I am so grateful for the way my son is treated here. Not to mention the level of respect the staff…read moreshows my husband and myself. My son is very happy in this school, and that makes it so much easier for our family. 2016 has been a rough year for our family, and multiple times the staff has gone above and beyond to help us in areas that were needed. Thank you staff of Winona Elementary, you are one less stressor in our lives.

The staff treated me will i am spindle needs and thos school made me feel welcome the teachers are…read moregreat

Our Experience at Patience Montessori: A Cautionary Account…read more Our time at Patience Montessori was unfortunately marked by significant concerns regarding the care of our child and the overall environment of the daycare. What should have been a nurturing, supportive partnership turned into a stressful and unhealthy experience for our entire family. Mismanagement and Poor Communication From the beginning, I had concerns about the center's management. When I approached the director to discuss issues such as classroom transitions, choking hazards, teacher turnover, and the handling of pumped breast milk, I was met with a dismissive and defensive attitude. Instead of engaging in a constructive dialogue, the director consistently deflected responsibility and placed blame on parents or staff. Communication at this daycare was a recurring problem. Any concerns raised were typically ignored or met with hostility. Over time, it became clear that the director only engaged with me to point out what she believed I was doing wrong as a parent--including breastfeeding choices, carrying my child, or even my child removing her shoes at school. This level of intrusion into parenting decisions felt entirely inappropriate and overreaching. High Staff Turnover and Questionable Hiring In just six months, my child had six different teachers in the toddler room. This high turnover created instability and was never proactively communicated to parents. After the sixth teacher, my child--previously happy to attend--began crying at drop-off and describing the new teacher as "mean" and "scary." I later learned that this teacher refused to offer milk based on a personal belief that another child might mistakenly drink it. Shockingly, she had cycled through twelve different daycare centers before arriving at this one. Concerning Treatment of Children and Staff More alarming were the reports I heard directly from staff members, who confided in me about the director's behavior. They expressed discomfort with being sworn at in front of children, being pressured to operate over legal child-to-adult ratios, and being given questionable directions, including how to minimize parent-teacher interactions during drop-off. On multiple occasions, the director interrupted private conversations I was having with my child's teachers under the pretense of needing to "talk privately" with them. This left me feeling that transparency with parents was being intentionally avoided. Emotional Wellbeing and Child Development One of my deepest concerns was the director's approach to emotional development. Patience's philosophy, as described to me, discouraged staff from comforting children in distress. Staff were reportedly told not to hold, soothe, or validate a crying child's emotions. "She needs to be on her own," they were instructed. This rigid interpretation of the Montessori philosophy felt, to me, like emotional neglect rather than encouragement of independence. Montessori education values independence, yes--but not at the cost of compassion and emotional support. Children deserve comfort and guidance as they learn to regulate their feelings. What I witnessed and heard about at Patience Montessori deeply contradicted those values. Final Thoughts What I hoped for was a nurturing and professional childcare environment--one that would support my child and work with me as a parent. Instead, I encountered a toxic culture, a lack of professionalism, and a director who was more interested in control than care. Ultimately, we had to find a new daycare where our child could feel safe, supported, and understood. I share our experience to help other families make informed decisions and to advocate for higher standards in early childhood care.

My daughter absolutely loves Patience Montessori! Ever since we've started we've been nothing but…read moresurprised at how much she's learned and progressed. They really focus on social and interpersonal skills as well as practical skills to help your child in everyday life. She's learned really great things regarding the alphabet and numbers and all of the things that will prepare her for kindergarten. The teachers seem happy to come to work and there hasn't been much turnover of staff since the chaos of COVID died down. One thing I do want to mention is that I know that Patience Montessori gets some variation in review. And our experience has been that a lot of this has to do with implicit racism. We have felt this racism as a product of taking our daughter to a black owned school. In our experience these reviews are not representative. Patience is a very direct person, but she has decades of experience under her belt and she works with parents to make sure that the parents and the school are working together to provide the students with the best chance of success. The state auditors seem to hold Patience to an arbitrarily stringent standard. For example, one time Patience had to reprint all of the sign in sheets because it said "sign" instead of "signature". This doesn't really seem reasonable note indicative of how well the school knows or complies with state standards, which seems to be more than some of my friends' kids' daycare. We love Patience Montessori and would definitely recommend it to others. If I had a second, there is no doubt in my mind that they would go here.

I love this school! I have sent both of my sons there and the lessons (life and curriculum related)…read morethey have learned there have been OUTSTANDING. Not only do I have to drag my 4-year old off the playground every afternoon, he is READING and doing multiplication! There is a reason this school has been in the community for the past 30 years, they are hard-working, committed professionals dedicated to the success of our childrean. Highly recommended.

My son is 4.5 and has been at Boulder Montessori School since he was 18 months old. He has thrived…read moreunder the care of the wonderful teachers at BMS and with the Montessori principles. Our younger son will start at BMS when he reaches 18 months and we are thrilled to have him benefit from all things BMS. Some aspects of BMS which contribute to our satisfaction: 1) tenure of teachers - several teachers & administrators have been with BMS since founding in the 1970s. many others have been with the school for 10-20 years. 2) sense of community - BMS embraces its families as their own. 3) empowering children - Montessori gives children the power to thrive in independence. From serving their own food and clearing their own dishes, to finding a sense of order in how kid's structure their "work", our son finds extreme happiness in managing his own little world.

Our little girl loves it her!! She has become open to meeting new friends and wanting to explore…read moreand learn so much!!

My husband and I had a tour scheduled for our daughter today. Waited 15 minutes before we decided…read moreto leave. No one ever greeted us. No was at the front office- talk about a security concern. Very unprofessional and showed a lack of organization. If I could give this place ZERO stars- I would. If you are a parent do not waste your time going to this place. Thank you for nothing.

I really loved this school with all the friends I got from it. Some teachers weren't so great but…read moreeventually they were amazingly nice and super supportive.

Review for Children's Alley @ the YWCA…read more I had an unexpected meeting to attend and I needed someone to take care of the kiddies for a few hours. I've been calling around with little luck. It was 5pm and I needed confirmation for child care for the very next day. Luckily, a remember having an email with info about YWCA and their childcare options. I quickly sorted through my inbox and found what I was looking for. I gave them a call right away! The front desk lady was super nice and told me that they do "emergency" childcare when you need someone on the fly. I gave her just enough info to book a spot for my two oldest kids and said that they have the rest of the needed forms on their website. I couldn't open the paperwork link online. They had a packet handy for me to fill out when I told them what happened. Filling out paperwork before you get there will save you some time if you've never been before. The whole signing up was a breeze. They also have reasonable pricing since they go by income. As for the teachers and facility itself, it seems like your typical daycare where they place your child in the proper age group. My 2 year old pretty much had a free play type setting and my 4 year old did some age appropriate activities in the mix of playing. They also provide breakfast, lunch, and snacks depending on if your child is there at those given times. There isn't a set curriculum since people drop off & pick up their kids sporadically throughout the day and week. I wish I had more time to analyze the whole scene but I was in a hurry. 4 stars for a fairly nice establishment, good customer service, and "emergency" care!

Our children love this place. Safe environment and strict entrance and pickup. Clean and…read moreinnovated teaching practices.

My 14-month-old daughter used to attend Goddard School Erie at Vista Ridge. She was often crying at…read morepick up and shaking her head 'no' and crying at drop off with the teacher. This was very uncharacteristic of her. One Monday, at pick up my daughter was the only child left and I found her in a corner by herself crying. I was unable to settle her or get her to stop crying until after we got home that night. The teacher told me that my daughter was isolated like that after the other children had been picked up to work on 'regulating her emotions' (at just over a year old?). On Wednesday that week, when I picked her up, she was hysterical (again, this is very unlike her at home or in previous daycare). There was another child still in the class and a second teacher present this time. When I went to lift her up, the teacher told me that my daughter's hair was wet because "she needed to be spritzed a couple of times to help her regulate her emotions when she would not stop crying." I then noticed that her hair was soaked. I looked at the teacher in shock and she pointed at the wall where several spray bottles were hanging up and she stated that "some kids actually like being sprayed." I left immediately to gather myself and calm my child. I then emailed the director and requested an immediate meeting. We requested that a letter be sent to families of other children that could have also been treated this way by their teacher. Since a letter has yet to come out, and may never, I feel responsible to share our story with others. This is especially important since children in these classrooms aren't yet able to communicate these things with us. Ultimately, we lost trust in the school. Felt like there is a big miss here in terms of teacher education and general oversight in the classrooms. We pulled our daughter out. She has since joined a new daycare and is thriving. I am hopeful that the state licensing agency can help the school to reach the standard of other Goddard schools that we have previously known and loved.