Castleton Hill is a wonderful preschool. Such fond memories of the teachers and staff. It is a…read morenurturing environment. Still friends with families that we met 10 years ago. If the school had gone from K through 8, We would've stayed in a heartbeat. They provided learning through play in a nurturing Christian environment.

Sent my son to start private prek3 in Ms. Frisina's class September of 2024. He was enrolled one…read moremonth. My son would come home crying almost everyday. Ms. Frisina would yell at my son everyday. I don't know how she is qualified to work with kids. There is an app where we can see how our child is doing that day, and Ms. Frisina would never update it to keep us in the loop. Not to mention he was pushed in class one day and I was never notified. We only found out because the parent of the child who pushed my son apologized to my husband during a class presentation we all attended. The last straw was him being sent home with a black eye and blamed it on a tantrum. I called to speak with the coordinator and she had NO CLUE about any of this. Nothing was reported. Why wasn't the nurse called? When we asked to see classroom footage we were laughed off and told "we are unable to show parents the cameras." When I pulled my son out they just sent us on our way like nothing. This was my son's first experience with school and it was horrible. He still talks about "Ms Frisina yelling" If you are looking to send your child there... do yourself a favor and don't. EDITED 4/29 - Since I can't reply directly. Hi! Thanks for responding! Im new to Yelp hence the 7 month later review just thought everyone should know.. added a pic for context.

Honestly I'm hesitant to write a review because I've loved a school one day and hated it the next…read more But I'm going to do this because when I was looking for schools, I ALWAYS read reviews. Full transparency, I worry about my child being the only (or one of few) Black student in schools and after touring Gateway I didn't see a ton of diversity. BUT I've truly never been happier with a school. The director (Melanie) continues to address every single question/concern I have. Now the staff is the best part - they update you on every single thing your kid is doing all day. If a diaper is wet - you know, if it's dry - you know, if they don't eat all of their food - you know, what they're learning - you know. Pictures? At least 5 a day! Everyone tells me that my daughter is gifted and I believe it, I also believe that the staff is encouraging and making sure they add more to what she knows everyday. I don't need my daughter to be a genius, I need her to be happy and she is. Everyday we pull up to the school, she is excited to walk in. At pick up, the entire staff is hugging her and telling her how beautiful and smart she is. I could go on, but who's reading this far? My older toddler is going to begin there soon and I hope he's met with just as much kindness, love, patience, and encouragement. Rebecca, Denise, Silvana, Emily - all of the best women you could trust your baby to. (And I don't trust anyone )

I really like the school. The teachers and teaching assistants are amazing and they really care…read moreabout the kids. An issue came up with my child and some other child (not bullying but something else) and I spoke to the teaching assistant about it and they cleared the issue with the other parent. I must say that the other parent didn't care but they actually spoke to that kid which I appreciated it because I am my son's advocate and I am sure they don't want to hear my mouth. But the kids are really respectful and I see my son flourishing. Its not a school that is strictly academically driven where its all about the reading and math scores but they emphasize arts, drama, music and interactive learning. The after school programs are Bright star and Camba; my son is in Bright star actually which is 85 a week or 17 dollars a day. The coordinators are amazing and great with the kids so I truly have no complaints about the school so far. Hopefully it stays that way!

principals very rude , teachers are very disrespectful this school overall is no good for kids they…read moreare not kid friendly nor parent friendly. Would not recommend this school!

The quality of education these kids get is top notch. I building is nicely laid out and I'm jealous…read morethat they have a nicer basketball court than any of my schools.

I was so nervous when my first child started school and we had an amazing experience there. All the…read moreteachers and paras I have come across, are so friendly and attentive. I was shocked to see the staff members of other classes greet my child by their name. The general staff members (site coordinators and office staff members) know all the children's names and greet them and dismiss them. One time my brother in law came with me for pickup and he was holding my child's hand, he was stopped because the staff did not recognize him and I came and said I was here with them. The staff is very attentive. They built such a great phonics foundation for my child that they were reading on a first grade level in kindergarten. I live on the other side of the island but I am so satisfied with this school, I am sending my second child there was well. My second child was always greeted by the staff during drop off and pick up. I was nervous about my second one starting 3k but my second child is so comfortable there, I am definitely returning. Love this school so much! Please note if you are unhappy with the school or any school, you have the power to pull your child out. You are the parent/guardian of your child, they are still too young to speak up for themselves. You are their voice.

Allow me to preface this by saying there are a few teachers and Paras there that are friendly and…read moreseem to genuinely care about the kids but there isn't an aspect of this school that isn't disorganized and unprofessional. It was a school year of just stress and worry. My child isn't fully potty trained as of yet and needs pull ups changed, they would change her but one day she came home with a latex glove stuck in her pants leg. I was fuming because that was a choking hazard if she had found it before I did. They were apologetic but said my kid was wiggly during changing . A s**t excuse to turn around and blame a toddler. It's hard to say who actually changed her that time because there are a lot of different Paras that rotate between classes but it's a reflection of the whole school for me. Early this spring my child was out sick .As a precaution I had her at the pediatrician for a viral screen for COVID and RSV and a got a letter that she was negative and cleared to return to school on a specific date. When she returned on that date the nurse called saying she has a runny nose and wanted to know why she was out sick and if she had a seen a Dr. I said there was note in her backpack from her MD. He hadn't even seen it and said the teachers didn't even tell him about it. So in theory I could have returned her to school without any documentation that she was cleared since no one was looking or reporting it to the medical room. She could have returned with any number of viruses. When I asked the staff about it they blamed the nurse and the nurse blamed the teachers, just passing the responsibility off each other. When they would call to ask about her absence they would ask me to get a note but never asked me before she entered the school in the morning . No wonder my child was sick every other week . The mornings were stressful, the staff rushes the kids into the school, when they told me they line up at a certain time it actually meant they went upstairs at the time ,not a minute later, there were a few times when a para took my child's hand and whisked her away without a chance for me to even say goodbye to her, very strange. This occurred even in mild weather so it wasn't just to avoid exposing the children to freezing weather. Once ( while 9 months pregnant ) I was walking towards the gate with her and a staff member yelled out with an attitude - my child's name- "we're waiting for you!" . It was just rude and mean to assume my child would understand and to also expect me to run across the lot with her while super pregnant. It's a shame , avoid avoid avoid .

My kids have been in this school for almost 5 years and we love it so much! This has been the best…read moredecision we have made for our kids education. They do not over crowd their classes so kids would never be left behind they get one on one attention. The teachers are amazing and passionate with their work. Their new PTL are awesome with so many ideas and plans and encourage parent involvement which is a plus for me since I'm so involved in my kids schooling. My kids get so excited to come into school and are thriving and learning soo much thanks to the teachers in this school. They offer before care and aftercare which is also important to us. I have toured many private schools on Staten Island and this is the best one and I'm so glad with our decision to have chosen St. John's Lutheran! We love our SJL family!

Great School Great Teachaers and Staff Small class sizes…read morethat you will not find any place else. Other private schools 35 40 kids to a class and 1 teacher. Here 15 kids per class 1 teacher per class. NeuroDivergent friendly IEP and in house iep services. Safe and friendly environment. I wish we found this school sooner when our oldest son started attending school. The other private schools had 35 plus students per class and did not fit his needs. St Johns Luthern does. Now all 3 of our children attend this wonderful school!!!

Nothing but great things to say about this school. My daughter has been going for 3 years and will…read morecontinue through kindergarten. My son now is in their 2's program. They are a superb school with the most wonderful staff. They methods of reaching, values, and kindness with all their students is absolutely a treasure. There has never been a day my kids haven't wanted to go, and they look forward to goofing every year. They learn so much and have so much fun. With wonderful classrooms and a nurturing environment, St. Paul's is the best for Early Childhood education in the area 100%.

I wouldn't recommend this school to my worst enemy. The principals pocket the money, the basement…read morebathroom are missing stall doors (little kids use that bathroom), the pipes from the bathrooms burst, causing feces to run down the walls, the ceilings leak everytime it rains, the teachers don't teach, everyone is lost, they let the highschoolers vape in the same bathroom the little kids go in, teachers are rude, there is no guidance counselors, teachers are rude & yell at the little kids, teachers aren't motivated to teach, etc, etc, etc. There are many cons and barely any pros. DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD HERE.

Very bad education, and very high violence amongst the the students. I once came to pick up my hot…read moredaughter from school and I got assaulted by 3 homeless drug addicts. These homeless men also happened to teach at the school. Very bad, also I think I got a saluted by big balls randy. Very bad school, too many sped students. I added a photo of two people who attacked me. But the teacher was hot, so five stars