Barron Park is a diverse, supportive and inclusive community. It is smaller than the other…read moreelementary schools in PA and has a private school feel. We have two very different learners in our home enrolled at BP and both enjoy school and are happy to go every morning. Principal Judy is the best and is really engaged, which makes this community so very special.

This really is a wonderful school. Our kid goes to TK here. The community (parents, teachers,…read moreadministration) is supportive and close knit, and our kid's teacher (Amy Lee) is absolutely wonderful. When there were issues with our kid's verbal development and ability to follow directions, she reached out to us and we have had more than one video and in-person meeting with her to discuss. The office staff is courteous and knowledgeable as well. As this isn't our neighborhood school, we are moving on after this year, but wish that we could stay long term. If this is your neighborhood school, you are fortunate indeed.

We've had such a positive experience with Living Wisdom School. From the beginning, our family was…read morewelcomed with warmth and genuine care, and our son transitioned from public school far more smoothly than we could have hoped. He quickly felt included, made friends easily and has truly enjoyed going to school each day. What stands out most is the balance between strong academics and personal growth. The students are not only challenged academically, but also given practical tools to build confidence, emotional awareness, responsibility, focus, and resilience that they can carry with them throughout life. The teachers and staff are thoughtful, engaged, and clearly care deeply about each child as an individual. We've also been impressed by the sense of community throughout the school. It feels supportive, intentional, and uplifting for both students and parents. We're very grateful to have found a school environment that nurtures individuality, creativity, well-being and a genuine love of learning alongside academics.

The schools focus on holistic education shaped our sons personality in ways that we were really…read moresurprised and happy. The curriculum, method of teaching and even small things like starting the day with a meditation calms the kids to drive more focus. The annual play is a great exercise in getting kids to be more independent and work together as a team on something that is larger than themselves. Would highly recommend!

Our daughter is in Kindergarten with Ms. Perez and Ms. Umanani, and we absolutely love Challenger…read moreSchool. The teachers do a fantastic job of tailoring their approach to kids with different personalities, making learning both highly effective and incredibly fun. Our daughter loves everyone there, from her classroom teachers and Extended Care staff to the administrators. It is a wonderful, supportive community where kids truly thrive!

I am delighted to recommend Challenger School - Middlefield to any parent seeking an academic and…read morecaring environment for their child. My child attended Preschool since he was 3 years old and our experience has been nothing short of outstanding. The teachers ( Miss Jia and Miss Aboli) are compassionate, patient, and highly skilled in early childhood education. The curriculum is a perfect blend of academic learning, social development, and creative play, all within a safe and nurturing environment. Since attending Challenger, my son has grown in confidence, developed important social skills, and discovered a love for learning. I am grateful for the wonderful foundation the Preschool has provided, and I highly recommend them to any family.

Excellent school. Maria and all teachers are truly wonderful educators. It is a great environment…read morefor kids to learn, and develop socially and emotionally.

Our 4th grader started this year at Sequoia Montessori and we could not be happier. He gets to…read morelearn at his own pace and loves the Montessori method of independence and guidance. The mixed age classroom is so wonderful to see and he thrives with the kids from different ages. We also do t have to deal with all the bureaucratic hassle prevalent at public schools and get individualized attention for Maria, the amazing founder and lead guide of the school.

The children are marvelously guided to follow their curiosity and do meaningful projects like study…read morechange makers in society. I have worked with many schools and never seen such attentive care for children and teens by teachers. It's a joy to see!

This is a review for Synapse's TK program. My son has been in Teacher Mickey & Teacher Natasha's…read moreclass for a year this year. My son's TK experience has been truly above and beyond what we wanted for early childhood education. All the great activities that foster joyful learning, all the field trips, events that bring the community together have been so beautifully thought out and planned, we had no idea this kind of education was even possible for little kids. We were grateful each day when we sent my son to school, because we trusted that he would be well taken care of and have a good time. It meant a lot to us as parents. The teachers cared so much about students' happiness, well-being, and materials they were learning. They truly, genuinely cared, and all the parents of TK students could feel it. Throughout the year, we were constantly impressed by the teachers' willingness to go above and beyond. These teachers are not ordinary teachers who rely on easier field trips or simpler projects. They take kids to the most interesting and enriching places on their field trips, places such as ice skating rinks, beaches, ponds where you can catch tadpoles, senior centers, pumpkin patches, cactus garden, etc. Their creativity and willingness to get messy were also truly inspiring. The TK class built an awe-inspiring life-size whale shark together and had so much fun celebrating Holi. The TK class cooked great lunches and sold them to parents as well. The teachers went an extra mile, even though it meant so much more work for themselves, because they have a genuine passion for sprinkling curiosity and exploration in their students. We also deeply appreciated how they created so many opportunities to recognize diverse cultures and bring families together for events like Diwali and Lunar New Year. They were extra careful to include all of the countries' traditions, which gave my son a sense of belonging and harbored a pride in his heritage. We are immensely grateful and feel incredibly honored that my son had such thoughtful, dedicated, and innovative teachers like them. Knowing he was in their care gave us immense peace of mind. And this review is not just about TK teachers at Synapse. Everyone we met at Synapse has been genuinely nice and down to earth. All the teachers, staff, students and parents formed such a warm, wonderful community.

Hoover is one of 12 great elementary schools in the Palo Alto Unified School District…read more Wonderful staff & dedicated, talented teachers. Great programs in music, art, technology & science. Hoover is adjacent to J.L. Stanford Middle School and Mitchell Park.

Amanda Ferreira is such a wonderful teacher here so good with children and communication with…read moreparents thanks Amanda

As an Educational Consultant I have great confidence in Bowman School. The academics are strong…read morebut without pressure. Bowman provides such a level of individualized attention it is an excellent school for many kinds of learners. The faculty turnover is low, leading to consistency and strong relationships. The Montessori philosophy promotes learning how to learn and a passion for lifelong learning. Graduates of Bowman have a long history of success as they continue their educational journies. The year round schedule and flexibility of hours make it an ideal school for working parents.

Parents need to be prepare: this school has been expand from one campus into 4 in past few years,…read morewhich explains why tuition raised 6% - 7% each year. There will be a plan for high school expanding and ask for high donation on top of tuition raise. Good luck.

I truly loved my experience at the JCC Preschool. I'm the mom that tours every single school prior…read moreto making a choice. I'm extremely picky when it comes to the care of my children. I'm taking the time to write this review because we've recently moved around in the area and have experienced other schools. Solidifying even more what a magical experience being at the JCC was for us. We were at the JCC for a total of 4 years with both my son and my daughter from the time they were 12 months old (in the mommy and me program they call the Yad-B-Yad with teacher Shuly). In our experience, the teachers are loving, caring and they were truly invested in the development of our kids. The Director Lauren Berman is amazing. The amount of care she leads the school with is incredible. I was part of the school parent committee where we worked first hand with Lauren to help make key decisions about the school, so I saw first hand the amount of strategy, planning, and thoughtfulness that went into running the school. We were also at the JCC during Covid. And I truly believe our kids excelled during this time because of the strategy and execution of how they handled the school. Lauren would call her strategy (the Swiss cheese effect). Creating multiple layers of protection for the kids safety while ensuring and maintaining a loving environment. I know first hand, other schools did not handle this time nearly as well. Our son was at Phillips Brooks (when he aged out of JCC) while our daughter was still at the JCC. And our experience was sub-par there compared to the JCC. I would do it all over again. Sending my kids here. I miss the warm staff, the community of parents, and being in the classroom for Shabbat singing songs with my kids and their classmates. I miss seeing my kids garden, picking tomatoes and kale with teacher Debbie. I miss seeing my kids run around on the giant grassy field playing games in the sun. I miss seeing them dance and sing during their music class. I miss the care that went into planning activities for the day. I am truly grateful to all their teachers who planned a day packed full of activities to instill ability of freedom of choice and asked thought provoking questions to instill a curious and creative mindset in my children. I love our memories from the JCC, they have a very special place in my heart. I often look back fondly at our school year book filled with images of celebration, warmth and smiles. The thing I know from being at other schools is this, in my experience the JCC is a special place, special place, being led by amazing leadership that truly love and care for their families and students. This combination is hard to come by.

Hi, fellow parents! You're trying to pick the best preschool for your kid in an area with so many…read moreexcellent options. Other parents you know have impossibly high standards and even if, when you started your search, you weren't feeling so opinionated on the color of the sheets used during nap time, here you are - at 11:55 PM on Yelp - trying to find some breadcrumb clues to help you make THE BIGGEST DECISION OF YOUR LIVES!!! AHHH! Well. First of all, there are some funky reviews on here. *Note the date.* If they are from pre-2019, there is a new director who is going to set the bar so high that you're going to hate the head of the Ivy League university your child will surely one day attend because Lauren Berman is the most personable, accountable, reliable, responsible, and forward thinking preschool director in town. Whomever was here before, fuggedaboutit. This legend of a director just pulled the school through COVID and fires and mass exodus of educators from the Bay Area and the preschool, which my oldest son just graduated from, is sparkling in the Palo Alto sun. Secondly, parents are busy. SO MANY PARENTS LOVE THIS SCHOOL and will never have the time to write a Yelp review because they should be making lunches instead. So, know that a glowing review like mine is backed up by about 100 more that will simply never get written. Why is this school so great? Your kids will be enveloped in love, in the cutest little classrooms - YES THE TOYS ARE WOODEN AND YES THEY USE LOOSE PARTS, I promise - with an edible schoolyard garden - YES YOUR KIDS WILL EAT KALE AND HOLD WORMS AND YOU WILL SEE PICTURES OF THIS THROUGHOUT THE DAY - and a dynamic duo of music teachers to bless their days. Bless. Loaded word? They learn songs and blessings and it's not going to turn your kid into a bible thumper but instead is just going to give them a routine, which kids and religions both love, so chill. ;) [respectfully, chill] - In a non-COVID year, your kids get to take swim lessons while at school because you are on the JCC campus and there is a full service pool steps away from the preschool gates! And because according to Jewish texts, it is more important for a child to learn to swim than to study the Torah. So you get to have your kid learn to swim while they're at school anyway. Amazing. - Your kids will run on a track field or play with hula hoops in the basketball gym for their PE class, passing by senior citizens who live in the apartments overlooking the plaza and are part of our community! Yes, children still see old people and haven't yet learned to ignore them! This is educational, my people. - Your kids will celebrate double the holidays they would if they weren't at a Jewish school because there is a Jewish holiday for everything, and every month practically. AND let's not underestimate the weekly holiday of Shabbat which means baking and breaking fresh bread together, offering our little humans the opportunity to sing together, to have their weekly turn in the spotlight as the Shabbat Helper and to be part of a Friday ritual that reminds us how important it is to rest and be in a community. This year, the school started doing zoom shabbats on Friday evenings and your relatives from far away can sign in and forget to mute themselves and gush over your cute child on the screen. - Your kids will be exposed to different cultures, most notably Israeli culture and, with that, Hebrew because that is interwoven in the curriculum, but also be in an environment that embraces different languages and cultures: students and staff alike come from many different backgrounds, and are not exclusively Jewish. Like Hebrew a lot? The Ulpanon immersion program is like a year abroad program but without the travel. Highly recommended (and Lital the director there is also phenomenal). - Now that I've done some name dropping, there are some legendary teachers who have been teaching for more than 9 years (some more than 20 years) so put a pause on those rumors about teacher turnover: this staff is educated, dedicated, and for the most part sticks around. New educators in the area also get a chance to work here, paired with veteran team teachers and my impression is that the administration is very supportive of staff. How do I have the credentials to even write this review? Between my two sons who are both under 5, we have been to 6 different preschools. Lemme tell you: The JCC preschool is outstanding. OUTSTANDING.