Our family has been part of this school community for 20 years, and we are so grateful for the…read moreexperience. It's a wonderful way to connect children (and adults!) with German language and culture in a relaxed, educational setting that also serves as a hub of the East Bay German/American community. The teachers are welcoming, the instruction is top notch, and students have the opportunity to gain official language diplomas that also give them access to university systems in Germany without additional language requirements. The Saturday morning time commitment is not hard to fit into a busy family schedule.

Our family has attended GSEB for many years, and found it to be a warm, welcoming place, with…read moreteachers that really care and do a wonderful job. For children, the school does a great job finding the appropriate level for them, and has a good track record of success with kids and the language certification exams. For adults, there is a good range of courses to cover everyone from beginners to more advanced students. There are quite a few long-time attendees of the school (myself included), which speaks well to the value of the community and education that the school provides. I'm really glad that we found GSEB and became part of the community. We can easily recommend it for anyone looking for a good Saturday language school option!

Our daughter recently started at BIM. I am originally from Japan so I was looking for a full…read morejapanese immersion school and I have so far been impressed. BIM does an excellent job at incorporating traditional Montessori teaching methods with japanese language and culture. The children not only learn the language, they also get to experience the culture including holidays and other traditions. The educational team is excellent, a group of teachers who pride themselves on being warm and loving while encouraging the children to grow at their own pace. We have another baby on the waiting list, make sure to sign up early as it can take a while for your space to open up.

I had the great honor of working at BIM as an office admin and co-teacher for 3 years. Even though…read moreI had tons of teaching experience and ECE units under my belt when I started, BIM was the first and only Montessori program I worked at. I learned so much about the Montessori method from my fellow co-teachers and was always inspired by their hard work and dedication to their craft. Japanese is my second language that will no doubt deteriorate if I stop using it, so being able to use it daily in various situations at my place of work was also a huge benefit for me. The BIM community as a whole is extremely tight-knit and supportive. I had never felt so loved and appreciated by the families I worked for before BIM, and it was heartening to witness new bonds and friendships being formed among everyone firsthand. Of course, I really miss the kids most of all and the funny things they would say and do, but feel very lucky and privileged to have 3 years' worth of fond memories with them. BIM, iroiro arigato! Mata ne!

Our daughter attended LET for three years, and she truly thrived there. The warm, nurturing…read moreenvironment and wonderful teachers helped her grow into a happy, kind, and confident child. Staying for her TK year was the best decision we made. It was amazing to see the Montessori philosophy in action during that third year. Her confidence and independence blossomed. It was clear that the teachers prepared her well academically (early reader and a strong curiosity for learning) but more importantly, social-emotionally. What's more - many of the alumni still stay in touch, a reflection of the wonderful experience so many families had. The LET community has been an integral part of our daughter's early years, and we will always be grateful.

So fortunate to have found this little gem. We found Little Elephant Too in Berkeley online when we…read morewere moving from India to the Bay Area last year in 2022. Fortunate to have fallen in love with this cute cozy and calm space for our daughter! She has so much fun here, loves her teachers and her friends We have been enjoying being part of this community, talking to the parents and bonding over birthday parties at the park or potluck gatherings in school. Amazing memories we will cherish forever! If you ever want to gift something special to your child, gift them montessori education for their early childhood

We love the Model School! All three of our kids attended and our youngest son is currently in the…read moreToddler 1 room. The school is incredibly convenient for working parents, with a flexible schedule between 7-6pm and you have flexibility to pay by the hour, starting at 20 hours and up. Our boys were very ready for kindergarten with the solid PK curriculum and learned wonderful social emotional skills as well as got potty trained. Our youngest started in the infant room and is now in the one year old room. The teachers are incredibly warm and caring and the parents group is very active and strong and supports the school through facilities upgrades as well as by supplementing enrichment's like Music and dance. Come visit and check it out!

We were thrilled to find the Model School!…read more The waitlist was pretty long ... took about 3-4 months to get into the Toddler Room for kids that were over 1 year old and can walk. But once we got in, we soon found why this place is so popular! The teachers/caregivers are absolutely amazing! My son, who was 14 months at the time had only been taken care of by family (parents and grandparents) so adjusting was really hard on him! We had tried another daycare facility and they refused to deal with my son. (They would call us to pick him up within 5 minutes of him crying). The Dr Mante (the director) and the teachers at the Model School (numerous of them, not just the one's assigned to my son's room) did everything they could to get my son comfortable. They would hold him, walk him around, talk and sing to him, play with him, try out other classrooms and teachers (because he connected faster with some) ... etc. Though it took some time my son eventually got comfortable with drop offs, started eating well (sometimes too well) and his naps went from no naps to 30 mins, to over an hour, to sometimes over 2 hours! Other things I love about this place: - The daily routine and schedule which my son thrives on - Play based but with structure and variety. - Ability to socialize with other kids of varying ages and other adults. - Art, music, books, dancing, playing sessions - Very active parent group that's always working towards making the school a better place.

My wife and I cannot speak highly enough of Albany Preschool. Our eldest attended for one year (the…read morefirst year she was eligible we applied too late and they were full), and my youngest attended for two years. APS utilizes a play-based learning model, which allows kids to self select activities, leading to more engagement and intrinsic motivation. There are very few required transitions, so kids can really focus on a sustained activity. My kids' consistent favorite was the sensory play in sand and water. The teachers are exceptional. They are loving, patient, responsive and supportive. Each teacher brings a different strength, while still maintaining consistency as a team. Personally, I believe the greatest selling point of APS is its community. It is a cooperative, so families contribute effort, which keeps costs lower. That effort ranges from making play dough, garden and maintenance projects, laundering towels, planning community events, etc. This shared responsibility for the school and students connected us with so many wonderful families. We built more community in 3 years at Albany Preschool than in the previous 10 years we have lived in our neighborhood. In a world of daycare as an industry, Albany Preschool is a rare gem. It is a space rebuilt every year by the imaginations of the kiddos and the commitment of the families and teachers.

We had 2 kids go through the program. They really take great care of the preschoolers- physically…read moreand emotionally! The play based model and layout of the school really allows for growth, learning and creativity.

My kiddo finished her first year of after-school programming at Hanwen and is looking forward to…read morenext year. She's attended other Chinese-language programs in the past but shared with me that she's learned the most at Hanwen (from songs to zhuyin to full characters). On top of that, there's a great student community and they have fun activities like kung-fu, too. Thanks for running a great school, Ron and team!

Our daughter (5 yrs old) currently attends Hanwen's afterschool program and she loves it. In…read moreaddition to the Chinese language classes, she is also enrolled in a mindfulness class (her favorite), a kung-fu class, an abacus class,and a yoga class. The instructors and the founder (Ron) are all highly engaged, supportive, and friendly. The program is very well run and offers a wonderfully enriching environment and an extensive assortment of activities. Our daughter reports to us on a daily basis (in Chinese) about things she learned and things she enjoyed doing with her new friends. We highly recommend the school to all our friends and enjoy being a part of the community.

We could not have been happier with AIM preschool and elementary school. They have incredibly…read morededicated teachers and staff. Ernie Mahr is a great leader and sets the tone from the top down. He even did a home visit for us to help reinforce the learning our kids were getting on a Thursday night at 7pm (sometimes parents need help too)! We would get emails from teachers late at night keeping us updated on progress and ways to collaborate with them. I have only good things to say about this school and wish we could have stayed longer. Alas, the pandemic changed the direction of our lives and we moved away but if there is anything our entire family misses from the bay area, it is the AIM school and community.

The American International Montessori School is a wonderful school. They have a nice and clean…read morefacility for the kids to play in with lots of learning going on from the infant rooms straight up to first grade. The director and teachers have been very warm and welcoming to my family. I do not speak Japanese or Mandarin. They have given me a lot of CDs and books to help me better understand the languages. I also love that they have really made it a point to include diverse celebrations from the Latino culture and many others. I really feel lucky to have found such an amazing school for my son.

Kindergarten Readiness Academy is amazing :) My husband and I enrolled our son there at 5 months…read moreuntil he was a year and a half. We would still be attending today if we had not moved out of the area. They truly have a warm, family, atmosphere there that I loved. In addition, they are committed to preparing your child for Kindergarten - making sure that they have the academic and social skills that it takes to succeed. Highly recommend!