We had a great experience with Challenge. Great teachers and community. Highly recommended!read more

An absolute gem of a preschool!…read more ​We cannot say enough wonderful things about this school. It is exceptionally well-organized, and they are always planning fantastic events that bring the class (including parents) together--our absolute favorite is the dance performance, which always completely blows us away! ​The teachers are incredible, and the convenient lunch options make our morning routine so much easier. Most importantly, our daughter comes home happy every single day. Seeing her love school this much gives us total peace of mind. Highly recommend!

I'm sad to report that College Park hit the wall this past year. In terms of it being a school…read morewith qualities our family supports, it's no longer a fit for us. Be aware: API results blend gifted (self contained) classes with the general school population. To analyze test scores for non-GATE Mandarin-track kids, you'll have to dig hard. It's a mixed picture. Sadly, most parents don't know how tough it is to staff Mandarin schools well (I've been involved with Mandarin immersion schooling for 25 years). CP is now bleeding experienced staff who feel the program under-serves kids who can't deal with immersion. They're 100% right btw. To evaluate this school accurately, ask tough questions about budget, and visit more than one Mandarin program. This one's budget is threadbare and nearly entirely reliant on volunteers to supplement teaching. If your child is a VERY adept speaker of English (i.e. will not require any help ever supplementing his reading or writing in English) an un-funded Mandarin public school education probably won't do much damage. Our story... In 2011-12, a bullying problem flared up. A core of tough boys were leading teachers around by the nose, disrupting class,and taunting kids. Ours got it often, others had it worse. There was a lot of boy-on-girl bullying. We and my daughter asked for help, but teachers were intimidated by the boys and ineffectual in handling them. We asked about a bullying policy and were told there wasn't one. Some teachers were turning a blind eye out of misplaced empathy for boys who needed to be removed from class, educated separately, or punished. I was told - after witnessing a very public humiliation of my daughter by 5 boys - that "these kids have trouble at home." It was my 9 year old's job to suck it up and tolerate it apparently. The air at College Park is thick with racial politics, and it has repeatedly affected the daily lives of some children (granted some kids feel none of this and to them I say: mazel tov, you've been lucky). The principal rejects the concept that there are discipline problems, or indeed ANY serious problems with the program. Her own staff roll their eyeballs when the subject of Mrs. H "listening" is mentioned. Nothing derails her constant, tedious boosterism. Imposing Mandarin immersion on a student body whose parents are perhaps 10% functionally illiterate or 40% poor English speakers is just bad policy. It's true that a few English-learners excel, but they are a tiny minority. Most struggle. Many fail. These kids need a strong traditional English program. Teaching quality is all across the board. Many long-time teachers of English at CP have been wonderful. Some of them are leaving. And frankly, their efforts are being undermined by this now unfunded, experimental Mandarin program. Given the extreme needs among the local kids for outstanding English teaching, I'm truly confused about why the district would continue Mandarin at College Park. You're lifting API at the expense of kids who need the 3 Rs. Budget decimation. In December 2011, the federal government pulled the grant program that funded the $300,000/year Mandarin immersion program at College Park. To be clear: THE FEDERAL MONEY IS GONE. We all knew it was coming. I asked if they wanted help raising serious foundation money but was told they didn't understand the questions I was asking ("What is your budget and where is it written down?). The level of naivete around how to manage the loss of funds by raising other funds was startling - really startling. You do NOT find $100k+ at a bake sale or a single Chinese meal for PTA members. Heavy fundraising requires professional expertise and a budget. They have no expertise and demonstrated confusion when asked for a budget. A nice, totally inexperienced group of parents was assembled to raise money to replace some of the funds. They had raised, by June 2012, about $20,000. So, from $300,000 to, less than 1% of that. The principal doesn't dig outside expertise. Big mistake. She needs heavy help fund raising and she's not asking for it. The lady shows all the signs of having a thin skin and refusing help she can't control. 3rd and 4th grades were combined. There is no more differentiated instruction in Mandarin. New parents rarely understand how badly CP's immersion compares to those in other districts. Their kids may end up doing ok, but only if they have plenty of outside tutors in Mandarin. We were sad to leave that community of friendly people. PTA folks are super. But we felt that under present leadership, CP would never fix its troubles. There are some super smart parents trying to make it work at CP. I earnestly wish them luck. But it's unlikely the program will thrive without leadership change.

My daughter is now in second grade. She was a kinder when a brand new principle came to the…read moreschool. I had a lot of respect for the previous principle and I also feel really good about the current one. I think Steven Chuang probably speaks more Mandarin than English so his delivery might be misunderstood by folks that are native. Over the course of the last 3 years I do see a lot of compassion and effort on his part, and the teachers too. It seems to me like this is a great school where u have parents teachers and principle working together. I will say I am not a fan of the district people for taking away the magic from the bilingual after school program. Kuai Le. I was not impressed by the people sitting in the district offices.

This is a review for Synapse's TK program. My son has been in Teacher Mickey & Teacher Natasha's…read moreclass for a year this year. My son's TK experience has been truly above and beyond what we wanted for early childhood education. All the great activities that foster joyful learning, all the field trips, events that bring the community together have been so beautifully thought out and planned, we had no idea this kind of education was even possible for little kids. We were grateful each day when we sent my son to school, because we trusted that he would be well taken care of and have a good time. It meant a lot to us as parents. The teachers cared so much about students' happiness, well-being, and materials they were learning. They truly, genuinely cared, and all the parents of TK students could feel it. Throughout the year, we were constantly impressed by the teachers' willingness to go above and beyond. These teachers are not ordinary teachers who rely on easier field trips or simpler projects. They take kids to the most interesting and enriching places on their field trips, places such as ice skating rinks, beaches, ponds where you can catch tadpoles, senior centers, pumpkin patches, cactus garden, etc. Their creativity and willingness to get messy were also truly inspiring. The TK class built an awe-inspiring life-size whale shark together and had so much fun celebrating Holi. The TK class cooked great lunches and sold them to parents as well. The teachers went an extra mile, even though it meant so much more work for themselves, because they have a genuine passion for sprinkling curiosity and exploration in their students. We also deeply appreciated how they created so many opportunities to recognize diverse cultures and bring families together for events like Diwali and Lunar New Year. They were extra careful to include all of the countries' traditions, which gave my son a sense of belonging and harbored a pride in his heritage. We are immensely grateful and feel incredibly honored that my son had such thoughtful, dedicated, and innovative teachers like them. Knowing he was in their care gave us immense peace of mind. And this review is not just about TK teachers at Synapse. Everyone we met at Synapse has been genuinely nice and down to earth. All the teachers, staff, students and parents formed such a warm, wonderful community.

The children are marvelously guided to follow their curiosity and do meaningful projects like study…read morechange makers in society. I have worked with many schools and never seen such attentive care for children and teens by teachers. It's a joy to see!

I have 2 kids attending UP Academy and they love the school!…read more My older son used to struggle in a public school with math and writing. 3 years ago, at 2nd grade, we transferred him to UP Academy, and, within a few months, he has become a lil writer. He fell in love with writing. He wrote one full-page of very a fun story. I can't thank you enough to all the educators there. Since then until now, he always happy every morning that he gets to go to school. He loves the community there and the small-sized class makes him feel like a part of the community. My younger one started last year as a kindergartner. He loves his teachers and his friends. He learned a lot academically and socially. We love how UP academy teaches kids by their own paces. Thus, our kids get challenged throughout the year. If you are looking for a project-based learning, a place where you child can build confidence and empathy, small class sized, great community, and personalized learning, UP Academy is the place for your kids.

We love UP Academy!…read more My older one went to the school since 2nd grade (now 3rd grader), and my younger one since TK (K now). The school is relatively new (2.5 years old) but our kids attended since 2 years ago. We are happy with the school in the full two years. ***Strength** We love the super low teacher-student ratio, the differentiation of learning. We also love the mixed-age classes, that allow kids to grow and thrive not limited by grade but by the their own levels. The school focused on growth mindset and recognize the efforts and progress. We also love the focus on project-based learning and social-emotion learning. The school also offers foreign languages classes, Chinese/Mandarin and Spanish. This might be a good plus for some families. We love that. We also appreciate the schools offer afterschool extension to 6pm as well. This is very helpful for parents who are both working. The school builds a great community. Teachers that we experienced - which means all teachers since we have two kids there for two years - are all very caring. Kids love each of them. The founder has an amazing vision inspired by a strong why. We love the philosophy, the vision & mission of the school. ***Potential concerns some families may have*** - Small school space: As a micro school, the school space is small - basically an office building only. But with various field trips and outdoor learning opportunities, especially during the pre-pandemic era, we don't have any concern at all. There's indoor facility for exercise, and kids love it. - Small class size For some parents, the small class size might be another concern for social issues. However, I appreciate this a lot since it also means great individual attention from teachers. Every kid can develop his/her own learning plan, academically and socially. We particularly appreciate the small size of the school during the pandemic time. A small class makes us feel safe to send kids to school in person during pandemic, knowing that the school is small and our kids could still learn and socialize safely in person with the COVID precautions that bigger schools may not be able to offer. The school remains open in 2020-2021 school year with the waiver. I believe it's heathier for kids to interact in person than virtually on Zoom anyways. - New school This is a progressive lab elementary school, and yes it's pretty new. We've seen the school evolving in the past two years, and overall towards a even better direction. I do encourage families to experience the school themselves during the trial-out days. We did so before we transferred our kids from a good public school in the following school year. Kids loved Up Academy so much that we made the decision right after they experienced the school. It turned out to be one of the best decisions we've ever made. Overall, we love the school and highly recommend the school to other families.

We've been with L'Academy for almost two years, and I'm continually amazed by how much they teach…read morethe children and how genuinely they care for them. After a difficult experience at a previous daycare, our daughter had developed fear toward a teacher, and we made the decision to remove her. We had nearly given up on finding childcare until we discovered L'Academy by chance. From the moment we met Berni, the director, we felt welcomed and supported. She was kind, professional, and understanding of our daughter's past experience. Since starting at L'Academy, our daughter has completely flourished. Now 4 years old, she loves her teachers, her friends, and looks forward to going every day. She arrives and leaves happy, and she hasn't shown fear or anxiety since joining the center. The staff has been incredibly supportive with her potty training and patient as we work through a mild language delay. I truly appreciate how they keep us informed and involved. The daily app updates let us see her meals and activities in real time, which gives us extra peace of mind. Most importantly, we go to work each day knowing our daughter is safe, cared for, and happy. We are so grateful to Berni and the entire L'Academy team. Thank you so much!

My two children have attended L'Academy since they were 12 months and 2 yrs old (2.5 yrs+). They…read morehave gone through each classroom from infants, to 2-3s all the way through graduation! I cannot say enough wonderful things about our time here. The director, Ms. Berni is incredibly passionate about her role in nurturing the development of each child. She has always been available to me for any situations that arise regarding my kids. The app the school uses makes getting updates seamless and relieves any worries you may have regarding your child's development day to day etc. The amazing care and love all the teachers provide is heart warming as these women are raising your little ones every day. I love that when the kids graduate we can continue our friendships and connections as a good percentage will go on to Mandarin Immersion at Orion. Highly highly recommend L'Academy to anyone in the area!

We have two kids graduated from PRINTS kindergarten. One started already in Children's House and…read morecompleted, the other started from Nido and also completed Children's House. The kids actually did not overlap due to age difference, but we had such a great experience with the first one when we first moved to the Bay Area, we decided to send the second one there as well. What we like about PRINTS: 1. The campus is very clean, and managed to have in-person learning with only 1 minor disruption starting back in summer 2020 (with camps first) and continued throughout, while the public schools remained in distance learning mode. 2. The freshly cooked meals are excellent. The younger kid literally loved the meals at PRINTS more than anywhere else. 3. Teaching standard very high, and kids have no problem transitioning to public schools afterward. (I came from a family with many professors and teachers and have a doctoral degree myself.)

Our child started the Nido program this summer and he has flourished at PRINTS…read more He is given lots of floor time and has learned to roll and is working hard on sitting. He is offered solids, and they are even following his cues and place him on the potty. The daycare providers all are very loving and invested in the progress and growth of our son. We even had a few questions on sleep training and they lent us a book from the school library that was incredibly informative. It's such a relief to not have to worry about his safety and well being while we're away at work. Yes, they are pricier than the other programs, and while we were fortunate enough to have been admitted in a few infant day cares and had options, we opted for PRINTS because the atmosphere was much more calm, clean, and organized, which translated into providers being more focused on the kids. Our little guy is very happy here, and their investment in our son's milestones is pushing us to be better parents--we've gotten more proactive with introducing solids and potty time to our kiddo! I have a friend whose daughters are enrolled in the Emeryville PRINTS location and they are very happy at that location as well!

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have your child wake you up in the morning dressed,…read morewith their teeth brushed, ready to head to school because they love being at school more than playing Mario Kart with you all day? Have you ever heard a child express that they hope you hit every red light on their way to picking them up from school so that they can stay at school longer that day? If any of this fits you then PCC is the place for you. We started out back in 2009 sending our first of 3 boys there. He loved it. Still reminisces about things like Stone Soup. A couple years later our 2nd went there as well. Fast forward a decade later we enrolled our 4yo there for Pre-K. He loves the whole experience. He often tells us about how much he loves his teachers and friends. It's also great knowing one of the teachers was there for both of our older sons, providing a sense of continuity over the years. As a parent we've been also happy when things aren't going to plan. When there were moments of separation anxiety (it happens) they speak directly to the child offering encouragement and working with both us and our child. It's easy to become comfortable when you know things go well in the good moments but seeing how well they handle the not-so-good moments brings comfort when we're leaving our young children with them for hours each day. On a closing note it's worth mentioning that everything in the first paragraph is 100% true.

My relative was severely injured multiple times within a very small span of time he attended here…read moreresulting in hospital visits on separate occasions with no remorse from the staff ultimately having to pull him because of his safety. There are no cameras and the staff was not able to tell us how he was injured each time admitting their eyes were not on the child (probably on their phones instead). As a preschool director myself, with children's safety being my top priority I would strongly advise keeping your child away from here if you want to avoid costly medical bills and trauma. I know lots of people have had great experiences with this school but I am hoping this post about our experience saves at least one family from having to go through the hell we have been through seeing our child sustain multiple injuries and being in excruciating pain since attending this school.

Our daughter attended Paragon and we were thrilled with the curriculum and the outcome. Now 9 our…read morelittle lady continues to show the core Montessori values she picked up when very little. Paragon is a sweet little school with in a lovely, welcoming locale that gives the kids calmness and focus to really thrive. Paragon teaches love, caring, and mindfulness. Even when she was 4 and 5 our little one came home singing songs, talking about the world she was learning about, and had so many questions. We learned to look forward to pickup because we'd always hear something new and exciting from our daughter. The school schedules many social events that allow the parents and families to be part of the process. This also drove interaction between families which culminated with a graduation ceremony that was just too sweet for words (hint: each kid gets to ride the little plastic "rollercoaster" to celebrate the event!). Paragon is a labor of love: It was started to fill a gap that was tragically created when another Montessori school was forced to close due to the untimely passing of its beloved leader. If you are looking for something really special that will create a strong, wise, and independent child, then this is the place for you.p

Paragon is magical. It's a well-rounded play-based Montessori program for children from 2.5 to…read morepre-k. The school is very small with an ideal teacher to student ratio, creating a tight knit community that extends beyond the hours of school. We, parents included, feel truly blessed to be a part of this experience. It's an idyllic bubble where the children can follow their hearts, engage, and explore. Foundations in math and reading are taught through play by patient and nurturing teachers. Ms. Valerie gives the best hugs and Ms. Pranita, the director of the program, is more than an educator--she is a true role model. Without going into details, I believe this school is a passion project given her competing roles. I've watched my son go through Paragon with my daughter following his footsteps become increasingly confident and responsible independent little humans. They come home with "Paragonisms" that we use daily, such as "nutritious before delicious" and "less talking, more eating" during meal times. LOL. The school is beautiful. My son considers it an extension of "home", even after he graduated and entered elementary school. The classroom is immaculate (feels like the progeny of the Container Store, Blicks and Drosselmeyer's toyshop) with enough nooks and crannies for the children to let their imagination go. The pirate ship play structure is my personal favorite. All of this is set in a lush garden. During the fall and spring, my kids often pick a lemon and pinch some mint from the garden on their way to the car. We have attended several highly regarded preschool programs in the area. Some differences noted are 1) the children are fully engaged without any screentime at Paragon, 2) kids may be covered in paint and markers but not food and urine at pick up and 3) galloping out of the car, all the way to the entrance during morning drop offs. Based on my single date point, we also saw a positive change in my son's demeanor almost immediately after he started attending Paragon. We love this school. The only cons are the hours and lack of extended care. For families who can make it work, I highly recommend it!