I love my daughter's toddler teacher! They are amazing!

I visited 7 different daycare / schools before deciding on which to enroll my son. Stepping Stone was one of the cleanest and most organized. I liked how there was not a lot of clutter and kids are encouraged to be independent. After making my list of pros and cons I was down to 2 schools. The reason why I decided on Stepping Stone was because of the kids. I sat in a toddler class then a preschool class and the kids were all so calm and well behaved. My son has been attending since Feb 2016. He started out in the nursery and is now in the toddler class. He has learned so much and surprises me sometimes when he comes home. It is a great school with a great staff! read more

I generally don't write reviews, but I feel as though it's necessary for parents to know what they are getting into when it comes to their children. When our kids first started at SSMS, it was a pretty awesome experience. The teachers and assistants were phenomenal and the kids loved going to school. Over the next two years, the school slowly started to change and the cracks in the foundation started to become more and more apparent. By the time we left (2 months before writing this review) the class sizes were much larger than they originally were, many of the qualified staff were leaving left and right - ultimately leaving the school extremely short staffed and fewer and fewer Montessori certified teachers were present. After school, two people would be left to care and look after 20-30+ kids. The Director of the school, Cathy, treated staff like garbage. It was incredibly sad to see. We also caught her discussing our child's progress and difficulties with other parents. We found out when 4 separate parents confronted us about it. Being a concerned or interested and caring parent, we would often times ask questions to teachers, assistants etc. I mean, they are our kids and we want to know how things are going, etc. The teachers and other staff were amazing at answering our questions and making us feel at ease. Some would even send us pictures from time to time to show how much fun the kids were having. When we would ask Cathy (school director) questions, she took it as borderline insulting and inappropriate half the time. On one occasion in particular, my wife asked Cathy how the renovation in one of the primary classes was going (it had some pretty serious rain Damage) along with a few other questions regarding the school and kids. At around 1030pm that same night, we received an email from Cathy saying she didn't appreciate my wife's "condescending tone" and that it made her uncomfortable answering questions in the main lobby. In the future we would need to make an appointment or go to her office to discuss things like that. Her exact words: "I would like to ask, for future times, to make an appointment or please let me know if we need to step into the office to talk. Especially if we are going to be talking about everything from muddy shoes to ceilings" "No one feels comfortable when receiving so many complaints at once in a condescending tone." In her defense, we didn't realize things like muddy shoes and ceilings were off limits without an appointment, otherwise we would have had our people call her people and found a time she could pencil us into her schedule. Totally our mistake. That one is on us. The red flag that should have had us running to the door was when we picked up our son one afternoon and found his eye to be red, swollen and draining green fluid. No one had called us but someone had written on my son's daily sheet that his eye was red and itchy. Cathy told the teacher, in front of us, to erase it from the daily sheet. It pains me to write such a negative review, because we love and adore so much of the staff there. But they are overworked, understaffed, and despite stepping up and doing everything and more to fill the gaps and care for our kids, they still get belittled and treated like 2nd rate citizens. I know this is becoming long winded, but lastly, I would like to discuss the owners. I believe they could be the most lovely and kind people on earth, but I have never met them, so I'm not quite sure. I believe their hearts and original mission is full of love and hope - But despite the constant complaints from staff and parents about the director, we are often told, "oh, it's nothing a little corrective action can't fix". Honestly, for a private school that costs $25k a year for two kids, we shouldn't have to deal with corrective actions with the DIRECTOR of all people. I will say that their inability to respond to concerns is a bit disheartening. With that said, anyone that has so much faith and continued support in a person despite it driving great staff and families away from the school is something to be commended. I just wish the kids weren't in the middle of it. Please do your research. There are a ton of great options out there. I truly hope SSMS will find its way again. With a few changes and some extra support for the staff, I think the school has full potential to be an excellent choice for parents and kids in the future. But for now, I would personally look elsewhere. read more

We love Stepping Stones Montessori in Cumming. Back in January, I considered enrolling my 4 month old PT but got cold feet. Fast forward 4 months - I got a great opportunity to go back to work full-time and had to find childcare for my son. I visited 10+ schools and came running back to Stepping Stones. The quality of care here is the best. This school is a gem of a place. Our son is in the infant Nido room - it is a wonderful, loving, and peaceful environment. The teachers and staff are excellent and invest themselves in our child as if our child was their own. We are actually moving next month, and I literally wish I could pick up the school and move it to Roswell with us. I am going to have a very hard time finding something comparable to Stepping Stones. If they ever open a school in Roswell East, we will be the first to enroll! Do yourself a favor and skip the brand name schools. Having visited close to 20 daycare centers and other Montessori schools now, I can attest that this place is the best - fantastic, loving teachers, a great environment/facility, and a wonderful value. (The only other place that I felt comfortable enrolling my son was Bright Horizons in Milton which is nearly $500 more a month.) read more

My son loves his school and his teacher! We love to see him learning and making new friends. It's a wonderful school environment. Entire staff is very friendly. I am not too impressed with the cleanliness of school. read more

I cannot even begin to express my appreciation for this school. My son can be challenging and was abused at the hands of another daycare. Ms. Cathy saw his challenges and she and her staff made sure that he had the support he needed to succeed. What he was lacking was the proper communication skills so they recommended a speech therapist which was life-changing for our son. He can now communicate his frustrations which changed his behavior for the better. The support we received after a traumatic experience at another daycare cannot be explained. Ms. Cathy guided us through some really challenging times, and I trust her wholeheartedly as the leader of this school. She is tough and firm, but has the biggest heart. She and her staff made sure to find the help needed for us that got us beyond our son's behavioral issues. This is the best school around with amazing leadership and wonderful teachers. The learning is personalized and a very logical way for young kids to develop learning skills. I LOVE this school and the people there. Truly a special place that looks out for what is best for the kids. read more

The entire staff and management are amazing! Amazing doesn't even begin to describe this school. The minute you walk in you will know exactly what I am talking about- everything from their philosophy to providing gourmet food to the sweet/kindness of the teachers. You know this school only wants what is best for your little ones. I am a full time working mom away from her children for long hours at a time and I can honestly say that SSMS is like an extended part of my family and I never feel as guilty for leaving them in their care. THANK YOU SSMS for all your love and support. You all have been such a vital part in the growth of both my 5 year old and 2 year old. read more

Stepping Stone is an excellent school. Both my children - 5 year old son and 3 year old daughter went to this school for a year and a half and we loved the school and teachers. They are very friendly, easy to communicate with and have a very open door policy. My kids loved it there. We moved to different area and so this was out of the way, adding nearly 40 mins to our daily commute, yet we continued putting our children here for ~9 months. It became a bit overwhelming and timings between my husband and I at work weren't allowing us the additional time, so we finally ended up changing this month. When we interviewed at other schools we realized this this was definitely a hidden gem. Thank you to all the sweet teachers and Ms. Cathy for providing our kids home away from home! read more

We absolutely love Stepping Stone! We moved to Cumming two years ago and I never thought I'd find a school I liked as much as our school in Atlanta. WRONG! At Stepping Stone, my kids have gotten quality education, excellent staff and a truly home-like environment. My son even referred to it as his 3rd home (along with our house and his grandparents' house)! Highly recommend! read more

Poorly managed. Absentee owners. Extremely high turnover - mostly due to the unprofessional director. Most staff are not montessori certified. Unfortunately the school which started with high potential turned to a mediocre daycare with state ratios and an incompetent director. I attempted to discuss my concerns with the absentee owners and received a response from her saying she was out of town and would respond shortly. That was two months ago and I've not heard anything since. We pull our children from the school and have moved them to another fully accredited montessori (stepping stone is not accredited for montessori) in Cumming. Do your research, there are much better options. read more

It took a long time for me to find a school for my son, and I fell in love with this school. The teachers there are so loving and caring. Ms Cathy, the director, is really sweet, and I would definitely recommend this school! read more

This last year, I suddenly was scrambling to find child care for my 2 year old grandson. The first time I walked into this facility, I was greeted warmly by the receptionist and director. On the initial tour of the school, I was truly impressed by the peacefulness and amazed at how the children were happily going about their work. They were so independent, even at the early age of two. This past year, I have been amazed by how much my grandson has learned. His teachers have been absolutely phenomal, they are caring and dedicated to their children and shave so much knowledge about educating young children. They expect great things from them and they truly get results. There is lots of work and plenty of play. I was always amazed when I would come at nap time and all of these 2 years olds would be sound asleep on their cots. I felt the teachers must have some magical dust they sprinkled over the room to get them all resting at the same time! But seriously, since we started at Stepping Stones, I've had the opportunity to visit other child care centers and none compare to this center. I highly recommend them! read more

As an assistant teacher at Stepping Stone Montessori I'm so excited about a new year starting tomorrow.Ms.Cathy,our director and the staff have been diligently working so hard to make it perfect for our young children to come to a great school.Your efforts are the foundation on which this nation's future rests.So,to all of the teachers,administrators(Welcome aboard Kathie).This year will be our BEST!! Ms.Carolyn :-) read more

My son is very happy here. I'm amazed at the things he has learned. The staff is great and the Montessori way is a great educational approach. Definitely recommend! read more