I'm reviewing this school only based on their football field not the school. My son plays for the…read moregilroy browns 12u football league. This field is very very nice. I wish the browns had a badass field like this . Also it's my first time here in half moon bay and the city in general is nice. I'll be back soon

I've been in the district my while life and I really love the kids I've grown up with. I have had a…read morecouple bad teachers but nothing you can't expect from a small public school. Overall good teachers and great staff.

All 3 of my kids go to the Cabrillo Unified School district. They care more about having the…read morestudents pass even though there is no work being done in the classroom. I know because my kid does nothing... literally nothing and he makes Fs all year but at the end of the year he passes to the next grade. Nobody is held accountable. This school district is the worst and is the reason why private schools exist. If you can afford anothe school opportunity for your kid(s), do it. This place sucks

I'm a former Woo Kid who went to Wilkinson School aka "Woo School" from 2005-2008, and Woo School…read moreisn't good, it's great!! I loved all the extra curricular stuff they have from egg drop, to the Intensive Studies Trip, Woo School is truly Amazing, and Mr. Edward "Woo" Wilkinson is amazing too!!

Our children go to Wilkinson and they are thriving. Best…read moreteachers, beautiful view on the ocean, and even though the school is cozy, there are so many outdoor experiences (hikes, beach walks) and they work and perform (all kids do) on 2 fabulous school performances a year: a winter concert and a musical.

Our 3yo son absolutely LOVES the Kaimana school and his teachers. The setting is truly idyllic…read moreeven in inclement weather (which is rare). When we first toured it was magical walking along the trails and stopping under the canopies of trees to read, draw, explore and the program is thoughtfully prepared with learning stations and developmental opportunities. Our son runs to school every day and esp on rainy days when he gets to jump in muddy puddles. So grateful to have such an amazing preschool for our little one.

I truly cannot say enough good things about Montara Kaimana School. My daughter absolutely loves…read moreit! The teachers, Pamela and Hannah, are thoughtful, kind and basically magical. They make all of us (kids and parents) feel seen and heard, and they really make the kids feel special. Communication is huge for me, and from the moment I reached out to Pamela, she has been quickly responsive, communicative, and always takes the time to answer questions. Nature school provides so many wonderful outside of the box learning opportunities (for the kids, but also for me!). They learn through play and observation and teamwork, and in the 5 months my daughter has attended, I've noticed her communication about feelings and body awareness has really improved, as well as her problem solving skills. I was certainly a little nervous to send my daughter out in the rain, but I have to say, the rainy days have truly been her favorite school days! The kids LOVE to play in the mud! My toddler likes to hang out and play too! It really is true what they say; if you are properly clothed the weather doesn't seem so bad. The pick up/drop off location is breathtakingly beautiful and I feel pretty grateful that I get to experience it alongside my kids. And the best part for me? The teachers send a weekly report, complete with pictures, about what they all did throughout the week. They include the songs they sang, the mindfulness activities, quotes from the kids, the books they read, etc. I look forward to it every week. I hope that I can encourage more families to try it out, because this school is a blessing.

We initially chose Odyssey because it promised a strong sense of community, solid education, and…read moresafe educational trips. Unfortunately, our experience was far from what was advertised. My son was bullied by a group of girls for half of his crucial final school year, and when he failed Algebra 2 (with a D grade), the principal--who also taught the class--blamed my son entirely. What was left out was that the principal had to frequently cover for other teachers, making his own teaching inconsistent, and the school even went without a science teacher for half a year. Worse yet, he failed to inform me when my son came forward about the bullying. The teachers at the 8th-grade level didn't step in to stop the bullying until I personally got involved, and that's unacceptable. While the trips were enjoyable, they were not as safe as we were led to believe. There were several issues that my son told me about only after the fact, and I wish I had known earlier. Overall, I can no longer recommend this school based on our experience.

Odyssey School in San Mateo has been a gem for our family. Over the years, both our sons went to…read moreschool and graduated from Odyssey (not at the same time). The impact on them? Huge. As products of public K-12 education followed by college, my wife and I always put academics as a priority. We were a bit wary of Odyssey's smaller size at the start. But, a close friend's endorsement and our interactions with the faculty convinced us to take the plunge. The outcome? Our boys got more than just book smarts; they received tailored education thanks to the smaller classrooms. Importantly, each of the boys didn't just pass through Odyssey; they flourished there. Both boys enrolled in their preferred local private high schools post-Odyssey. While we always emphasized academics, the expeditionary feats at the school--like scaling Mt. Whitney, exploring Japan, or sailing the Channel Islands-- helped make them who they are today. Big kudos to Odyssey for this experience.

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.

Intensely academic school that works hard to provide as many extracurricular offerings as possible…read moregiven its size. Thoughtful, organized, communicative and forward thinking in everything they do, from adjustments to curriculum to their handling of distance learning programs and the hybrid in-person schedule during COVID restrictions. Teachers, staff, administration are the best in education that one will ever encounter. My kids are challenged in the best way and we feel very fortunate they are students at here. You'll notice that the negative reviews here are from individuals who did not attend or have students that attended Crystal.

This is a good school but The campus was weird and the people were kind of mean, needs to work on…read morethe social skills, the school makes people/ me feel like we're dumb because of the standardized test you have to do to get it, I think everyone should get the chance to go to the school and everyone automatically gets into the school.

My son is a student at Futures Academy in San Mateo. We enrolled him right before SIP began. It has…read morebeen a great experience. His teachers and the school have been very responsive to his needs and he engages in his learning in a way that did not happen before. I highly recommend Futures Academy. We are glad we found it!

Futures was a tremendous help and stress reliever to our family. My son's health had affected his…read moreability to attend school regularly, and had forced him to withdraw from his high school mid-semester. We needed an alternative schooling method to help us bridge the semester missed with an accredited program for Precalc AB Honors to keep him up academically while we addressed his medical condition. After a very disappointing experience with another alternative school in Palo Alto (much closer to our house) that wasted 2 weeks of our time and effort, we turned to Futures. What a wonderfully different experience! The 1:1 teaching method was hugely effective in both catching him up and targeting where he did/didn't need more focus, and built up his confidence and morale. The staff and teachers that we interacted with were flexible and accommodating to my son's needs. He is now back in his "regular" school again, and ahead of many of his classmates in a hugely challenging math class. I can't thank the team (esp Nicole, Jayne, Greg, and Carolyn) enough!