This preschool is truly a magical place! It's a warm, peaceful, and loving environment where…read morechildren are not only cared for, but deeply seen, heard, and nurtured. The educators are incredibly kind-hearted and compassionate. They lead by example, and kindness is genuinely the cornerstone of everything they do. The director, Debra, is a force of nature in the best way. You can tell she has dedicated her life to early childhood education. She's shaping the next generation to be good humans -- empathetic, curious, confident, and capable. Her leadership sets the tone for the entire school. She is leaving the Moraga campus to head up the new Springhill campus and we are in turn getting Kavisha (from the Oakland campus). It's bittersweet saying goodbye, but we're excited to have Kavisha who already seems incredible, and we feel lucky for the new families who get to be part of GLMS. The Montessori-based curriculum here is the real deal, with the added gift of Spanish immersion. My children sing songs in Spanish (and correct my pronunciation at home of course :)). They learn real-world life skills, gain independence, and engage with thoughtful, rotating themes (some months it's the continents, the next it's the parts of an apple or the lifecycle of a butterfly). The curiosity this school inspires is beautiful. The school is also incredibly clean. Cleanliness is a huge priority for us. My kids both have sensitive skin and you can tell how well cared the environment is -- carpets are changed out regularly (when they sometimes still look new), toys are refreshed, sand is rotated out, and everything always feels fresh and well cared for. There are also many enrichment courses offered throughout the year: yoga, music, dance/movement, soccer -- all brought in through thoughtful partnerships with local programs. The energy of the school is calm, joyful, and intentional. It's the kind of place that where you feel instantly at ease when you walk through the doors as there is usually a gentle hum of children playing, laughing, or working. We are so incredibly grateful to be part of this community. There is truly no better school in the area!

10/10 love GLMS Moraga! My son attended for two years and my daughter started in June. Love the…read morecommunity created by GLMS. The director Debra and all the teachers are wonderful.

This review has been a long time coming...we've been so grateful for The Nurtury and I've been…read moremeaning to put into words just how much this school has meant to our family. It is truly a top-caliber preschool in every way. Every single teacher is exceptionally caring, attentive, and deeply present with the children. You can tell they genuinely love what they do, and it shows in how happy and supported the kids are every day. The teacher-to-child ratio is excellent, which means every child gets the individual attention they need to thrive. Since starting at The Nurtury, our two-year-old has blossomed--he's become so much more social and confident in group settings, his language has taken off, and he even started saying "please" and "thank you" (a very happy surprise for us!). It's a truly special place that nurtures not only the child's development, but also their sense of safety, joy, and belonging. We feel incredibly lucky to be part of this community.

Our son has a fantastic time at Nurtury. The leadership and loving teachers really care for the…read morestudents and it is a solid, well-run Christian pre-school program. We entered when our son was 2 and the teachers were very patient in helping with the pre-school transition and provided a wonderful and safe environment. They have many activities and the children spend their days doing art, music, building social and emotional skills, and gather together for full-group activities such as a visit by the fire department (big hit!). We are thrilled to observe our son grow to be confident and enjoy school, and without qualms we hope to send our second kid there.

Started our son at one year old, and have been at both the Moraga and Rheem Campuses for 15 months…read more We really enjoy the team and the care our son receives. The teachers are all amazing, super friendly, and our son enjoys talking all about them when he gets home - Ms. Nancy, Ms. Dani, Ms. Liz (x2), Ms. Gabby, Ms. Becky, Ms. Lulay, they are all amazing, sorry to those i missed! Antonio is always helpful and responsive. The school uses the brightwheel app which is great for communicating with both staff and admin and getting regular updates and photos during the school day. We can really see the daily learning when our son comes home, and it's such a pleasure to know he's getting socialized and receiving great care durning the day. They let kids be kids! During most holidays you can signup for holiday care to avoid taking more days off. The cost has always seemed very reasonable especially for Lamorinda. The only comment I would mention, is the school runs like a well oiled machine, thus when you are new it's overwhelming to learn how the system works for drop off, pickup, and bringing food and clothes, etc. This was stressful when leaving your first little one for the first time, but this subsides after the first week or two after you learn the system. Advice, don't hesitate to ask the staff either in person or via brightwheel, they will always help. Packing lunches the first few months was stressful! Would recommend Lamorinda Montessori to any family.

Our family has a had a great experience at Lamorinda Montessori (Rheem Campus)! We started there…read morein June 2023 and at the time our daughter was 2.5 and son was 10 months. They have checked the boxes for us in terms of providing a reliable, loving, and kind care solution for our kids. The teachers seem very attentive to the kids and we are always met with smiles at pick up and drop off. The school continues to try and implement new programming to engage both kids and parents, like spirit week and off-site excursions but there is probably even more opportunity to do more of that. The school also offers "parents night out" care giving about once a month which provides for an easy solution to leave the kids for a few afternoon hours on a Saturday. Communication could be better just in terms of updates / photos throughout the day, but our kids are happy every day when they come home so honestly that's all we could ask for. The administrative and teaching team makes a real effort and genuinely cares for the families and children. Thank you to Antonio and the team!

Our son has been with Creative since he was just 6 months old, and we couldn't be happier with our…read moreexperience. Silvia and the entire staff treat him like family, which gives us so much peace of mind while we're away. Their love and dedication truly shine through. Since joining Creative, our son has flourished in so many ways--physically, emotionally, and in his speech development. Now, at 20 months, he amazes us daily with new words and songs he's learned, as well as important life skills like picking up his toys and throwing things in the trash. The learning environment they provide is incredible! Beyond his development, we've also noticed how social and personable he has become, which we largely credit to the nurturing and interactive atmosphere at Creative. We are so grateful for Silvia and the entire team for fostering such a loving and enriching space for our son. Thank you, Silvia!

My son started at Creative Montessori at age 3.5 years old. Due to Covid he had been home the whole…read moretime and spoke no English prior to attending school. Ms Silvia and other teachers have been so patient and helpful. My son has grown so much in every aspect and loves going to school every day. Highly recommend.

Growing tree has been an amazing experience for our daughter who started when she was 18 months old…read morein their seedlings program. She has made strong friendships with her classmates, and a beautiful bond with her teachers. We are so grateful to the teachers and staff who have kept us apprised on our daughter's growth and development, including learning to share, focus, help others, potty training, and more. It's still play based but each week/month has a new theme to learn- like seasons, super heroes, holidays, colors, numbers, the alphabet, classic children's books etc. they send photos and updates throughout the day so you know what your child was up to- this was helpful for me as a parent transitioning her from being at home to now a school setting. Couldn't recommend growing tree enough! It was acquired by Learn and Play now, but besides billing we haven't noticed much change in how things are run- which is great because we love it the way it is!

I would not recommend this business. The classrooms are extremely dirty, dust, spiderwebs…read moreeverywhere. The changing table is extremely dirty. Teachers are left out of ratio at times and is extremely unorganized.

Attendance at Lamorinda Montessori started out as a stepping stone while we waited to get off the…read morewaitlist at another daycare/preschool in Lamorinda, but now Lamorinda Montessori has quickly become our son's favorite place and I can't imagine switching him to the other school. I call all the lovely teachers and staff at Lamorinda Montessori his "abuelitas"-- each and every staff member treat my son like their own child or grandchild. He is so loved here and it shows. Yes, Spanish is spoken often and it's one of the many perks about Lamorinda Montessori. My son says "agua" instead of "water" and sometimes babbles in Spanish-- something that will surely serve him well later in life if we continue to expose him to Spanish! The school itself runs great. As a full time working mom, I know I can depend on them each and every morning. No worries about an absent teacher or someone running late-- something that is commonplace at a smaller daycare. The hours are the best in Lamorinda and actual learning is happening all day long. The Brightwheel app provides updates all day long, which is super appreciative so I can get a look into his daily routine. When I drop off at 8am I usually get an update that he's starting a morning activity like painting or blocks. The learning translates into life at home and I can tell he is catching on to the Montessori teachings. We are so so lucky to have found this place when our small in-home daycare closed down. The only drag is having to make lunch every morning for our son. We were spoiled before when our prior daycare used to provide all meals. If Lamorinda Montessori starts making lunches they would get an A+++ from me, so for now, its only an A++.

Our kids love it here. They have been attending Lamorinda Montessori since they were infants. The…read morestaff here are very friendly and loving to the kids. We also love all the special events they hold for the kids and parents. Another plus is the Spanish teaching curriculum on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Our kids run in to school excited to see their teachers and friends every day. Definitely recommend Lamorinda Montessori, especially for working parents! This campus is much larger than the other one and also has a bigger outdoor area for play. Parking/drop off is a breeze.

This school is an absolutely gem. My child transferred here from a public school at the beginning…read moreof this year. After having two extremely difficult years in a public school system, where my child went from happy and thirsty to learn, to nearly hating school, we knew we needed a change. From the first conversation with Mel, to watching their open house video and hearing their viewpoint on learning, we instantly felt this could be the environment that our child needed. As a Licensed Marriage, Family and Child Therapist, I am consistently reminded the importance of a safe and nurturing learning environment for the overall well-being of a child. The Saklan School understand the importance of children feeling safe and connected in order to learn and grow. Today's parent-teacher conference confirmed everything that we had thought this school would be. My child is absolutely thriving. His teacher doesn't just tolerate his "all in" nature, she encourages and celebrates it, while pushing him to be his best self. The small class sizes allow for each kiddo to feel seen and be known, and project-based learning gets them excited. We absolutely adore this school. Yes, it is a big financial investment, but we are already seeing the return in his growth and joy, and it is also having a huge impact on our entire family's quality of life. We're so thankful for The Saklan School.

We gave the Walnut Creek public school system a try then decided to send our 1st grader to Saklan…read more It's been two months and we've seen a huge change in his attitude towards learning. You cannot beat the small class size and the personalized attention your child will get. We've noticed a renewed love of learning, more confidence and comfort in his skin. My husband and I believe that investing early in his education, creative expression and social emotional development will give him a leg up in life and a strong sense of self. We also love Saklan's project based, hands on approach to learning. Focusing on the whole child is difficult to do when there are 23-30 kids in a classroom. In fact, studies show that learning outcomes diminish when there are more than 18 students in a classroom. When our son comes home excited about something he learned/experienced or tells us how much he loves to read, this warms our hearts because his teachers are getting through to him. We also love that he's learning a foreign language early (Spanish); you many not get that in public school. The public school system is a one size fits all mold. Everything is about meeting benchmarks/assessments and keeping the test scores high without looking at the whole child. At Saklan you have the luxury of knowing that your child's education is flexible enough to both challenge and support them where it's needed. We are thrilled with our decision to invest in our son's education at Saklan.

My daughter attended Nanny's House for two years before starting kindergarten, and we couldn't have…read moreasked for a better experience. Marta is amazing, so loving, caring, and truly invested in the children. My daughter always looked forward to going, made great friends (both boys and girls), and not once said, "I don't want to go to school." I love that Nanny's House is play-based but also incorporates academics, reading, music, art, and plenty of outdoor time. Thanks to Marta's guidance my daughter was already reading before kindergarten began. I highly recommend visiting Nanny's House and meeting Marta. You'll see right away why it's such a special place.

Our daughter started at Nanny's house when she was 3 months old. When I was 4 months pregnant with…read moreher I started researching facilities and make sure they were highly rated by the county. You'd be surprised how many come up with one violation or another. Nanny's house was violation free. I interviewed with Nanny (Marta) at her old location. There was instant chemistry. She has this organic and warm feel about her exuding positive energy. She has such a love for children and animals. She has a small and super sweet dog and maintains chickens in a chicken coop feeding the children fresh and organic eggs in the morning. There was a wait list but we made it through as we planned in advance. When we got in, it was like getting into Harvard... our first choice school! When I was at the hospital after giving birth, she sent a sweet care package of flowers, a balloon and a teddy bear for our little girl. Such a nice touch! What school does that? Our daughter spent all years leading up to kindergarten there, even into the pandemic. She worked so hard to keep everyone safe and healthy. It was a crazy time, but always her mind was on how can she protect the children. She was open to feedback and worked to customize her program to meet families on preferences. She has a life sciences program that's outstanding. The kids not only learn all the fundamentals in the classroom, but the learn to garden, they learn about life cycles, they learn cooking (supervised of course). Most importantly they learn how to manage emotions and social interactions. We also had our son join Nanny's House when our daughter was 3 years old. He also joined at 3 months of age. The infant program has a maximum of 4 babies in it all 3 months to 1 year 11 months. With the location being her home, it doesn't have an institutional style feel. I live nearby and as he was a baby during pre-covid, I was allowed to come by to nurse in person when I needed to. The family get togethers were some of my favorite memories at Nanny's house and I still stay in touch with the other families to this day. Halloween and her Christmas holiday party were a blast, along with a formal graduation celebration. One thing I helped Nanny's house bring into the program is a mobile app called Kidz Note that updates the families on what is going on each day in the classroom or infant room. She provides photos each day and often videos. Her reports let's you know what's going on with eating or and if there are any boo boo reports. It also allows for parent-teacher communication. We treasure our memories at Nanny's House. Our daughter still talks about Nanny's House to this day and wants to visit soon. For anyone who is looking for a very personal full time daycare and preschool experience with long hours 7:30a - 6p with all meals covered, this one's for you!

We sent both our kids to Miss Vivian and it was the best decision we've made. She is incredibly…read moredetail oriented, caring, and super responsible. You can tell she truly loves children and is so dedicated to their growth and well being. We've referred many of our friends to her - all meals are provided and kids are always sent home with crafts and activities! She is a hidden gem - her daycare isn't searchable on Google Maps :)

Today, my son "graduated" from Little Apples Daycare. I don't think he realizes that he is not…read moregoing back to Vivian's tomorrow. I'm sure we will get lots of complaints and tears when he figures out that he is heading to a new preschool tomorrow. Little Apples Daycare is a wonderful place! It is very clean and safe. I felt very comfortable dropping my son there. My son was not an easy kid. When he first started with Vivian 15 months ago, he cried and cried and cried for about two months! Vivian nourished him with patience and love. I truly appreciated to find Vivian as my son's teacher. Vivian is so great with kids and you can tell kids love her. I wish I could give 100 stars to this daycare!