Our experience with Rock and Roll North Point infant room…read more TL;DR- A place for kids to have their basic needs met and for parents to get updates. Not a place for kids to learn and grow developmentally, or feel cared for by their teachers. Impossible to build trust with them. - Teachers don't have a genuine interest in the kids. They don't like kids. Felt transactional (will feed, will shake crib to help fall asleep, will change diaper, but not much more). - They let kids CIO (they will claim they don't, but they actively withhold soothing and attention until our kid is calmed. I get that they have other kids to tend to so it's not always possible to meet every kid's needs right away, but both teachers watched on as they let our kid cry continuously on the floor for 45 minutes. I took screenshots with timestamps to escalate to the executive team). - Not surprising to us, they had a DCF allegation (not from us) and closed down the classroom for 3 weeks. Same teachers returned to the classroom, nothing from the director what they'll do differently or any reassurance to rebuild trust. - If the teachers don't care about the kids, there needs to be more daily structured activities besides 15 mins of music, otherwise the teachers are on their phones, chatting with each other, skipping walks when they don't feel like going outside. - Both teachers had been there less than a year. Had more years of experience as a cashier, customer representative, or security guard than as early childhood educators (a career change must start somewhere, but see above comments on a lack of genuine interest, not a good combo). - Both admin and teachers lied to us (they'd tell us one thing, what we saw on camera was another. Had to take screenshots again to avoid they say vs. we say when we talked to them) - No windows at the kids' eye level in the classroom. Blinds are drawn even not during nap time (depressing atmosphere, especially given how much time they spend there). - Subjective, but I felt the teachers were kind of rough when picking up and putting a kid down, seems to think the kids are a nuisance. - Director has their kid hanging around at the daycare before and after the kid's school, which coincided with drop off and pick up at the daycare. The kid can be helpful, handing out toys to the infants (a liability in my opinion), but was disruptive when you're trying to have a conversation with the director and they repeatedly want attention from their parent. This review was based on 10 weeks of experience in the infant class. I understand there are short-term and temporary challenges with any daycare transition, but what we saw and what I noted here are long-term concerns that didn't going away even after our kid got well-adjusted. Many of these issues being fundamental to the approach of childcare (how do you teach someone to care and like kids?) On top of poor teacher quality, the admin failed to manage and train them.

I've had a good experience so far. My soon has been there for a little less than a year. Started in…read moretoddler B where they have a wonderful teacher (at the North point location) the. He transitioned into preschool. He had a bit of a hard time and the center director listened and offered solutions. Overall is a good center. They put a lot of thought into the curriculum and share it with the parents.

We sent our younger kiddo to Bigelow after moving to the neighborhood and have had a wonderful…read moreexperience. She's in the preschool classroom, and her teachers are incredibly creative and engaged. Bigelow is Reggio Emilia inspired, and focuses on child-led learning, so when the teachers noticed our kid and several others were interested in writing letters, they incorporated opportunities into everyday activities. Boom, our 4 year old is writing! The facilities are also lovely, and include a large shared space for gross motor play even when the weather is yucky. Most of all, we have really appreciated the community of other families, many of whom have become friends.

My 7yo son went to Bigelow from when he was 3yo to 5yo and now my daughter is in her 2nd year…read morethere. It is a cooperative so parents head the various committees and get to set the various policies but there is a director and teachers so nit parent run. The teachers are wonderful, creative, loving, I cant say enough good things really. They create many opportunities for children to explore and discover. Also, parents can volunteer to spend time in the classroom which is super fun. The classrooms are spacious and inviting with lots of windows and there is a giant playroom in the center of school for those days that outside play isn't an option. The school has a very large fenced yard that has trees, giant sand pit with water pump, track for biking/scooting/push alongs, and garden. It is truly a gem.

Our son began at Tree House almost 2 years ago in the swing of the pandemic. He was 8 months old…read moreand it was so hard to send him in the middle of all the COVID madness of August 2020.... The management and teachers at Tree House did everything possible to help make it easier. They have been so wonderful throughout our time with them. They clearly love and care deeply for our son, in each classroom he has been through in his time there. They have been so gentle and kind and happy even when we sometimes showed up with a screaming kid in tow (toddlers, what can you do??). He has learned so much in his time there! Today was our last day at Tree House since we are moving away. I am so heartbroken to have to pull him from THA. I highly recommend them!

Wonderful and caring staff, clean facilities and a great curriculum. My infant daughter is enrolled…read morehere and they as much as I would rather be at home with her myself, I am very grateful that she is in such capable hands. Mara and her team are fantastic! Update: We moved in January 2012 to the suburbs and we still miss Tree House. My daugter was very happy there and I knew the teachers in Infant 1 & 2 genuinely adored her. We have a perfectly safte and adequate daycare provider now (after a horrrendous experience at Kindercare in Westwood) but it's definitely not the same caliber as Tree House.

It has all the basic equipment I could need, staff is friendly, and it's never busy! The only con…read moreis it's pretty ancient but it looks like they've slowly been replacing equipment with newer stuff and they have chalk which I appreciate when it gets hot in there. The basic plan is $35 a month which is probably fitting for the area and you get access to other YMCAs so can't really complain.

After nearly five years away, went back today due to having a medical appointment just five minutes…read morefrom here. Very glad to see all the improvements that they've done: 1. Cardio room: replaced crappy old stationary bikes with two almost-new Keiser spin bikes---these are free of silly frills/gimmicks unlike the big hulking Life Fitness, Precor, or Cybex bikes but provide unmatched ergonomics and authentic bike-feel, which is why they are used in spin classes everywhere. Forgot how nice and strong the AC is...sigh, if only the weight room had the same! 2. Weight room: instead of a random hodgepodge of ancient dumbbells, they finally got a full matched set of Perform Better (also the best in the business) rubber coated dumbbells, two excellent Matrix multi-position adjustable benches, a full Valor Fitness squat cage with deadlift platform & arms, a Smith machine with deadlift arms, and a smattering of kettlebells including 25# and 40# pairs, topping out with 55# and 70# singles...80-100# would have been better, but a 70# max KB isn't bad. Some new weightroom accessories I've never seen anywhere else: a Titan multi-grip Olympic barbell, a fat barbell and fat lat-pulldown straight bar, a pair of 6" wooden blocks with handles, and a number of other unusual but useful training tools if you're willing to dig a little and use your improvisatory imagination. Of course they've kept some of the old stuff, like about 4-5 pairs of truly old-school York dumbbells and a gazillion of old rusty all metal weight plates (most gyms now use rubber coated plates with built in hand openings for easy carrying), but hey, better to have an over-abundance of old weights than not enough of the new weights (as sometimes happens in the newer gyms). 3. Elkay filtered water fountains in cardio room and by basketball court...this is a life-saver, literally! You don't want folks getting dehydrated just because they don't like the taste of a crappy old water fountain or tap water through 100 year old rusty pipes. 4. The small indoor track above the basketball court is about the same, but I noticed they've made the best of it by adding a Concept 2 rower in one corner (next to a Wing Chun dummy, which I have NEVER seen in a gym before, wow), a Stairmaster next to the 80lb hanging bag (vinyl Everlast, not bad) in the opposite corner, and a carefully stabilized "Power Tower" in the 3rd available corner. Now that they have kettlebells, the track is perfect for doing weighted carries (Suitcase C, Farmer's C, Cross-body C, etc) which is an incredibly useful full-body and core-intensive exercise most people overlook. All in all, I'd say that this Y while small and still burdened with the ravages of age (the locker rooms and showers are just as decrepit as ever), it does have about 90% of everything essential you really need. The Fitness Director, or whoever manages the workout rooms, has clearly put a lot of attention and care to make the best of their clearly shoestring budget...and does know what they're doing, and does it well. Their opening hours are relatively decent compared to the Cambridge Y or especially the Charlestown Y. Unlike those two places they offer free parking...big plus in this area! I do wish they would get rid of the silly "Health Center" extra membership tier that allows access to their mediocre saunas and just get two really good saunas built into a small increase in membership fees. Their membership fees remain a good 25% or so lower than that of other local Ys, but considering how old and small the place is, that makes perfect sense. If I lived 2-3 blocks away like I used to, I would still come here if I didn't have a car, or whenever I didn't feel like driving 15-30 minutes to better/bigger Ys nearby.

It's been years since I sent my son to The Learning Circle,…read morebut I'm still left with a terrible taste in my mouth pertaining to the administrative staff and owner. I watched the owner take advantage of both parents and employees during the COVID childcare crisis. Trusting toddlers to their own devices is the only thing I'd recommend less than trusting the owner with your hard earned money. If you need childcare and cannot get a spot anywhere else, The Learning Circle makes its case for a lackluster temporary alternative. They've purchased positive reviews on other review sites, which makes me cringe at the lack of responsibility they're willing to take for improved business practices.

My son has been with The Learning Circle--Somerville since the age of 7 months. He is now 3.2 years…read moreold and has started to show some unwanted behavior. To help guide my son to behave in better ways, the directors and I met about implementing a behavior plan. However, * The daily sheets they sent home each day critiqued the undesirable behavior and never recognized the improvements my son made over a short period of time * One week after creating a behavior plan, my son was having a difficult week and exhibited more of the unwanted behavior. I was never given the opportunity to schedule a time to meet with the directors about this matter in person, the meeting time had to be on their terms. As a single working mom, that was not an option. * The directors never followed through with the plan, instead they expelled my 3-year-old son from the preschool program by email (with less than 24 hrs notice at midnight). The least acceptable option to inform me of the expulsion should have been a phone call, not an email. The best and most professional way to inform me would have been an in person meeting.

I love this daycare! It is a home based day care and I feel like I'm dropping my 17 month old off…read moreto play with her friends rather than just a place for her while I'm at work. Karen is very professional and sweet and clearly loves what she does. I text her on my lunch and she always gets right back to me with how the day is going. I highly recommend her.

From the owner: Hi, I've been running my home daycare for just about 11 years now…read more Accepting children ages newborn to 2.5 years

Recently became a parent at GNS via the Cambridge Preschool Program (CPP)…read more I had many reasons to be nervous about my kiddo starting preschool - pretty big aversion to playing with other children, having essentially no daycare/nanny experience, loud "no school!" when the idea was brought up periodically in attempts to make it less foreign, being a picky eater, etc. True story - when we did a classroom visit, where families can come and see the school, be in the classrooms, and meet the teachers, my kiddo said "why do I like school?" 5 minutes into it and the rest is history (currently in the making). The thought "oh, I can leave my kiddo here" came to me pretty unexpectedly and clearly during that visit, and I legit got pretty emotional. The other reviews ring true. If GNS interests you even a little bit, I highly recommend that you check it out for yourself.

Our daughter is in her second year at Garden Nursery School and it has been such a wonderful and…read moresupportive first school experience for her. We love that it is play-based and emphasizes socio-emotional learning, and the community that is created through the cooperative structure. It is such a welcoming environment with teachers and a director that truly appreciate the uniqueness of each child. Being new to the area, we have appreciated the chance to get to know the other families beyond a hello at dropoff. Our daughter has so much fun with all the art projects, and being able to run around with her friends in the garden, and as parents, it has been the perfect opportunity to have a part in sharing the experience with her. We love GNS!

Rock and Roll Daycare is an excellent option for daycare. Music at such a young age is a brilliant…read moreoption for young minds. Highly recommended!

From the owner: Join Cambridge's early childhood innovation center. Imagine a place where children are encouraged…read moreto make mistakes, two-year-olds are learning how to play the violin, and teachers are encouraging children to explore the limits of their potential. Rock and Roll Daycare is a music based early childhood innovation center for children ages 0-6. We seek to create an environment where children engage in planned and improvised musical activities everyday, enjoy the freedom of an extended work period each day, and where parents can observe their child's classroom from the convenience of their cell phone. Children are encouraged to explore a specifically prepared, child sized environment at their own pace, while also participating in a range of music and arts based activities such as extended music classes every day with one of our five specialists, one-on-one private music lessons, monthly family engagement event, and various field trips throughout the year. Now with five locations in East Cambridge, Lechmere, and Central Square, Cambridge Crossing and Porter Square, Rock and Roll Daycare is one of New England's fastest growing learning centers and most sought after in the Cambridge area.

Wildflower Montessori is an incredible school community. All three of our children have attended…read moreand thrived in this warm, supportive, unique Montessori environment over the past 5 years. Our youngest is currently in her second year. As parents, we have seen each of our children develop strong, secure relationships with the amazing teachers and with the kind friends in their class. We have also cherished the friendships we have made with other families in this close-knit community. Recommend 100%!

This is literally the most beautiful interior space I have ever seen for children and educators and…read moreparents. It looks more like a curiosity filled art and living park than a traditional school- which can be depressing and feel stifling and even boring inside. At Wildflower, the school feels like a pastoral space where learning and exploring are a natural and engaging (fun) part of life and the world.