We recently moved away from Durham and leaving Indigo was the hardest part. As a new mom, I was…read moreterrified of making the wrong daycare choice. From Day 1, Ms. Luisa and the rest of the staff made me feel so at ease. Our girl attended Indigo from 7 to 12 months and she never had a bad day. She LOVED going to see Ms. Luisa every day - I can say with confidence that she loved our daughter like her own. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. We miss you, Indigo!

Oh, my ickle baby is growing up! Greer started school last week, at a mere eleven weeks old. She…read moreis by far the youngest baby in her class; her classmates are all over a year old, and move up to a classroom for older babies next month, and then Greer will be all alone, so please send new friends for her to play with! I cannot bestow enough praise on Indigo. Last summer, my husband and I toured a few daycare centers, and Indigo blew away the competition, as far as we were concerned. The school practices the Montessori philosophy, which fosters a loving environment where children can grow and learn at their own pace, allowing them to spend extra time on the activities that interest them most. I found this much more attractive than your average (or above-average or even excellent) state-licensed daycare center (and I used to work at one several years ago, so I have an insider's knowledge), where the state's early childhood curriculum---and not necessarily the child's strengths and interests---rule the school. The director and teachers are loving and capable, and there is very little staffing turnover, unlike at the daycare center where I used to work, where conditions were unpleasant, and we teachers were rarely allowed to call in sick. I recall, in the short year that I worked there, nearly everyone---adults and children included---having strep throat, myself as well, and I am rarely sick. When Greer first started, her teacher, Ms. Michelle, was out sick for two days. You might think, eeks!, the teacher's sick!, but I considered this a very positive statement about the working environment at Indigo. If you're sick, stay home, get better, then come love on these kids. I think that's fantastic. Indigo Montessori and Wonderland Enrichment Arts are two separate entities that are located in the same historic building near Brightleaf Square in downtown Durham, that function as one. Wonderland operates from 8:00 a.m. until 9:30 a.m., then it's Indigo from 9:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. (which is when I pick up my bebeh), then Wonderland again from 1:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. These four-hour-or-less blocks allow Indigo and Wonderland to function with needing state accreditation, which means more freedom in their curriculum and lower costs and a more flexible schedule for parents and their kids. I drop my baby Greer off at Wonderland at 8:00 a.m., then pick her up from Indigo at 1:30 p.m. (I then work from home until 5:00 p.m.). In the summer (June through August), Indigo is closed, and Wonderland operates its own summer camp, with full or half day options.

Incredible dual-language programming in a Montessori setting with experienced and caring teachers…read moreand admin. Strong and vibrant parent community.

Our family's experience with IMS Durham has been deeply disappointing and frustrating. We enrolled…read moreour three-year-old expecting a safe environment and constructive communication with parents, but repeated injury-related incidents and the school's responses ultimately caused us to lose confidence in both. And as it turned out that IMS is not licensed, it is unclear what governmental or other oversight bodies are responsible for oversight of student safety. Among other incidents, our daughter cut her finger while provided a manual pencil sharpener with a metal blade in the classroom to use independently and later came home with unexplained scratches near her eyelids. In another incident, according to the school's own account, a staff member took her hand while redirecting her to sit down, after which she began crying. She reported an arm injury and requested ice. After pickup, she was in significant pain and unable to lift her arm; she was subsequently diagnosed with nursemaid's elbow and required medical reduction. On another day, she sustained a significant tongue injury during nap time. When we picked her up, her shirt and blanket had substantial blood on them, yet we had not been contacted beforehand. We were told that approximately 16-17 children ages 3-6 were in the room and that one of the two people supervising them at that time was a 15-year-old girl on her first day. What troubled us most was what happened when we repeatedly raised safety and communication concerns. At our first and only in-person meeting with the Head of School, which primarily concerned our child's safety, our recollection is that she told us early in the discussion that if we were uncomfortable with the school's practices, we could look for another school before discussing the concerns. We followed IMS's own Handbook process and ultimately escalated our unresolved concerns to the Board Chair. We met with the Board Chair online to discuss them, but before receiving follow-up, IMS terminated our three-year-old daughter's re-enrollment only days before the new school year began. Our daughter had not been accused of misconduct or behavioral problems. The termination letter instead cited the frequency and nature of our communications--including concerns about injuries, supervision, parent notification, and regulatory status--as part of its reasoning. We were left scrambling to find another school at the last minute. In the previous two years in a daycare in another city, our kid was doing quite well. Based on our family's 7-month experience with IMS, we cannot recommend IMS.

We moved our children to Global Montessori Academy ( off Hwy 55 but close to West Cary and the RTP…read morearea ) due to the school's proximity to my work place. It was the best decision we could have made for our children that year. The Director Ms Mary and all the teachers there are wonderful , approachable and very hardworking. My children learnt so much at GMA in the 1 year that they were there that I wish I had sent them to GMA right from the beginning -we really miss the school. The school has a curriculum which they set out for the year( they email the schedule at the beginning of the year). The children enjoyed many field trips . My children learnt complex science terms, history, music and much more. GMA does not advertise much. Its mainly word of mouth publicity. I am glad to see they finally made an appearance on yelp which is why I am posting here. GMA is also open to newborns and toddlers but I do not have experience with those teachers so cannot really say much. They also have a school bus in case you cannot pick or drop off your children to school and I liked the fact they are open almost all year except during the December holidays ( a blessing for working parents). One area of improvement is that I wish they had a better play yard but overall that was less of a concern for me.

From the owner: Global Montessori Academy is an independent school, led by caring, experienced Montessori…read moreteachers. Our school is designed to appeal to the natural curiosity of the child in a secure, respectful, and encouraging setting. The best way to become familiar with our extraordinary program is to experience it. Please review our website and give us a call to schedule a tour. We are confident that you will be impressed by what G.M.A has to offer.

I (briefly) taught a morning yoga class at this new-age daycare center. (Those of you who know me…read moreare laughing. I was an unlikely and probably unsuitable candidate for such a position. Here's a typical exchange between a child and myself... Child: :silence: Me: So... erm, what did you ask for from Santa this year?) Take that scenario -- multiply it by a bunch of kids aged 2-5, add distracting video games and Elmo toys, and subtract two wrestling boys and one little girl still crying over being dropped off. Now, you try motivating anyone to do a Downward-facing Dog! Anyway, even though my time as a teacher quickly expired, I got a good feel for this place and for the owner, Mastenah. She's wonderful, by the way, and her two girls --I'm convinced-- are the cutest and sweetest girls in all of Durham. The center has come a long way, and quickly, in Mastenah's hands. It's brightly painted and full of fun things (books, toys, blocks, a piano for sing-along) for toddlers. But the best thing about Wonderland is it's new-concept methods. In addition to yoga they offer cooking, pottery, Spanish, martial-arts, and more. (Heaven help whoever has to instruct that martial-arts class!) There's an outdoor play-set for more traditional play too. Mastenah bought the upstairs floor and is making plans to expand the daycare center. Wonderland is in the same building as a Montessori school, so many of its methods are in line with that, though it's not technically affiliated with the school. They offer flexible pick-up and drop-off times. All of the teachers are CPR certified. If I had kids (well don't hold your breath), I wouldn't hesitate to register them here.

Our children ages 3 and 1 are attending Wonderland full time all summer as part of their summer…read morecamp childcare program. It's the first time for both of them to be in full time childcare 8:30am - 5:30pm, 5 days a week, and it's a fantastic experience for both of them! They both are very happy. My son (the 1 year old) absolutely loves his teachers. This was the first place I've ever left him where he doesn't cry when I hand him over to someone else (including grandparents!) Instead, he sometimes cries when I pick him up and it's time to go home! I love the building - extra tall lofty ceilings, spacious play areas, and a friendly welcoming environment. And I love the staff - the teachers are all so nice!

Our family considered a number of Montessori programs for our son this year and truly believe that…read morewe discovered an absolute treasure at Montessori Creative Learning School! Not only is the Director, Ms. Pegge, incredibly engaging and intentional in her time in the classroom and oversight of the programming, but the entire teaching staff is loving, responsive, and purposeful in all they do. We have felt sincerely welcomed and warmly embraced from our very first tour forward. The wonderful teachers nurture not only our son's process of learning, but our son himself. We love the collaboration we see in the learning process and that our little guy is growing in his awe of the world around him. He is constantly telling us all about the topics he's studying and is excited to show us the works he completes daily. He is developing authentic friendships and is growing in compassion for those around him. It has been a blessing to see him blossom this year. The only regret we have is that we didn't find the school sooner so that our older sons could have benefitted from this wonderful experience. We would absolutely give Montessori Creative Learning School ten stars if that were an option!

Run from this place! Any review prior to 2025 should be disregarded…read more New ownership has taken over and run this place into the ground within a couple months. The owner is not Montessori certified and has no clue on how to run a school. All the original teachers have left. Most all parents pulled their kids. It's a total mess. Run as fast as you can from this place, even if it's your last resort.

I attended Emerson Waldorf School for 10 years. To say I loved my time there is an understatement…read more I went from crying everyday at my charter school in first grade to thriving academically, socially, and artistically. At Emerson, students are not only seen as learners, but also as whole people who have thoughts, ambitions, and capacities beyond memorizing formulas. In elementary school I learned through stories and to this day I am able to remember the content of the lessons- the math activities that helped me learn all my times tables forwards and backwards, the stories I wrote in cursive, the doll I knit in second grade. In middle school, I wasn't taking tests to measure my knowledge, but instead I was writing stories and drawing depictions based on the lessons of Ancient Egypt, Geography, History, etc. Thanks to Emerson I can write college level essays (I got A's on all of my first semester college papers), I play the cello, I sell crocheted hats and knitted socks, I love sports thanks to my years on the volleyball team, I honestly love math, and I have still kept the friendships from my years at Emerson. I think that is what I love most. The students are so kind and everyone is able to be their truest self without shame. There are no expectations to conform to what society (or social media) thinks is popular at the time. Every child deserves to attend Emerson Waldorf School.

Academics is delivered in a unique and creative way here. Using the Waldorf approach has proven…read morehighly effective for our son who has been there for 9 years now. Grateful to his teacher Mr. Wiley.

We love this school, and whatever happened with the 1 star administration, we have felt nothing but…read morekindness, respect, and professionalism from the current administration. This school us beautiful in every way, with such heart and soul. I want to invent a time machine so I can go back to being a kid and enroll myself here. Enough said.

This is an excellent Montessori school. We're sending our son to pre-school there. Although it is…read morepretty expensive ($8k+), he has really developed there and the educational staff there is top notch. Montessori schools can be a crap shoot since Miss Montessori in her infinite wisdom never trademarked her school name or philosophy. So any joker can call themselves a Montessori school. There are a few in Chapel Hill like this. However this school is a legit Montessori school. It's accredited by one of the big Montessori organizations and they take their training seriously there. I think all of the teachers are Montessori certified, most of the helpers too. What really impressed me on the tour was that all the teachers have been there for many years. They're all really dedicated to the children and letting them explore their world. The facilities are ridiculously nice. They have wonderful playgrounds and the middle school is new. They have a new music and art building which is amazingly nice. You get what you pay for in this case. They have very active parents who organize multiple fundraisers for the school. I've got no reservations about sending my son here.

I am not a person who usually writes reviews, but I was so fortunate to be brought to Seedlings…read morethrough a neighbor and I would have missed it if she hadn't tipped me off. So if you (like me) had continued scrolling after not finding much internet presence, this is for you. When my son was approaching 3, I was overwhelmed at the idea of finding and vetting a preschool - so much so that I disengaged from even looking. I was drawn to something play-based, nature-oriented, nurturing...fun - but I was intimidated by the seeming rigidity that can come with some of the frameworks that I found. (no shade, it was just my perception - I feared I couldn't live up to something like a Waldorf standard in my parenting and I didn't know there was something between an academic-type preschool setting and a daycare.) I took the leap and called Jana. Three years later I'm writing in disbelief that our time with her is over. In Seedlings we found a program that seemed breezy and fun from the outside, but that was woven through with intention and routine behind the scenes. Seedlings helped ground my children in the rhythms of daily life. Our kids got muddy and wet, they cried and found comfort in Jana's arms, they gained confidence and skills, they learned to see other children as friends and not "others", they learned to celebrate each other and celebrate themselves. All of this while Jana and her amazing assistant Caroline carefully, silently, coordinated the many moving parts that have to happen enable a group of children to coexist and thrive as a group. Bonfires, potlucks, holiday shares, birthday celebrations, seasonal festivals and a multitude of other modest, homespun events (that I think are a HUGE amount of work for Jana and Caroline) served as gifts for the children - something to work towards, something to look forward to, something to remember and reflect on as each week goes by. As parents we got to join for many of these events and share in some of the magic of Seedlings - watching our kids thrive in their own community. It's hard to imagine what my life as a parent would be like today if we hadn't made the call to Jana. I never anticipated I would learn so much about parenting from seeing what my son and daughter were capable of in the right environment or from talking through a challenge or insecurity with their preschool teacher! In my case, she wasn't just teaching my kids... :) There's a reason there are so many siblings at Seedlings - it's hard to imagine another spot once you get a feel for what's possible. We are forever grateful to Jana and Caroline for being truly loving hands as they challenged our kids to grow. Hope this helps one person who is overwhelmed at the thought of finding a preschool. Good luck to all the parents out there just trying to find the right fit!

Seedlings is a half-day home-based preschool that promotes imaginative play, natural learning, and…read moredaily rhythm and routines for young children. Jana is an amazing teacher who has taught preschool-first graders for many years. She supports each child's individual interests and abilities while creating a loving and cooperative atmosphere. The children spend lots of time outside gardening, tending to chickens and bunnies, and exploring freely. Families join in to celebrate seasonally, and there are a variety of Waldorf- and Montessori-inspired activities that prepare children for what lies ahead. My daughter is sadly outgrowing Seedlings for preschool, but we will not hesitate to attend summer "camp" or anything else we're allowed to join in on!!

Tammy is the most heartless Head of School who openly shows no care for students and their…read morefamilies, neither the well being of her staff members. This school has no regards on separating families whose lives changed due to relocation and can't afford to break contract because they want parents to pay for a whole school year, even when they are not providing the educational services. Family dynamics change, families get relocated, and they have no concerns on the separation anxieties on their students about the parents, or their mental health. They have 0 empathy and unwilling to work things out to keep families together. She also mistreated staff members that she doesn't like and keep things behind parents knowledge.

Ask yourself how would you want your school to act during a crisis?…read moreHere is our experience ... On January 2020, we signed a 5 months contract with MSD for both our kids - a 20m old baby and a 4y. Despite missing half the school year, MSD refused to prorate the admission fee of $2,200 per 2 kids. We were a little surprised how much the kids struggled in the first 2 months. The 4 years old had experienced physical and emotional bulling from older boys, and we had to intervene time and again. The toddler could not express himself. However, every time we picked him up we were terribly disturbed. Our baby was waiting for us every day outside in the playground in the cold days of January and February. Standing alone, he was motionless, looking visibly cold and uncomfortable. His bib was always dirty and terribly wet, making his chin red and irritated; his hands and nose red and very cold to touch. It was so stressful to see, we had to complain several times but things improves only a bit. Sadly, just as the children begin to settle in a bit, the school had to close due to coronavirus. When it was clearly a long-term situation, the school tried to adapt the framework of higher education institutions and move to distance learning. With an email a day per each kid, the school has tried to offer its distance learning for toddlers and preschool kids as a fair replacement for in person/ class learning. And without mentioning any official change to its policy nor a discussion of the contractual agreement between us, the school began to reframe its digital effort as an interchangeable learning tool to the traditional Montessori experience. A friend described the irony to me in such elegance: "a virtual Montessori classroom is an oxymoron ..... Providing digital services to you as a parent is the exact opposite of what you paid for". We told the principal that ultimately in our case, the distance learning the school has offered fails to address our family needs. At the developmental stage of toddlers and young preschoolers, distance learning requires unreasonable level of parental engagement and it puts an overwhelming burden on working parents like us. We acknowledged that perhaps this is useful learning tools for their K-6 graders who are older and can better study and follow instructions independently with limited need for parental oversight and engagement. But it fall on deaf ears. MSD has pushed back against any claims we made for getting a refund. And with with just an email, they moved to charge us tuition for distance learning in the same rate it had charged us for its traditional 5 days schedule in-person program from 8-12pm. And so, we have now unwillingly found ourselves having paid Montessori School of Durham $18k for as little as +2 months of school. And if this not enough, now we had to worry also about next year. Having signed a 2020-2021contract with the school in Feb 2020, we have been weary of similar outcomes in the likely event of a second wave of the virus next year. Making several attempts via emails and phone calls, we asked MSD to clarify its financial policy for next year and an update to the contract accordingly. The Principal has refused to answer. So we asked to withdraw our kids enrollment from next school year 2020-2021 since we do not agree with the current change of term and their refusal to update us with next year policies. The Principal responded with a threat to sue us for the full yearly tuition of both kids as well as the school legal fees. Apply to MSD and this will be your partner in a time of crisis.