I'm upgrading my review from 4 to 5 stars. My first child was enrolled from 7 weeks to pre-kinder at this Stepping Stone campus. My second child has been enrolled from about the same age to now 3-years old. The level of care and attention my girls have received is absolutely outstanding. Jessica and Morgan (the principal and assistant principal) run a very organized curriculum with a focus on quality, loving care. Another daycare is closer and more convenient for me, but the teachers are so caring at this Brodie location that I won't dare make the change. Ms. Megan, Ms. Piper, Ms. Gaby, Ms. Eman, Ms. Lola, and Ms. Priscilla are absolute stand-outs! They hug my girls when they see them, make a personal connection, provide updates on how they're progressing, and I see the result in what they are learning! My girls have had many happy memories here. When my kindergartner joins me to pick up my toddler, she is excited to see her former teachers and gets hugs from them! They truly have touched my heart by how much they show they care. read more

Even though I only used Stepping Stone School for my grand kids as a drop in, I have been very pleased with them. My grand kids love it there and have not had any problems. Jessica has been a great help for me when I needed the help. Thank you Jessica and staff for helping a grandpa when he needed it. read more

My son loves Gail as do I she is attentive to the students and gives me great greetings and feedback daily. Love to know someone that appreciates their job working with children. Kuddos to Gail. Thank you. Brandie n Breylen Gutierrez. read more

So we're 8 months in at Stepping Stone Brodie and I feel compelled to add an update to my previous review. I'm still impressed and I'm still giving 5 stars. New Mommy Crazy has abated a bit (but not much, trust me) but I still call often to check on my son and I still get one of the administrators who happily go down to the classroom to peek in on my little man and tell me how he's doing or transfer my call so I can speak directly to his teachers. There have been some changes in the teaching staff which, I'll be honest, made me incredibly nervous, but whoever chooses the staff does a great job. The new teachers are just as awesome as the previous ones. Ms. Abena in the Beta's class seems to know each child's habits and little quirks and is happy to work with me on my son's special dietary needs (he has severe food allergies) and transitioning him off the bottle. Honestly, it's like having a personal caretaker especially for my son, that's how exceptional the care is there. They also do so many fun activities for the kids! There was an Easter egg hunt recently, and just today when I dropped my son off and there was a finger-painting party happening! They do lots of reading and physical activities, also. And if I wasn't sure about my son's experience at Stepping Stone, he reminds me every evening when I pick him up and have to practically force him into the car! He loves his school and so do I. I can't thank the staff there enough for caring for and loving my son. They really are a blessing to our family. read more

I wanted to take some time to recognize the wonderful staff at Stepping Stone Brodie; this review is long overdue! My oldest son started out in the Phoenix class (pre-K) with Ms. Megan. We transferred from another daycare, which we LOVED, and were pleasantly surprised to find that Ms. Megan held the kids to the same high standard as the teachers at our previous school. She helped him to adjust to being 'the new kid' by greeting him with a big smile each morning and helping him jump right in to whatever activity the kids were doing. He is now in the Pegasus class with Ms. Melissa. Ms. Melissa is also great with the kids, and likewise holds her students to a high standard. She juggles kids of varying ages (it's the school-aged group, after-school care), and manages to keep these older kids engaged and busy (which can be hard to do given the age-range!). I should add that both Ms. Megan and Ms. Melissa involve their classes in various activities, such as fun science experiments as well as exercises in character development as part of the S.T.E.A.M. program. My son has come home from Stepping Stone many times and shared with me some of the lessons he has learned, which always amazes me because this means he is actually paying attention to his teachers! My younger son is in the Sputnik class with Ms. Maria and Ms. Shanellee. These ladies are incredibly patient and very sweet. They always greet me and my son with a big smile and warm hello every morning, no matter how busy they are or how hectic it may be at that time (we're talking about infants here!). I am one of those moms who is constantly tweaking my son's feeding and napping routines, and they always listen and genuinely try to implement whatever request I make of them. They have lent an ear more than once when I've come in venting about the baby having a hard night, or any other developmental issue my son may be experiencing. I dropped my son off this morning, and he was smiling ear to ear and reaching for his teacher, happy to be in her arms. I am so pleased with the staff continuity here. There does not appear to be a lot of staff turnover, and all of the teachers I have encountered seem genuinely happy to be there. We have certainly witnessed high teacher turn-over at one higher-end daycare here in Austin. It had a lower teacher-student ratio, and we paid more for it, but at the end of the day, what good does that do if they don't stick around long enough to get to know your child? A satisfied staff starts from the top down, and Ms. Jessica, the Principal for the school, is top-notch. She and her assistant, Ms. Morgan, are highly responsive to emails/phone calls, and are very empathetic when discussing any particular situation your child may be dealing with. They know all of the kids by name, and we often find both ladies visiting the classes, holding babies and getting to know their students which is great to see! As I mentioned, this review is long overdue. I'm very pleased with the experience our family has had at Stepping Stone Brodie. read more

I wish I could give zero stars. Our oldest went there until she was 5. In the infant room and the first toddler room we had a great experience. It quickly went downhill form there and we only stayed as long as we did because of the friends our child had made. In the 5 years, we were there, we went through 8 principals (For the last few I told them not to introduce themselves until they make 6 months so I don't know their names) and 17 different teachers including a controversial dismissal of our daughter's preschool teacher in the middle of the school year which ended any true school prep our daughter was getting which later found out put her behind for kindergarten. In hindsight, we should have bit the bullet and pulled our daughter from her friends and into a place like nearby Courtyard which actually does real school prep. I placed multiple calls over our final 2 years to the district office and never, ever got a call back. Instead, I would sometimes get follow-up at the school from the same person that was causing the issue. I have talked to others with good experiences at north Stepping Stone Schools but the organization obviously does not care about the south branch that is so far form all of their other locations. While there were many issues I will list a few that hopefully a parent will take into consideration. The vaunted educational program they have is a joke. We got daily updates in the infant room, but did not see a report from then through the preschool room until we left. Not only were the reports inaccurate about what my daughter had learned (It listed things the teacher explicitly told me she did not believe in teaching) but also repeatedly referred to my daughter as "he" which makes you wonder who (if an actual child) was being reviewed if the teacher can't get gender correct. Every day at pick-up became a search party to figure out where my children were which makes you wonder what would happen in the case of an emergency like a fire. At least twice a week, I had to enlist the assistant principal and another teacher to go room to room to look for my children. To be fair, they were always with a teacher but no one ever seemed to no with whom or where. Reviews and awards on other sites are likely misleading. While were were there, there was always a give away or drawing for free tuition for those leaving good online reviews or voting for them in different polls. The final straw came literally a week before kindergarten for our oldest. We then had 2 younger children attending Stepping Stone so that they were at least all at the same place and the younger children rooms were much better. For 3 children, we were on pace to spend well over $20K for the year. We had gone through the process 9 months prior to change AISD schools so we could be at a kindergarten from which Stepping Stone picked up afterschool. Exactly one week before classes started, we got a note that Stepping Stone was discontinuing service to the school we had switched to, so I had to take a last minute vacation to find a new school. I called the district office several times and got a secretary that was very apologetic promising a call back from a Director that never came. It was very disrespectful to wait so long to inform us that we would have to figure out another solution. The school was shocked we pulled out our other children also which shows a lack of perspective and to do this to a family that had paid tens of thousands over the years and paying that much in the last year shows a disdain for their customers. read more

I LOVED the infant room. Toddler room- while the potential is there, the constant turnover and high ratio of kids to teachers caused us to move our daughter from the facility. It was not worth the amount of money being requested, and it was becoming a hazard for her. We would come in to drop off and there would be 15 kids+ (of course they were in the process of 'being moved to their own rooms' ...every day) under 2 years in the care of at best two teachers. There was always a new teacher in training, or someone on the way. She never had a consistent set of teachers. The kids were always stressed and just milling around doing their own thing, and we received 6 'incident reports' because of a child biting in the 4 months she was with this room. They did activities, mostly running in the gym with balls or playing outside. I had to remind them to change her, because she was not being changed regularly or hydrated....and my requests about what she should eat were ignored. The program they use to report food and diaper changes, was always different than what happened (I counted diapers left every day- several days she was only changed twice in 8 hours)....and in some cases was changed after the fact to be higher I personally brought it up to the teachers/office, and it was always being worked on...but never quite resolved. read more

I would not recommend this school to anyone. While I was visiting one day, my son's teacher forcefully pulled two toddlers by their arms back to the table and threw a sippy cup across the room. If she showed that kind of frustration while I was in the room, who knows how she acts when no one is in there. The teacher kept telling me that my son would not eat, but when I visited I realized that she was handing him a plate of food and not even helping him AT ALL and these were not finger foods. He wasn't even two. He was new to the class and the youngest one in there and she didn't take the time to make him feel comfortable. I withdrew him from this school immediately. read more

My son attendes Stepping Stone Brodie and i can disagree on some previous reviews. I have been very satisfied and even more recently. My son attends the Orions Class, and he loves he his teacher. He is learning so much and comes how extremely happy.I feel confortable leaving him at school everyday and know he will be in good hands.Recently Ms. Taylor the school principal, has been very helpful with all our needs. She is very professional and makes our family feel right at home. I am pro stepping Stone, its our second home. All of our family have come to this school and we couldnt have been happier. read more

I am writing a review in praise of some of the staff at Stepping Stone that have made me feel much more confident about leaving my little guy there all day. We have had our 28 month old at this school since October 2011 right after we moved here. While I had my concerns at times due to staff turnover I must say his current teacher Ms. Annette in his Analyst classroom is AMAZING. Every day when I come to pick him up she communicates with me about his day, providing me details and works with him on potty training. She notices details and as a parent sometimes the small things getting noticed are what provide the most confidence in care. She also does hands on activites with them and often times when I come to pick him up she will be sitting with them on the ground teaching them songs or working on a project with them. I feel my son is getting educated and not just babysat while he is with her. Also, I know when we come into the building in the morning we are greeting by Ms. Kimberly who has been a consistent, familiar and welcoming face for us to see every day. As a mom I feel more confident leaving knowing him knowing he is around some very familiar people who care about him and provide me with honest, regular communication about what is going on with him and what type of day he had. read more

After thinking I would have the whole summer to spend with my son, I was offered a new teaching position that started in mid-July. When our son was born we took a few months to enjoy the time with him. When we first went back to work, we used the Stepping Stone on Shoal Creek. The principal there was amazing and her staff made it much easier to literally let go of our only son on a daily basis. We wanted to got back to them for this unexpected month of school this summer, but were sad to hear that the principal from the Shoal Creek location had been moved and we were a little worried about where we were going to place our now 2 1/2 year old. Luckily the Shoal Creek principal got moved to this Brodie location close to my work. I had heard and felt the vibe of what had gone on before she arrived but knew that nothing but good things would happen for this location with her there. The principal was very open to my suggestions and took the best of care of our one and only. Bad things don't change over night, but great hard working people come in and make places better and better everyday. There's no doubt that this principal with her kind heart and amazing way of listening to people will make this place as great as the Shoal Creek location she left. read more

Our son is in the infant program at Stepping Stone Brodie. I can't talk enough about how much we (and he)love it there! He gets the biggest smile on his face every time we walk in, and everyone there always seems just as happy to see him. They do a lot of sensory projects with the babies; things that I would never think to do at home. All of the teachers there are so loving and willing to adapt to every baby's needs. My son is having a hard time eating his solids at the moment and everyone there is willing to help to get through the transition. The very few times that I have wanted them to change the way they were doing things with my son, the action was changed immediately and never happened again. I have recommended Stepping Stone to all of my friends. I too was worried about the high turnover rate that you hear about. In the time that we have been here, he has had the same teachers and principle. The smile on your child's face at the end of the day says it all. read more

My daughter came to this location when she was a toddler, now 7 years later my 10 mth old has been attending since he was 6wks old, I have nothing but good reviews for this school and how well they have taken care of him. Sure they are a little understaffed but what daycare isn't.. sometimes it doesn't seem appropriate for the Principle to have to fill in for the lack of teachers but at least they all have the necessary training and certifications that is needed to care for my son. They continue to maintain those credentials excessively so I know that he is in the best possible hands. I love how the teachers know the parents and their kids immediately when they walk in the door, even though my son has Mrs. Lola and Ms. Priscilla as teachers, which whom are both excellent caregivers, it's like every teacher there knows and greet my son like he's with them all day too. The one thing I would like to see is that they always have someone in the front lobby, sometimes I get there and no one is there, so anyone could just walk right in. All in all this is a great location, friendly staff, healthy meals, plenty of activities for building developmental skills, my son has learned a lot in the past few months and can't wait to see what's in store for him when he moves up to the next class. read more

We have had an amazing experience at this school. Both of our kids (9 months and 2 years) love going there. They love their teachers and their friends. We understand that issues are going to arise. The principal, Jessica has always addressed our issues with understanding, respect, and promptness. We've never had a problem getting a hold of someone there. Our children eat an all natural diet and we are adamant about that. Our son's teacher, Nicole makes sure that his diet is followed. She always communicates with us about our son's experience. If anything ever arose that we had a question about, Nicole is always available and easy to talk to. We will be sad when our son moves up to his new class because we love Nicole and he does too! Ms. Cassie and Ms. Kim are incredibly amazing with our daughter; since day one. They treat her like a princess! Although our daughter only spends a little bit of time with Ms. Lola in the morning if she is dropped off early, we love Ms. Lola's warmth! The cook at the school, Amanda has been there for a few months and we are so grateful to have her there. She is extremely attentive to the different dietary requirements for all of the kids. With our son's "different" diet, she always makes sure he has a food that doesn't have the added stuff that we don't give him. It makes our days at work easier knowing how great our children are taken care of and loved. read more

FROM ONE PARENT TO ANOTHER - DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD HERE! I wish I listened to my gut about this place. My son attended Stepping Stone from 3 months until 12 months, and only because it was our only option. We were on a waitlist for our 1st option for 9 months. I am not sure where to start. Stepping Stone simply does not care. The entire school is filthy. From the moment you walk in, there is an odd smell. The class rooms are dirty too. They are under staffed and DO NOT FOLLOW DIRECTIONS. The "teachers" do not take initiative. You have the option to leave notes for the "teachers" but those notes/ directions are not followed. In the 9 months our son was at Stepping Stone he was in 3 different classes - 2 infant classes ( i requested he be moved because Ms. Betty is not a nice lady) and 1 toddler class. During this time I provided 2 tubes of diaper cream/ointment. I had to basically fight with them to use the diaper cream/ointment on my son. My son has been at his new school for less than 2 months and we have provided 3 tubes of diaper cream/ ointment (that should tell you something). My son came home a number of times with a rash, and he would cry when I changed his diaper. Of course I would call and tell them to use it DURING EACH DIAPER CHANGE, but they would still fail. Not only is the staff unintelligent, YOUR CHILD IS JUST A NUMBER AND DOLLAR SIGN. My son was moved into a toddler class at 10 months. He did not start attempting to walk until 12 months. They said it was because of his developmental progress, but really it was so they could make room for more infants. This is ok, but 10 months still qualifies as an infant and he shouldn't have been moved so abruptly to a class with kids that could basically step on him. It was a very hard transition for him. The administrative staff consists of a "Principal" and "Assistant Principal". They are by far the smartest individuals that work at the facility, but that isn't saying much. There is no way I will ever send another one of my children to Stepping Stone. I have literally told everyone I know that has young children or expecting a child not to send their child to Stepping Stone. I've even considered standing in front of the school and holding up signs about how terrible of a place it is. We deserve a FULL REFUND for the amount of crap we put up with. From unpleasant Ms. Betty, to them THROWING OUT MY BREAST MILK, to his clothes and socks going missing, and to horrible diaper rashes (even when he had a rash you had to beg them to use the ointment) this place is a joke. While I understand no one will care for my child like I will, I expected A LOT better for the amount we were paying. We're now paying even more at a new and improved facility and we couldn't be happier. I'll say it again, DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD HERE. LISTEN TO YOUR GUT. read more

Look past the photos posted from the owner! There are a couple of good teachers - the staffing turnover is extremely high and one of the most consistent aspects of this school. The tuition is high and the ratios are always high as well - I would count the students and checked with the office when was over and was told someone would be coming for relief. The state or some inspector seems to be here frequently. Beautiful building but the semi annual fee adds to the extra cost. The play ground is mostly uncovered and the kids always look hot and sweaty despite having water available. The principal or the revolving door for principals is a concern and there is always assurance "this person has x years experience" and there are promises of success with the company. We wonder if the Brodie location is a necessary - that "we have to manage campus and keep this campus to have some presence in south Austin". The principal there now wears spike heels and often takes her shoes off bare foot in the baby room and doesn't seem to wear booties consistently there was also concern when we would drop off our child and relay information and it was not followed through or we would pick up and would not know the teacher and they would seem to be baby sitting and not teaching. I attended an open house to see what was being promised and was upset to know there was a disconnect between the main administration and the campus. The brochures are nice and the perks sound good but the basics are lacking, people seem over worked. We moved to another school and are much happier to have found a school that follows their mission and does deliver care in an educational environment. I encourage you to look past the campus and to simply keep looking. read more

I've never actually written a Yelp review before but I thought I would this time. I looked up Stepping Stone school at the Brodie location and saw that their rating was pretty low and that surprised me. My son is now 5 months old and has been at this Stepping Stone location for the last 2 months. I'm a fist time mom and was very worried and reluctant to go back to work and leave my son in the care of other people during the day. On his first day, I called twice to check on him and spoke directly with the teachers and they were so nice about it! The ladies in the Satellites infant room are so understanding and easy to talk to. Ms Lola and Ms Priscilla are especially wonderful care givers who are so patient even with the seemingly overwhelming amount of work they have to do on a daily basis. At this point, I would recommend this school to friends with new babies if they ask me. My son adjusted well, and enjoys all the activities they have him doing during the day. The pictures they send the parents during the day give me, as a parent, a sense of relief that he's safe and cared for during the day. read more