Wow, this school has been such a blessing for our family! Our two children have attended for the…read morelast three years, and we couldn't be happier. The Children's Garden is everything we dreamed of for our children--an environment where they can wake up each day and spend time outdoors, surrounded by a wonderful community that truly cherishes exploration, wonder, self-awareness, and age-appropriate learning. This place is definitely Grant Park's best kept secret! The philosophy here is a holistic and healing approach to children-based learning with an emphasis on art, nature, & community, which we value immensely. The preschool promotes a healthy lifestyle by providing fresh and organic foods for snacks, and the children even get to prepare these snacks themselves! Additionally, the staff is incredibly accommodating when it comes to food allergies, ensuring that all children feel safe and included. I want to thank Sally and her wonderful staff (Cira, Jessica, Erin, Freda) for providing genuine care and attention to each child. It's clear that you are invested in every child's well-being and development, which creates a nurturing environment where children can thrive. It's worked for our family. The magical atmosphere of the preschool is enhanced by the delightful festivals and birthday celebrations, which bring joy and wonder not just to the kids but into our household. We are so grateful to have found such a loving and enriching community for our children. Couldn't recommend more - once you've experienced and seen The Children's Garden ( Waldorf inspired) you can't unsee it. The other perk is the other parents are amazing! Have met some lifelong friends here - can't beat that! xo

The Children's Garden Preschool is an icing on the cake perk for the sweet families that live in…read moreGrant Park. It's not just a school, it's a true community. Those families who make a longer drive for their child(ren) to attend this school can attest to the school's genuine respect for the whole well-being of the child. I have three children who have been fortunate to spend their early "schooling" here. I put that word in parenthesis because the values and virtues that are taught and lived out in these classrooms are experienced quite differently than what one might experience at other schools. This gentle, quiet, rhythmic, grounded approach is what attracted my husband and I in the first place and is more than appropriate for children in their early years of life! We are honored to now have our third child at The Children's Garden. And over the years, we have been diligent to attend the extra parent workshops and teacher meetings provided by the school. Each and every time we do, we are introduced to new and helpful insight as to how to guide our children through life's obstacles. Currently, our oldest son, having graduated from The Children's Garden, is attending an academically rigorous local private school. He is doing very well, in fact, the work there is a breeze for him. I can thank The Children's Garden for their diligence in training my son's focus while he was there, leading to his ability to better attend to his work now. The staff at the Children's Garden is properly prepared and educated in how to teach the values of safety, respect, gentleness, kindness, individuality and autonomy in a way that directly translates to little ones. The facility is magical to the children. And the simple food pleasures worked on every day enliven their senses and appreciation of real food.

My now 4 year old daughter has been going here for over 2 years now and we absolutely LOVE this…read moreschool. She's had amazing and caring teachers in each class and they have been especially so during the very difficult year of 2020! I'm so happy with my decision to enroll her there. And I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for their own children!

I wish Seeds of Wonder Journey School was around when my older children were infant and preschool…read moreage! Everything about our experience here has surpassed my expectations. -The teachers are nurturing, fun and consistently provide creative learning opportunities. -The director is organized, so kind and available. -The school itself is safe, inviting and has an engaging outdoor space. It's truly exciting to finally have found a school that matches our values and ideas of learning. Our 4 year old son has grown in so many positive ways, I would recommend Seeds of Wonder to anyone!

We have been at the school since 2019 after our first child was born. We now have all (3) of our…read morechildren at the school. We love the school and the love and care they provide for our children. If we ever had any concerns, the faculty was open to discussing them with us and quickly resolving them. Our children are well taken care of and provided a great education. Our now 3yo is very advanced and the school encourages further learning. The faculty and staff really care for the children and take their education seriously. The school has a reputation of being a good school and it shows in the students. I have compared notes with my friends on what their children are doing at school and they are always impressed with what is being provided at AA. The school is very clean and the classrooms are cleaned and sanitized every afternoon. It's a daycare and kids get sick. They have not had any major stomach bugs or Covid-19 outbreaks since we started attending in 2019. We have had nothing but a positive experience and encourage anyone who is looking for a daycare that cares with a Christian foundation to look at Angels Academy.

We have been going to Angels since 2021 . I initially , had my youngest daughter enrolled there…read morefirst . I was so impressed with the school that I transferred my oldest to Angels in 2022. I am very pleased with the curriculum , teachers, and the staff . I love how the teachers and staff love on my babies . I feel so secure with sending my children there . I am most impressed with the curriculum . I love how my kids are challenged academically and spiritually . We love Angels ,and I am so glad my children attend the school . I would highly recommend it .

I am very impressed with this wonderful school. I moved my daughter mid-March and wish I had done…read moreit sooner! We were especially happy to have Miss Jacqueline. We knew her from the previous school we attended and were thrilled to have her back. My daughter used to say she was "nervous" about coming to school, and none of the kids liked her. The Goddard was so welcoming, and she made friends right away. I am so grateful for all the teachers and directors. 12/10

prepare for your child to come home dirty mistreated and slashed on their faces. They pretend when…read moreyou drop your child off . Your child will get head hits as a infant and they will call it a accident

RUN! Enrolling my son at this daycare is biggest regret as a parent thus far and he only there for…read more2 weeks. My 15 month old sustained a head injury with raised golf ball size swelling while at attending this daycare. I inquired with the teacher about the incident, but she was unaware of it. I escalated the matter to the director and was told there is ONLY LIVE footage and no playback option. It's been over a month and my son still has a mark on his head from the incident.

I truly love this school and its staff. They care for my children as if they were their own and…read morecommunicate effectively. The school consistently organizes activities to engage parents, fostering connections not just with the school but also among one another. I highly recommend this school.

Both of my children have attended UEP, we live in Grant Park and love the community and teachers…read more We highly recommend the PreK class taught by Ms. Cynthia and have been very pleased over the last four years with our children's growth.

Our family looked at all possible options (Waldorf, Montessori, local co-op) and Urban Explorers…read moreoffered something truly different. The emphasis on learning through play has done wonders; my child and ALL her classmates are well above their cognitive development benchmarks thanks to remarkable teachers and an environment that fosters a love of learning, rather than a spoon-fed (or often force-fed) curriculum. I particularly like the practice of moving one teacher, but not both teachers, up from one age/level/room to the next, along with the child. This has given our daughter the chance to bond with someone familiar and ensures her learning is uninterrupted, but also gave her the chance to interact with new teachers, new expectations, new ways of learning. Familiarity AND flexibility. Brilliant. Director Jenni and Assistant Director Joanna have always been great: communicative, committed, passionate, organized. Especially throughout COVID shutdowns, when the city closed the school building, their ingenuity and devotion to getting individual students into risk-adjusted, peer-group, professionally staffed learning pods has been inspiring. Amid so much uncertainty, one thing I never doubt is that I'm sending my kid into the best situation for her, both when we started at UEP and every morning drop-off since.

If stability and consistency matter to you, our experience (May-July) suggests this may not be the…read moreright fit. Within two months, our two-year-old's lead teacher changed twice and the assistant changed once. Our child's class was also moved for two weeks into a younger classroom that felt overcrowded for that age mix. For a toddler who needs routine, that level of churn was disruptive. When the second lead resigned abruptly, we chose to withdraw. The school enforced a 45-school-day withdrawal clause, effectively billing families for two school months after notice. Hard to reconcile was the asymmetry: families must guarantee 45-school-days of tuition, yet leadership at times appeared to give staff as little as one week's notice of termination; in other cases, staff were listed as "on vacation" and didn't return. Whether that reflects limited loyalty from management toward staff or low staff loyalty to the workplace, it ultimately points to a management-level failure to foster a supportive environment that keeps staff committed--while families are asked to shoulder the cost of the resulting staffing and retention issues via the 45-school-day policy. If you visit the school, ask detailed questions about current turnover, staffing ratios, contingency plans, and how the 45-school-day policy is applied when staffing changes disrupt a classroom.

After touring a number of schools, Goddard was the one school I felt very at peace with, and I…read moredidn't have the feeling that my son would be missed or overlooked. It's very clear when you can just tell a person was made to work with little kids, and I've felt that with every single teacher I've met here so far; and that was not the case anywhere else. The communication and attention to detail has exceeded my expectations. I LOVE that this school is smaller, I think only one class per age group, and that Nikisha (director) knows every single parent and child by name. When I ask my son if he wants to go to any daycare (gym, church, etc) he says no. But every time I ask him about going to "school" he says yes, and he's out the door. I feel so at peace here, I'm so impressed with what he's learning every day, I love how diverse it is, I love how safe he is here, and I could not speak more highly of this place.