One of my little guys camps went pretty good, but not when it came to cooking camp - it was awful…read morelol. Every day he'd come home just feeling whatever about it. So we asked why. Turns out every day was just a variation of some tortilla based recipe lol. One day was quesadillas, one day was tortilla chips, one day was cinnamon sugar tortillas (???), another was tacos, etc. One day was parfaits though! Very clearly just trying to go through their excess stock of tortillas from the camp it would appear. It also turns out that the kids did NONE of the cooking themselves! They would assemble the food then the workers would take it to the oven or microwave or whatever to actually do the cooking. This was a hilarious revelation lol - turns out there's no cooking in the cooking class! They learned how to stack ingredients but nothing about proper temperatures, the procedure for using the oven, or when to use the pots and pans on the stove, etc. Even his final recipe, that he got to bring home - was a simple cookie lol. WHICH THE WORKERS BURNED THE ENTIRE UNDERSIDE OF lmao. He didn't even want to eat it or enjoy his bring home final cooking project from cooking camp. Had they been more up front, I probably wouldn't have chosen that camp and put him in a diff one. When I brought this up - I was told it's illegal for kids to do the cooking! Even her own 15 year old can't use the stuff. I asked for clarification because of course that' sounds like nonsense - every pizza and fast food place in the world has teens working at it and around the ovens lol. I just had to laugh and say oh ok and move on because it's def not true and was just an excuse she came up with on the spot rather than admit that maybe the cooking camp was a bit lacking and oversold for what it really was. Not sure we will be coming back next year, certainly not for cooking class specifically...

Our child came home happy and excited from a day of engaging activities. We will enroll early for…read more2924

Would give TEN STARS if I could!!!! Took a buddy wheel class for the first time and when I tell…read moreyou, this was a SUPER FUN. I'm talking from the moment you go in Soji is hands on and gets you right to it!!! The studio is perfectly sized and gives a warm and gentle atmosphere all around ‍ her instructions are easy to follow and she makes sure you are comfortable asking any questions or needing assistance in any way, during the entire process. You make quite a few pieces by the time the class is over! If you are looking for an awesome, one of a kind art making experience Soji's is the place to start, because I guarantee, like myself, you will be returning time and time again!!

We loved our class with Soji! She was very thorough in explaining what to do, we both had never…read moreused a wheel before and left our class with 7 pieces in total! Amazing very beginner friendly class :) would definitely recommend!

My two girls loved Shark Camp! They learned so much about sharks and other marine life. They were…read moreso excited when I picked them up each day! They enjoyed the boat day and the land day . As an added bonus, I had fun hanging out at the beach each day after I dropped them off. It was like a mini vacation. Lastly, they thought the lunch that was provided was yummy. Mary Cate and her crew were fantastic. I'd highly recommend it!

My daughter just had a great experience with Shark Camp a few days ago…read more She always wants to be a marine biologist. I signed her up after we learned about it through summer camp fair in San Jose, even though I knew I have to drive her all the way down to Santa Cruz for 2 days with my little one for this camp. She liked the coaches Mary Cate and Helaina. They are super nice and knowledgeable. My daughter said she learned a lot from them about all sorts of interesting facts about marine animals. They went out whale watching and saw not only Humpback whales, but also Great white sharks close by. They went out tide pool observation, saw a lot of interesting sea creatures and learned more about their natural habitats. They went out even touching swell sharks inside marine discovery center and learned they sleep during the day and are active at night. It was a very fun 2-day camp for my daughter. And it turns out that the rest of my family enjoyed the beach playing with sand crabs, tide pool hiking and patting sharks as well. I highly recommend this responsible, energetic and fun Shark Camp team!

they staff was very mean especially andrew. also they dont treat their campers nicley and often…read moremake them feel stupid. they forced a camper to serve condiments to her friends instead of joining them. this is dehuminizing and degrading. another camper was forced to do manual labor such as hauling very hevy items without any help from the lazy counclers. they were extremely disrespectful and even forced us to listen to party 4 u by charlie xcx whilst crying in teh bakcseet not allowed to speak. they treated us as sub human with litle to no considersaton of our feelings. i experienced teh worst day of my life here. the day me and a close friend were forced to stay in a shack while the rest of our friends had fun. all because of a rumor. lastly, girls and boys were rarely allowed to hang out despite having great friendships. please send your kids to another camp where they will have the freedom and respect to be normal. i was also forced to pick up pig poop when doing an activity. BAD

My 14yo daughter was exposed to illegal drugs at Kennolyn. We were under the impression that…read moreKennolyn was a wholesome, sheltered place, but one of the campers, a very wealthy boy, was apparently allowed to bring a marijuana vape pen into camp (despite the fact that the camp assures parents that they will search kids on the way in). He apparently bragged about having the weed vape all week to the other campers, and when the Camp left a group of teen campers unsupervised at night (why?), someone apparently used the weed vape. When the boy was later busted by the camp, he denied using it, claiming that my daughter and another 14 yo girl were the real culprits. The boy insisted he didn't even know he had the marijuana vape in his bag, that someone must have put it there, and said that my daughter and the other girl had "bullied" him into letting them use it. To be clear, though more than a dozen kids were there when the weed vape was used, no one OTHER THAN THE BOY WHO BROUGHT THE WEED VAPE TO CAMP ever said that the girls used the weed vape. For whatever reason, Kennolyn joined the boy in pointing the finger at the girls, and on that basis alone locked my daughter in a room by herself for a long period while they tried to extract a "confession" out of her; they performatively humiliated her by forcing her to serve the other campers at a food line, as if she was the lunch lady and no longer one of them; they refused to let her say goodbye to her cabinmates and friends, or even to collect their contact information; they made her do manual labor for a period, moving heavy bags off of a truck; and, as a final indignity, forced her to go to sleep in a cabin in the woods by herself. My daughter is a young 14, she was absolutely shamed and terrified, and said she cried herself to sleep. I'm paying $2,700 a week for that?!? When I picked her up the next morning she was visibly stressed and shaken, but she was even more angry, because she insisted she'd been falsely accused and had never even seen the boy's marijuana vape, let alone used it. When I emailed Kennolyn's management to challenge the boy's lies about my daughter and complain about the way they had treated her, suddenly their story began to change: now they insisted my daughter had confessed to the boy's accusations! My daughter categorically denied confessing to anything, and the more I dug into it, the more Kennolyn's story changed--first it was one counselor who purportedly heard the confession, then, wait, it was a different counselor altogether who had heard it, then suddenly there were TWO other counselors present for the confessions; etc. The more their story changed, the lower my trust for Kennolyn's leadership dropped. I'm not sure exactly what really happened, but they acted captiously and callously toward my daughter, and were suspiciously inconsistent in their dealings with me, particularly in the way they bent over backwards to exonerate and excuse the boy who actually brought the illegal marijuana vape to camp. My daughter feels disrespected and unfairly maligned, and regrets ever having gone to Kennolyn--they really treated her poorly. I don't blame her, and can't believe I wasted so much money to send my kid somewhere unsafe, where she would be exposed to illegal drugs. We won't be going back.

Where do I start!? Well, I was nervous-trepidatious-just not sure if we were doing the right thing…read moreby sending our son to Camp YATC. I must say, we were blown away- and so was our son! He's already a working actor, so sometimes it's tough to find a space that caters to someone like him- he has some experience-but of course-he's a kid! And has SO much to learn and so much growing to do. When they say that you'll feel at home- they are absolutely correct! Our son was nervous and within 5 minutes of arriving, he was waving us off~ from tears of anxiety to smiles and an eagerness to join and play and learn and experience all that camp YATC has to offer! From top notch coaches, teachers, performers, counselors, and the sweetest-most accepting & creative kids! All set in the breathtaking Santa Cruz mountains. It's a dreamy place where dreams grow and kids can be themselves, accepted, encouraged, and nurtured. Thank you Shawn & Valerie & everyone at Campy YATC for creating a welcoming space for these sweet performers to hone their craft, while making new friends in a gorgeous setting. PS-our kid is a mega boy-like plays football & has has a ton of bros- but-he's an artist and loves to meet fellow artists from all walks of life - this place delivered! Oh- yeah- the cabins- well- they're cabins... it's not the Ritz-but-it's safe-comfortable- well ventilated!! And really-so fun-our son tells it like it is and is super picky- he loved his time and can't wait to return. As a mom, I am grateful. Highly recommend for your young performer-actor, singer, dancer, writer, dreamer. Ps... the pool is clean and perfect- the cabins are older, but not moldy- I'm not sure where the bad reviewer below stayed, but it does not sound like this camp. The cost is not "cheap" but I feel that the value is there- the kids are learning & are safe-engaged-encouraged-and really well taken care of.

My 10 year old musical theater loving daughter said this camp was the best 10 days of her life!…read moreWe've done NYC broadway day camps with masterclasses before, but this year we were looking for more of a camp experience with bunks and cabins, as well as singing, dancing and fun. YATC delivered all of that and then some. She especially adored the themed dinners, karaoke occasions, capture the flag, meeting new friends and MT celeb masterclasses and encounters. Shawn and his team of counselors were responsive and encouraging. My daughter is still keeping in touch with her bunk mates and is already looking forward to next year.

My kids went to SCLC many summers and Malika and her team have been absolutely amazing. They are so…read morecaring, and attentive to the kids...they were my daughter's favorite camp and she couldn't wait to see them again each year. I can highly recommend Santa Cruz Learning Center!!

Locals, teaching locals! Thank you for always going above and beyond for the our children.read more

We've been attending LifeSpring Prechool for a year and a half. The staff has been warm, kind,…read morecompassionate, and accommodating to our daughter. They provide care that is consistent and reliable, and have fun activities like having fire fighter visit the school, holiday events, pizza throwing visitors, picnic days, and provide the kids with fun activities throughout the week. Our daughter discovered her love of painting at LS! It's hard to pick a daycare that you trust to nurture and care for your child, but LS is a great place with teachers that are truly called to the profession. Teachers Jennifer, Michelle, Anna, Cat, Rosa, Jimena, Laura, and Kristie have been outstanding. Thank you all for being a safe place for us!

I honestly liked this Daycare for my daughter until they discriminated her and myself her because…read moreof her special need and the director was willing to work with me and out of nowhere she switched up and kicked her out. And as well, it needs more improvement with the teachers. Some of the teachers just don't know what they're doing meaning they're always on the phone and not paying attention to the kids. And as well one time I went to go drop off stuff for my daughter, and one of the teachers from the other class was yelling at the kids, and I saw her as well, grabbing their arm super hard poor little babies also my daughter would be scared of that certain teacher .. hmm makes me think what did she do to my poor little baby

Academics and teachers are top notch. Administration is good, can't imagine a school would be run…read moreany better. However, your experience here is very dependent on your situation going into the school. There is a lot of affluence here as you can imagine, and you'll be exposed to that as parents, and your kid will as well. For most of the parents and kids at the school, its a world they are comfortable with. For those not in that circle, you will quickly realize that it's not your circle...and your kid will too. Towards the end of our time here, our daughter was old enough to understand these things, and that was very disappointing to us. It's a private school with all that it entails; that needs to be understood before deciding on sending your child here. While a good school, it's not for everyone.

Dear readers, as an individual who attended this school in the past, I must honestly express that I…read morefind it to be an unsatisfactory investment for your child's education. My time at SCM was quite extensive, but I eventually transferred to another institution due to the persistent issue of bullying, which remained prevalent from 1st to 6th grade without any effective intervention from the school administration. During my time in 6th grade, I endured both physical and mental bullying to such an extent that it necessitated my admission to a Mental Health Hospital for various reasons. Shockingly, the three girls responsible for this reprehensible behavior faced no consequences, resulting in me missing out on my graduation day and celebration due to their actions. This unfortunate reality extended to my friend as well, as he was also targeted and compelled to switch schools. Moreover, it is important to note that I am autistic and suffer from a chronic illness that causes severe pain when walking or running. Regrettably, the school disregarded my condition and failed to provide any support or accommodation during times of autistic meltdowns. I found their indifference towards my physical and emotional struggles disheartening and disconcerting. When I requested alternative activities during physical education classes to alleviate my chronic pain, the school administration threatened to involve my parents, rather than understanding and addressing my health concerns with compassion and empathy. In terms of education, I observed a significant emphasis on the subjects in which students demonstrated proficiency, while minimal effort was made to help students struggling in other areas. This unbalanced approach hindered overall academic growth and development. In conclusion, my personal experience at this school was largely negative, and I believe there are superior educational establishments available. However, it is essential to recognize that individual experiences may vary, and some individuals might find benefit in this environment. Regardless, I urge prospective parents and students to exercise caution and carefully consider their options before making a decision.