautiful view from the classroom and school grounds. The classroom is well organized, clean, and full of amazing educational materials. As other reviewers have noted, the curriculum is Montessori, so no complaints there. We think methods used to teach learning and skills to the young children really works and it's easy to see the progress each month. Some of the other specific things I really liked about the curriculum and how this school instructs the children, is the teaching of practical skills and shared responsibilities like cleaning up and preparing food together, or taking care of the younger children in the classroom. During this past year, our third son looked after a couple of younger children and in turn, was befriend by an older boy that took him under his wing. He couldn't wait to go to school each day! Other things my wife and I appreciated about the school, included all the educational field trips to a variety of places around the island, including historical sites, organic farms, and holiday events. While the teachers and the head staff have changed since we enrolled our oldest son five years ago, the ratio of teachers to students has always been high. We have also liked all the teachers and thought they were caring and attentive and did a great job of communicating about our sons and their progress, including providing us with photos of them learning and doing projects at school. At the end of each year, the students work hard to put on a graduation show that includes music and singing, and a potluck lunch. It's always been a little sad to leave at the end of the school year, which means I highly recommend Chaminade University Montessori Lab School!

We have been so grateful to find Kinder Kids International after our unexpected move to Hawaii. The…read moreschool is small, clean and beautiful. The director, Ms. Mandy always makes herself available and knows every parent and child personally. Our teacher, Ms. Dawn has built such a great connection with my daughter, and knows how to redirect her in a fun and loving way. My daughter comes home with such amazing crafts, singing new songs and learning all her shapes, colors, numbers and letters. The curriculum is learning based, and not play based, which I think is great for her personality which minimizes the usual behavioral issues when there's no structure. They do yoga, sensory activities, nature walks, gym playtime, circle time, crafts, music, potty breaks, lunch, nap time and more. They use an online app to keep you informed on their day with pictures of them playing. It updates throughout the day with the amount they ate at lunch, potty breaks taken, etc. They even have a special day when you can come and see your child at school without them knowing and see how well they behave when you're not around! :) The value that Kinder Kids provides is amazing. I am very pleased to have my daughter be a part of this amazing school that is growing to be a big part of her formative years.

Kinder Kids was a "diamond-in-the-rough" find for us while searching for a Honolulu preschool for…read moreour daughter. The school is nestled in the peaceful mountains of Hawaii Kai, surrounded by beautiful trees and nature. We went on 8 preschool tours, and Kinder Kids was impeccably clean, new, spacious, and has the most adorable decor that is perfectly suited for toddlers. The director is not only experienced and organized, but knows each student and parent by more than just name- she provides excellent communication with us and we feel completely confident that she has each child's best interest at heart. Through the HiMama App that they utilize, I was able to see everything that my daughter's day encompasses, like a description of the daily schedule/activities, photos of my daughter during circle time, art, gym, yoga, reading/writing practice, lunch time, and even when she used the potty! It's extremely special to actually get to see your child creating an art project that they bring home with them at the end of the day. As a first time parent it would be so hard for me not to see what she was doing throughout the day, but with HiMama I felt tike I was with her the whole time, and the updates gave me constant reassurance. She was all smiles on her first day of school when in the past she'd cry. The Kinder Kids teachers are incredibly loving, friendly and just take such good care of her- she is always clean when I pick her up, and they encourage her to be independent, but at the same time, give assistance and attention to things she struggles with. It warms my heart that they don't force her to be a big girl, but help her grow into one.

This was the preschool that I attended as a child. Mr. Mark was my first ever teacher and I still…read moreremember him. When I first attended, I didn't speak a word of English. I was born in Hong Kong and came to Hawaii when I was three. All I spoke was Chinese. They were patient with me and taught me English, how to speak and to write my ABC's, literally. When I pass by there, I can still see the kids running around and it brings back memories. The kids look as if they're having fun and I can see the adults monitoring them. Some Easter's, I take my son there for their Easter egg hunt. They'll serve breakfast and then you'll go around the facility to hunt for eggs. I can see the arts and crafts projects that the kids have done. The place looks clean and tidy.

I went here in the 80's. I'd be here in the morning and afternoons for daycare. I'd be here for…read moreSummer Fun too. It'll always have a special place in my heart. Great to see you guys taking care of the place.