We couldn't be happier with Sugar Plum Preschool! From day one, our child has absolutely loved it. The environment strikes the perfect balance between work and play, it's clear the teachers understand how to make learning fun and engaging.The curriculum is thoughtfully designed, and the staff genuinely care about each child's development. read more

My son has been going to Sugar Plum Tree for 3 years and it has been the one constant since we moved to Park Ridge. We can rely on them to care, teach and provide him many learning experiences so he can become an independent little boy, ready for kindergarten. They helped him learn to talk more with wonderful songs, colors and shapes in Acorns, drink out of an open top cup, potty training & clean up after himself (lunch and toys) in Sprouts, learn all his letters, numbers, writing, follow direction, independence and more in Discovery and Koala classes. Each classroom has an appropriate teacher-student ratio with colorful, private rooms each with their own personality. And during the pandemic, they have kept each child and staff member safe with their rules to protect and keep the mask mandate since the kids are too young to vaccinate. Mrs. Waters and his pre-K teachers have supported our son in most his special ed needs by allowing his private therapists to come to the school. He gets SLP & OT sessions in per week while aligning with his teachers to work with his therapists which help him transition from therapy back to gym or class time. This has been such a big help to know he is getting many of his needs met. Thank you Mrs. Waters, Lynn, Brittany and all his teachers for your help, support, learning and life skills for our son throughout these years!!! read more

Only take 18months and older. Not good for families with younger children needing childcare.

My family has had a great experience at Sugar Plum Tree. My daughter went there for 3 years and my son is in his 4th and final year there. The absolute best part about Sugar Plum are the outstanding teachers/caregivers. I don't have first hand experience with the current caregivers in the Acorns class, but much experience with the teachers in the Sprouts, Discovery and Koala classes. Simply put, they are amazing! They all take such an interest in each child and they do an exceptional job of preparing them for Kindergarten, both behaviorally and academically. Another fantastic part about Sugar Plum, is the access to the full size gymnasium upstairs. It is huge and it is perfect for letting the kids get all of that energy out! The kids get experience with scooters, bikes, tricycles, etc. at a young age. Both of my kids started riding 2 wheel bikes without training wheels at age 4. The facility and the billing technology could use a little updating, but the outstanding teachers and the warm, welcoming environment make up for it. I can't imagine my kids going anywhere else. read more

I was a student at Sugar Plum Tree Preschool. Mrs. Waters, who the website explains created all of the curriculum for the preschool, was my teacher. I was her student during the 1977/1978 school year. I've always only had positive memories about my experience as a student. Mrs. Waters went out of her way to create positive home to school connections. One of the warmest memories that I have was the inclusion of Parents/Grandparents for celebrations or special events. Somehow Mrs. Waters connected with my grandfather (78 years old at the time) who dressed up as Santa Claus and visited our classroom! It was a huge surprise for us as students that Santa was coming to see us! Grandpa kept it a secret from me, but I recognized that Santa was wearing a distinct pair of grandpa's shoes! Connecting my home with my school helped plant the seeds that would lead to a lifetime of life-long-learning. I'm thankful that Mrs. Waters did that. Also, I remember Mrs. Waters guiding me with life skills. I remember Mrs. Waters teaching me, one on one, how to tie my shoes and how to walk up a small set of stairs while safely placing only one foot on each step. She probably held my hand the whole time. I have only positive memories in my experience with Sugar Plum Tree Preschool. read more

Our son has been at Sugar Plum Tree since we moved to Park Ridge from the city 2 years ago. He started in Sprouts, so I can't speak to the Acorn (youngest) room but our experience with the teachers in Sprouts, Discovery, and Koalas has be excellent. As other reviews have mentioned the facilities and billing could use some updates, but the care the school provides more than makes up for it. In our experience the school has the right mix of education and play. My son comes home excited to share the things he learned that day. There is a full size gym which allows the kids to get their energy out all throughout the year. When the weather is nice, there is a small outdoor play space and they also go on walks. Another thing that stands out is the field trips they take the children on. In addition to things like the pumpkin patch and Exploratorium, they take them to see plays. Watching my son make connection to stories we read and the plays he's now seen is has been wonderful to see. I can't imagine sending my son anywhere else for preschool/daycare. I feel confident that he will be prepared for kindergarten next year. More than that, though, I know he spends each day with teachers and administrators that truly care about him. read more

I have read some reviews for mrs waters' school and despite some low rated reviews have touched upon areas which could be improved overall it was a minor convenience to us. We in-fact i introduced chase quick pay to school and after that many parents used it to sort out some problems. They are family owned and they will treat you like one at least that's what we felt. Ms Michelle handled my son well who doesn't listen to too many people so staff here is definitely experienced and adjusting. If you are looking for a school with a corporate like professional feel and charge you ridiculously for false pretense of early childhood education than this school is not for you. Despite my kid being a super charged one he came everyday back home telling us about his days and things he did in school. And they have a big gym which is great add on for toddlers who like to run around. read more

We've had our 2.5 year old foster son at Sugar Plum for almost three months. In this short amount of time our timid little guy has completely opened up to us and our family. I know this is due to the comfort and support he receives at Sugar Plum. He also has a disability where his left hand isn't fully formed. He now knows how to hold a fork properly, put on his coat, and hold a pencil the right way! I'm so glad we came across Sugar Plum. They've really made a difference in his life and in our family's life. Truly grateful to their staff and, of course, to Mrs. Waters. read more

I highly recommend this wonderful school, my child has truly thrived from the caring and experienced staff. He just graduated preschool and we will truly miss the friendships he build, the patient staff and warm environment! read more

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Both of my children attend Sugar Plum Tree. We recommend SPT to all of our friends and family. My kids love their teachers--they are patient, kind, fun and knowledgeable. There is a wonderful balance between play and learning for all age groups. An added bonus is the everyday access to the gym, which is great for running around and burning of energy! read more

Our experience at Sugar Plum Tree was wonderful. Our son attended as both an acorn and a sprout. We were extremely pleased with the level of care in both classrooms. Our son was very happy here, learned so many things through play and structure and made many friends. They learned so many fun songs that we will never forget. There is also a gym which provided additional room for play and activity. Mrs. Waters has been an educator and running this school for over 40 years. This gave me a lot of comfort and confidence when selecting the school. Most of the teachers have a lot of tenure with the school as well. Very very happy with our experience. We moved out of state otherwise we would have planned to stay until kindergarten. read more

We have just moved to Chicago from Florida and am looking for a preschool for my daughter. I called and left 2 messages at Sugar Plum and never received a call back from the Director. When I called a third time, the person that answered was willing to give me info, but because I needed something immediate, she just said "We don't have anything available immediately." She had no desire to give me information or tell me we could go on a waiting list, etc. This has been my experience so far with the people in Chicago. read more

Coming back to provide an update now that we have been in attendance here over a year. I must say that this business has been quite responsive to my prior review. I was personally e-mailed and have been approached on a number of occasions to discuss my current thoughts and anything they could do to make our experience more positive. I can genuinely say that I believe these instances of them reaching out to me were truly out of concern for our experience as well as honest interest into feedback about what is or isn't working. I did not get the impression that these instances were motivated solely to get me to better my previous review. Since my previous review my child has gone through their summer session and has gone on to transition to a new classroom. In addition we have had a new addition to our family. As in my last review, I remain extremely PLEASED with the staff and activities both recreational and educational, that my child is able to be involved with. In the new classroom they also assist with potty training. I am not familiar with whether or not other facilities do this, but we (and I think many other parents) are quite excited about this aspect of learning and truly appreciate the efforts and patience of the staff related to this issue. Communication in this new classroom is a little different than in the last, but still effective. We were also given a schedule for the entire year of what they will be focusing on each week, which was nice. The "negatives" in my last review that I have noticed changes in. - The snow policy has been written down and clearly communicated to us. Yeah! Not that it was a huge mystery before, but I did not like that we received inconsistent information from multiple sources. - We have been receiving a lot more communication through e-mail! This is a huge plus! Updates on the class are received this way from teachers within the classroom. We are also receiving general updates, forms and invoices (yippee!) from the administrative side. These are not yet 100% consistent, but I definitely see effort and improvement which I sincerely appreciate. Since my last review we have had NO issues as far as record-keeping on payments. I'm not sure if this is related to a change in procedure or if we just had a couple "off" times in our first 6 months there; either way, I still double check everything and save receipts, but don't stress about it nearly as much. Some new things to talk about - positives! Time away - our child has spent 2 periods of time away from school upwards of a month at a time. The school has been wonderful in working with us as far as payment during these absences and have made these periods seamless as far as taking him out and bringing him back. Changes at home - we recently had a new addition to our family which our child was less than thrilled about. As a result, he started to have a few more issues at school (and at home) in dealing with his emotions. The staff has been wonderful as far as being aware of outside factors that are affecting our little one in class and being firm yet understanding when he needs guidance and/or redirection. Renovations! - Updates have taken place to the main bathrooms and other areas of the space they use. All welcome improvements to the environment. Overall I think our experience has been quite good and continues to get better. I commend Ms. Waters on being proactive in reaching out to us initially upon reading my previous review as well as her continued contact. I also acknowledge that I am probably not the easiest person to approach about potentially sensitive topics, but all has been handled very professionally. I think there have definitely been marked improvements toward communicating electronically which, personally, I prefer. I think there are some things that are still being addressed but they are definitely approachable and want to listen and learn to be responsive to their customers and make improvements as needed/requested administratively. I want to end by re-iterating again, as I did in my very first review and above... I am 100% PLEASED with my child's experience here. If I wasn't he would not longer be attending. read more

Sugar Plum Tree School has been a blessing for our family. My son started when he was a little over 2 years old and now my daughter is attending school/daycare there as well. Every since my son started he has thrived! One day we were driving and he pointed at the stop sign and yelled, "Octogan!" - I could hardly believe my ears- he was barely 3 years old! The teachers and staff are very caring. I believe all are certified teachers or studying to be teacher - either way, they are patient and kind and love what they do. They are always taking the time to tell us about my son's day and how he is doing. The kids are active every day - either in the gym, out back in the fenced in private yard, or going on walks. In the summer, the kids can go to the local pool and park with the teachers and have a blast. My son is always excited to go to Sugar Plum - he is going to miss it so much when he goes to kindergarten in fall. My daughter just started this week and I would not have put her in this school if I did not think this little school was the best. It is. We had other childcare (grandma) for my little one that was great (and free) but we chose to have her start at Sugar Plum now that she's 20 months. She will thrive just as my son has in the Sugar Plum Tree School environment - I have no doubt. The school also has family nights for parents, siblings, grandparents etc to meet together and make friends. They have Mom's Day in spring which is a special time for mom and child to spend some time with eachother and its so sweet! There's also Dad's day in fall. Every year the school puts on a circus with the older kids- it is adorable and the children have a blast!. We have made a lot of friends with the other parents - Sugar Plum provides a nice community for its families. Not only have my children gone to sugar plum but so has my sister in law and cousin in law who grew up in Park Ridge. Mrs.Waters remembers them as well! This school has been a part of the community for upwards of 35+years. They must be doing something right! I also love the location of the school. It is on a side street. No one can just walk in the school without having the code or ringing the bell so I feel extremely safe with my children there. The feeling that your children are in a safe and loving place is priceless. And speaking of price, the school is very reasonable for the amount of time and care they spend with the children, I shopped around - as most people do because, lets face it, childcare costs are equivilant to paying another mortgage when they are young. Sugar Plum Tree is worth every penny! and the value is there. I was lucky to have gotten my children in because they had openings at the time but they fill up fast. There are four classrooms and they want each child to recieve the care they deserve. All the parents we are friends with from Sugar Plum agree with us that this little school/daycare has been perfect for their family and could not be happier! read more

Last year, I interviewed @ Sugar Plum Tree to be a Teacher's Aide (TA). The director invited me to sit in/experience the classrooms. Although, I was only there for a few hours, from what I saw, it was a quality program. The director, Maryellen Waters, was a very nice person who was easy to talk to. During my time there, I asked questions & the staff were more than happy to answer them. Overall, the teachers and TAs engaged the children via. fun activities. Thank you, Ms. Waters, for allowing me to experience your quality program at Sugar Plum Tree Day Care Center. read more

My son adjusted so well and so quickly to Sugar Plum! In just a month, he's already learned many new songs, colors, counting and more (he's not even 2 yet). He's made friends and is learning to love art projects. The music class and gymnastics classes are great too. The teachers in the acorn room are warm and caring and he's excited to go to preschool every day. read more

This is a great preschool in an area with few options. The facility could be better, but the loving and caring staff more than makes up for it. The school has use of a full sized gym area which is wonderful for the kids to run around in and ride tricycles, especially in winter. read more

Sugar Plum Tree was the absolute BEST decision we could have made for jumpstarting our two childrens' education! We initially heard about Sugar Plum Tree (SPT) from our nephew, who was a previous student. Following his graduation, not only does my nephew still speak of his love for his teachers and the school, SPT regularly inquires about his well being. Sugar Plum Tree is located on a quiet, well-maintained corner, sharing facilities with a long-time residential church. The director, Maryellen Waters, invited us to visit the school, upon our initial inquiry. She discussed curriculum, educator requirements, lunch program, activities and explained billing and fees. For an older building, were impressed by the new bathrooms, updated/maintained features throughout, classroom furnishings, and overall cleanliness of the entire facility. Mrs. Waters showed us the classrooms, introducing us to the teachers & interacting with the students, who she knew all by name. As we settled in and adjusted our childrens' school schedule to fit our personal family schedule, Mrs. Waters was extremely helpful, discussing with me our payment fees and options. We were kept up to date with bi-weekly receipts for payments and a Quickbooks Statement, available upon request and again for filing taxes. My children are 3 years old, in the Sprouts Class, and 4 years old, in the Discovery Class. The teachers are welcoming to parents and keep an open dialogue of their cares & concerns. They are patient and genuinely care about the children. The kids return home siting the months of the year, showing off art projects, identifying letters and numbers, and telling stories of fun days with their teachers and friends! They've loved field trips to the pumpkin patch, to the fire station & to a live play. They also enjoy riding bikes in the gym, playing in the privately gated outdoor yard area, and going on class walks around the neighborhood and to the park. They sing songs they've learned from the weekly music teacher and on their classroom iPad. The Sprouts classroom has a private bathroom, which has really helped advance my daughter's potty training, minimizing accidents. The teachers have also worked with my daughter's speech delay and recommended her for an extracurricular speech class at a neighboring school, which we were so pleased to have been excepted into, and look forward to starting! My children and I LOVE Sugar Plum Tree. We look forward to our days there and to the after school family-welcome events, that allow the parents to also build friendships with the staff, other students and their families. This past year has truly been ideal. Thank you Sugar Plum Tree for your services and your care for our family. We look forward to future years. read more

I want to start by prefacing that I am a full time working mother of 2 young kids and I know how difficult it is to find a good childcare provider. I am a fan of Yelp and rely on others' personal experiences for guidance. So, with much consideration and after 6 years of being at Sugar Plum Tree (SPT), I have decided to write this review. As a bit of background, my first son had attended this preschool for all 4 years and my second (with our reluctance) for 3 years but we recently decided to enroll him into another preschool. One reason we stayed at SPT for 6 years was out of convenience, we live a block away and did not want to uproot our children after all these years, they made friends and became comfortable with the teachers, unfortunately, the convenience only delayed the process of finding a better preschool. We feel the practices and overall environment at SPT are outdated and fall short of our expectations. Our biggest issue was with billing; receipts and statements are provided in a way that could only be explained as outdated and hard to track. Over the years we have had numerous billing issues and feel that the process is very confusing. We kept all receipts, invoices and statements only to find it hard to follow. Another issue to be aware of is in regards to technology. As an integral part of our daily lives, technology is here to stay and is a big influence on how our children learn, like it or not, we feel the sooner we could incorporate it in to their learning career the better. We certainly could not ignore the fact that SPT is far from reaching a technological environment and over the past years, SPT has lacked the time and money to invest back into its facility, not only in technological advancement but in other areas such as the need for a proper outdoor environment, updated toys, play materials and newer equipment in the gym area. We've participated in many fundraisers, but we weren't provided information regarding the distribution of the funds. Lastly, we've reluctantly paid additional fees for activities such as music and gymnastics. When asked if these were mandatory activities we were told that our child would be the only one not participating and would feel left out. Even knowing that was not the case we opted in. The classes take place during the normal SPT day and considering the premium tuition we were paying, we parents felt these activities should be provided with the original curriculum. At one point, all the parents complained and with much hesitation on the part of SPT, the activities were made part of the curriculum. Ironically, a few short months later, our tuition went up. I guess we can only speculate why........ We had hoped that during the course of 6 years we would see some progress and improvements but unfortunately, that has not been the case. In my opinion, I believe SPT is past it's prime and has the lost the motivation and desire to stay relevant. read more

I have been a parent at sugar plum for about three years now. My child was at The Montessori school on Touhy in Park Ridge prior and was extremely unhappy there. Since moving to Sugar Plum her outlook on life has changed. She is happy, excited to learn and knows she is in a safe and loving environment. The owner and teachers are very professional and responsive. I couldn't be happier with this school! read more

I have been sending my child here for nearly 2 years, and overall and quite happy with the experience. In a sentence, I would say it is good, old-fashioned daycare. First off, the facility is not the newest, hippest or most modern. It's in the basement of a church. It could....use a face lift, if you know what I mean. Things are a bit old, but clean. I can also agree that the administration could also use a bit of updating (they could email a lot of things rather than print them, and have a much more modern vibe to things, and they could get introduced to Quicken or Quick books). However, what I enjoy is the care they take of the kids. They genuinely care about the kids, provide good care, and every day I drop my son off and I don't think twice about the type of care he is receiving. As to the last review, I am not sure what they are expecting; there is always one person at the top who is in charge, who makes the decision or final statements related to business. As far as the field trip issue, I have sent my child on every field trip (or I volunteered and went with him and his class) and it has been my understanding that you are able to elect to leave your child behind, but clearly that could have changed. I'm not sure. As far as the payments and receipts - yes, they could use a more modern system. However, you should keep all your receipts anyways for tax purposes, and I myself have not had any real issues (the only 1-2 issues I have had, I went on Chase and printed off the proof that the check was cashed. A few other times, I had actually made the mistake). In terms of the snow/cold days; well, frankly I think no one has known what to do with them this year. It's been just an epic winter. This issue is not just this daycare, it is everywhere. And they don't do the cold and snow days off "willy-nilly". The preschool syncs up with the Park Ridge school district. Many of the kids (but of course not all) who go to this preschool live in the area and are in District 64. So Sugar Plum syncs with whatever the District is doing in terms of snow/cold days off. Bottom line, is if Park Ridge schools are off due to weather, so is Sugar Plum. I also think the payment of 6 months in advance is preposterous. I have never heard of that. I can't imagine anywhere (or certainly anywhere with 60+ kids) would let you pay that far in advance. Plus, at the end of the day they would lose money (why would they give you a discount?). I do agree the communication could be...improved upon a bit. But for me, is relatively minor, in comparison to the great things they do with the kids. They have an indoor gym - which is amazing in Chicago winters - and they have a little outdoor area for younger kids. Older kids walk (safely) to the park that is 1.5 blocks away, or they take walks around the school. In the summer the older kids also go to the same park and they have wading pools that they play in (there is no swimming there, the water is only up to kids ankles). The young kids play with the hose and water tables in the back area. They do have regular get-togethers with the parents, they do parents conferences, etc. They also post the kids food/menus, daily curriculum, activities and week themes (for example, spring or animals or zoo or garden). They have a wonder variety of things they do - they have a free music class once a week (a music teacher comes in and plays piano/guitar) and I signed up (and pay extra) for GymStars once a week for a gymnastics class in the gym. The teachers all have background in early childhood education, and experience with children. They retain staff pretty well (I would say better than in the big-box day cares for sure) and they have some really long-term staff of 5+ or even 10 or 15+ years. For me, the positives vastly outweigh any issues. It could use a bit of polishing up, but the quality of the care, their curriculum and activities are awesome. A really good value!! read more

Our son has been attending Sugar Plum Tree for about a year now and we couldn't be more satisfied. All the teachers are so friendly and caring that we truly feel our son is in good hands! read more

We have 2 children that have been attending for over 2 years now. The both enjoy getting to go to "school" and have made some great friends. The teachers are great and have been the same teachers since we started which is great for the kids. A structured schedule and the same teachers goes along way for a 3 year old. Would highly recommend this day care/preschool/summer camp to anyone looking. read more

My son has attended Sugar Plum for about a year now and he loves it. His teachers are very sweet and motivated to teach him new things every week. It is a very clean school with well structured activities for my child. He has made some great friends there and I am so happy we made the choice to send him there. read more

I have lived in the area my whole life and have always heard good things about Sugar Plum Tree Day Care and Pre-School. I have just had first-hand experience which matched the good reputation it has in our community. We care for children through Safe Families for Children. We had a four year old boy staying with us and needed him to attend preschool and day care afterwards for at least two days each week. Mary Ann and Lynn Waters graciously let us be very flexible with our attendance days and even were extremely generous with the rate they charged knowing his home life was very troubled and our care for him was voluntary. The staff that cared for him were always very friendly and took loving care of him. He loved going to school each day and some days I had a hard time convincing him it was time to go home. Their loving care, flexibility and generosity played a key role in our caring for this sweet four year old boy. I am extremely grateful to Mary Ann and Lynn Waters and the entire staff of the Sugar Plum Tree Day Care and Pre-School. read more

I have had both of my children enrolled at Sugar Plum Tree. My daughter was first. I signed her up there because it came highly recommended from a friend of mine. My friend was right, The teachers are amazing there and are always willing to go the extra mile with the children. I enrolled my Son at an earlier age (18 Months) because I knew how much he would learn from the teachers. My son loves going there. My son always brings home so many projects and He tells me about all of the activities he does every day. My son is just turning 3 and he knows the months of the year and the days of the week already! My son is so proud of himself. THANK YOU TO THE TEACHERS FOR CARING. They also have a full size gym in the building so when it gets too cold out side they can still go in the gym and ride bikes and play with many various toys and still get exercise. I am grateful that he had this experience so early in his life to learn so much!! There is definitely a big sense of family at this Day Care. I have been fortunate to meet and know all of the teachers on a personal level because they are very friendly and pleasant. I appreciate everything that Sugar Plum Tree has done for us and will always be grateful. read more