The school is amazing I love the way that they teach children through unusual methods and really…read moreteach them about what's important like layer of gardening and teaching math on an abacus

This is an amazing place! I never worry about my children while they are here. From the teachers to…read morethe administrative staff, everyone is kind, well trained, and thorough. I pick up my children every day better than I left them. From a mom that stayed home with her first child until he was 2. I have never felt very confident about leaving my children under another's care, but I never worry about them at Greensboro Montessori. They love their teachers and their teachers love them. Everything from the curriculum to the manner in which they speak to the children is purposeful and kind. In addition to being well cared for, my 2 children, 3.5 and 1.5, are also learning. My kids have been to other schools and we visited other daycares before we decided on Greensboro Montessori, but none compare. They have a magical formula of learning through exploration and play. They treat children like little explorers and scientists, guiding their play. There is no competitive helicoptery vibe. They simply look for opportunities to tie information into a child's natural exploration. Children explore different "works" rather than cheap toys. They play with sand and water, paint and blocks with the intention of figuring out how we function in the world rather than being "entertained." They also spend a lot of time outside with nature, walking in the nearby woods and gardening which I value tremendously. Children are also encouraged to be independent. Each child is considered at their own level and challenged to do things for themselves in a kind and supportive environment. I was surprised to find when my son started here at 2 all the things that he could do for himself and was eager to do. Everyone needs a purpose and children are the same. This school provides children with a safe and nurturing environment to learn and grow. The school also provides helpful seminars on evidence-based gentle parenting techniques and fosters a real sense of community. There are regular events for all ages and opportunities to participate/volunteer. We considered schools that were more budget, providing diapers and multiple meals and snacks as part of tuition, but none had the level of caring and commitment I feel here. This place isn't simply caring for your children and keeping them alive, but constructively and mindfully creating a complete environment for children to become well rounded, empathic, intelligent people.

By sixth grade, my daughter had become deeply depressed at NGFS, and we were genuinely concerned…read morefor her mental health. Her early years were positive--she loved the Rainbow program, and we are especially grateful to Beth, who helped her develop a love of reading despite auditory processing challenges. Unfortunately, things changed significantly as she got older. In fourth grade, a tick bite during the week-long school trip was egregiously mishandled--whether due to a lack of protocol or a failure to follow one, the result is that she now lives with chronic Lyme disease. Our family has paid nearly $30,000 out-of-pocket for medical treatment, in addition to the high tuition we had already invested in the school. Academically, she was ahead in math, but when we advocated for her to take Math 1 in seventh grade, NGFS flat-out refused to consider it. After transferring to Greensboro Montessori, she was placed in Math 1 and earned a 96. She went on to earn As in each subsequent math course and is now in a senior-level math class as a 10th grader. Clearly, she was more than capable--she just needed a school willing to meet her where she was. My daughter ultimately asked to leave because she felt isolated and alienated. Although the school promotes inclusivity, she quickly realized this didn't seem to apply to students like her. When she tried to assert healthy boundaries with peers, she was often reprimanded--not for what happened, but for how she expressed herself. Ongoing micro-bullying from peers was never meaningfully addressed, even after I raised concerns. She thrived at Greensboro Montessori in 7th and 8th grade, where we found the environment far more supportive and attentive to real inclusivity. She is now thriving at Grimsley High School, where she has a 504 plan in place to support her health. To be fair, NGFS has a strong writing curriculum in the later elementary years, and my daughter's writing skills like owe much to those foundational years. But it's hard to reconcile that benefit with the emotional and physical toll she experienced. If I had to do it all over again, I would have moved her by third grade.

New Garden Friends School is a treasure in the Greensboro area. There is no other school that…read moreoffers a similar program. This school provides a safe, supportive, and gentle environment, rigorous academics, very low student teacher ratios, incredible academic support both in-class and one-on-one, a gorgeous campus in the historic woods of Guilford College, a social curriculum that teaches peacemaking, environmental sustainability, personal integrity, kindness and empathy, and community building, not to mention a fantastic arts program, and extra-curricular activities. I have been amazed at how my children have blossomed at this school. There is an incredible sense of community here and everyone knows each other by name and everyone is valued. Children are spoken to respectfully and encouraged to speak their truths, and parents are encouraged to be active in the classrooms and on campus. The school values inquiry-based and experiential learning, and outdoor education. I love that my children get to spend so much time outdoors each day and not stuck behind a desk or on a screen. They often have classes outside and regularly go on hikes through the surrounding historic woods. Starting as early as preschool, each class has their very own plot on the Guilford College farm directly adjacent to the school where they dig in the dirt, grow and care for their own plants, and learn about environmental sustainability. Students go on walks in the woods, care for streams, and develop a sense of wonder and joy as they spot fairy gardens and play amongst ancient oaks. It is truly magical. A childhood like this is priceless and we are so grateful that we found this school--so grateful that our children get to experience an education like this.

My children have been going here since 2017 and we have loved every minute of it. All of the staff…read moreare friendly and welcoming. I always felt as if my children were taken care of.

My advise to other parents is don't bring your children here. We were excited for my 22 month old…read moreto attend this school. At first everything seemed to be perfect as they were working with us in getting him to adopt in starting preschool. Last week we started getting reports of him biting other children something that we were already working at home with him. Every time I was notified, they made it seemed that it was my son as the aggressor. The more I asked about what led up to him reacting this way I got vaig information. In one case it was brought up to me where my son just got up from his seat and pushed the kid and proceeding to biting but one of the teachers couldn't tell me what happened before that. I met with the teachers and the director and we got a plan going on how we will proceed moving forward. And I was working hard at home so that the incidents of biting would stop. This week I'm being told that my son has now proceeded to not only bite but slap a kid and then aggressively grab another child. This too is a complete shock as my son is not and has never been aggressive. In fact other kids has hit him and he has not done anything. The biting yes and we are working on it and I took full responsibility for it. I wrote an email to the direct with my concerns and that my son will no longer be coming back and I just got a simple Im sorry to hear that and that she wishes the best of luck as well as stating that my son is not being singled out. Her generic email was not good enough for me as I would have thought that someone like her would want to investigate on what exactly happened to see if they can improve for other children in the future. After I demanded for answers and detail for every incident it was very clear to me that A. Teacher supervision is at a minimum which doesn't not make sense as there are a total of 7 or 8 students with 2 teachers B. My suspicion of them singling out my son was becoming more obvious and C. My son was being punished more severely than the other kids. Everything that the other kids did was age appropriate, the taking of the toys constantly even after "they had a talk to that child", the hitting etc. but what my son was doing was not only not tolerated but it was the worse thing ever, he was a risk to the other children. Every time I got informed my son was this aggressive kid who out of no where reacted in violence. The direct does not care enough to get to the bottom of what is going on unless it brought up to her attention by me as a parent. She doesn't investigate prior to be well prepared or to inform on what is actually happening and causing this. She just goes off of what teachers tells her. I don't believe that one of the teachers should be a working there as I do believe that a lot of the problems were caused by her, not properly supervising, not really caring and over exaggerating. Not to mention that the picture she provided of herself to showcase in the classroom as well as to give out was a bit sexual. When my child was picked up, It was always the sensation that they were ready to get rid of him at the end of the day with the teacher having little patience.If that was honestly the case and how they felt, I would have appreciated that to be expressed instead of having my kid suffer. Oh and forgot to mentioned now when we tell my son no to something he is doing bad, he puts his head down and don't look at you in your eyes and it all started last week and while he was in their care. Godly woman don't make kids and others feel like they are the worse people.

What is up with all the trash on the ground when you enter Grimsley high school? It is…read moreembarrassing! Don't they have custodial or yard maintenance workers? How about getting the students out there to clean it up! What a terrible example for our youth!

Grimsley High School - Best High School around. Has new cafteria!!!read more

This review is directed towards the front office staff who are terribly rude. It seems that they do…read morenot have time to be bothered. In the past I have called to change a phone number and was put on hold several times within that one phone call when all I asked for was to make sure that my number was updated on all of our children. The original staff ended up handing over the phone call to another who quickly rushed me off the phone. Also, One morning I was running behind two minutes. The drive line was already backed up. So I walked in with them for the tardy slips. We ended up standing in line ten minutes and the children barely made it to class before 8:00. The office doesn't say good morning or even smile as if polite. The administrative staff quickly snaps at me that Guilford county school needs children to be there by 7:45 and writes each tardy slip for 7:57. Mind you, over half of the school year has passed and of course I know what time they should be there. I understand that punctuality is very important but, there will be times when parents run late. The office staff needs to get a handle on moving students through this tardy line quicker. Again they seemed to be rude due to the workload of filling out paperwork for tardys. Get another job if you can't smile in a customer front type setting!

We were thrilled when our younger one got picked from the lottery to enroll in this charter school,…read moreand we were really excited when our older one got picked as well (they give preference to siblings attending the same school). My kids have made friends and seem to like it here. There isn't bus service, but I would have had to drive and pick my kids up either way due to bus driver shortages. This is a small school, and the faculty know everyone and their kids here, which is refreshing compared to a larger school. They also don't give homework, which my kids and I love not having that eat up our afternoons for no reason. They claim to teach a regular curriculum but with an artsy twist, making the learning fun and engaging. As far as how much they actually live up to that claim, my older one indicates that they tend to be lacking in that department. Still, I think we prefer it here to your standard public school.

I have 2 children enrolled currently at Arts Based Schools - both in elementary. I could not be…read morehappier with my choice. As a parent, I love the idea of an art-incorporated curriculum. The idea is to teach them lessons not only through words, but also visual, audio, and even performance lessons. Dance class is the dance of the molecules. While the current science lesson would be the phases of matter. Plenty of overlap and reinforcement. My kids LOVE it there. They dont notice the lack of a traditional gymnasium. Teachers are all very nice. Tutoring and special assistance is available for kids that need it. And the parent community is very invovled - and non judgy... because most of us are artists. All these reasons are why I have a third child starting there in the fall.

We are so happy with this school! As a former educator and administrator I was anxious about…read moreputting my granddaughter in a public school. Our Lady of Grace started a 3 year old pre-k this year and we enrolled her. It is such a beautiful environment. The way all schools should be. There is diversity among the students and staff. Discipline is compassionate, firm, and predictable. The curriculum for the very young and the middle school children (the only ones I am familiar with) is age appropriate and challenging. There are opportunities for students to move up or down a grade in a particular subject to best accommodate their abilities. A beautiful place to learn about life!

This school is going down! Fourth and fifth grade teachers have a coo, be careful! They gang up on…read moreparents that complain. Very disgruntled teachers. Uncertain about their jobs I guess. Get your kids out of there if you can to a more orderly place of education like St. Pius, IMH, or Blessed Sacrament which has STEM. olg used to be good, but all good teachers leaving and the coo gets to stay, mucking up the school! Bad attitudes from 4th and fifth grade teachers and a few other teachers over picky little things, like snacks, where to park, which keeps changing, etc. Bathrooms are grungy! Whole school needs a scrub down! No principal, sinking ship! They just put an eight grade teacher in place as principal to act like they have one. Many parents do not even think she qualifies enough in experience and degrees to be a principal. They just promoted a friend. They lie to parents. They never really found a principal, so they just put a friend in school in place fast to hush parents up. No leadership, they make rules as they go, change parking rules three or more times a year infuriating parents, teachers and priests leaving in the past two to three years. Dysfnctional! Getting out of here fast!!!!

Omg i can't believe anyone would recommend this school. It's a complete mess forcing parents to…read morefill out forms that are not legally required to be filled out. The kids are so bad. They take kids for enrollment numbers doesn't matter if the child is violent. Staff hates me because I complain. I moved my daughter out this year because I am sick of it. Carline is insane especially if you have 2 kids at different schools. Teachers don't respond to emails and you are lucky if the deans respond.

I love this school! They do so much to involve families and the community. Students feel safe and…read morehappy there. They offer almost every grade level, so you do not need to look any further for a great school.