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November 2023 by angel lee
The best preschool ever! I love Ms. Donna! Not only she’s knowledgeable with kids and early childhood education, she’s also full of love and patient with kids. She sees the individual needs while having to develop the curriculum for the whole class. Not to mention she’s giving lessons to parents for the monthly meeting to equip parents for better communication with kids. Don’t know how she did that. Simply amazing!I would recommend this school for anyone who is able to volunteer a good amount of time. It’s a co-op school, so the parents must be able to volunteer and have a ‘job’ at school.
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October 2023 by Michael Scamardo
One of the best preschools in Irvine. Excellent teachers and truly a community of families. We put our 3 year old in the school and it’s incredible how much he developed in just a few months. He is much more confident and social and should have no problem transitioning to kindergarten.
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September 2023 by Christina Hwang
A wonderful school experience for both my son and me to grow and learn. In this unique setting, I have had the privilege to really be a part of my son's preschool experience. I knew that I didn't want to entirely outsource my child's education nor do I want to keep them at home all day without preschool so this was the best middle ground between the two. Without family nearby and little knowledge on child development, I was desperate to learn how to better approach parenting and child rearing. This school gave me a perfect opportunity to learn, take notes, and practice how to speak to other kids, how do resolve conflicts, how to manage a classroom of children, how to bake apple pies, how to engage in conversation with children, and so much more. Life is just a collection of experiences. Thank you ICNS for providing me all these new life experiences.
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September 2023 by Jason Bardis
My son & daughter each spent 3 years @ ICNS.Every successive year, I appreciated ICNS more. It's not just a school where the casual play-based atmosphere teaches kids responsibility, manners, respect, civics, communication, etc.It's also a community for the parents & extended families to come together, work together, play together, & then remain friends outside of school.What makes ICNS so special is two-fold:1. The teachers are incredible. Just ask any parent of an ICNS student, & I bet you $1 that parent will gush over the teachers. They have patience, experience, calmness, great communication, enthusiasm, compassion, & cheery attitudes. These exemplary personal attributes spread to the students & especially the parents, because...2. ...because ICNS is a *cooperative* school in which, on any given school day, 2 teachers & 4 parents are running the class (& every family has a chairship responsibility as a key member of running 1 aspect of the school).a) The parents pick up parenting techniques from the teachers & from each other.b) The parents get to know 23 other kids & how to get through to them, motivate them, soothe them, challenge them, & entertain them. Think how useful this will be when you have your next kid, & this next kid is nothing like your current kid(s) so your same old parenting techniques don't work--good thing you worked at ICNS & learned how to interact with 24 different types of kids.c) Be a fly on the wall & witness firsthand how your child interacts with peers, teachers, & adults. See how your kid participates in school & in which sort of creative play your kid engages. For the parents of those kids whose only answers to "What did you do in school today?" are "I don't know.", "I forgot.", "Nothing.", or "I learned.", you can peek behind the curtain & solve the mystery of what your kid does all day in school.d) And most importantly, *especially* for anxious first-time parents with no real prior exposure to witnessing the rearing of kids of this age, it's *DATA*!!! "Is my kid behaving typically?" "Is my kid coping with challenges as well as expected?" "Are my kid's ABCs, 123s, & other foundation academics where they're supposed to be?" "Is my kid patient/impatient, generous/selfish, focused/distracted, social/solitary, communicative/shy, etc.???"Well, come to ICNS & you get 23 other data points to plot out on a graph in your head & see where your kid falls on that curve & you've instantly become far far wiser about the progress & growth of your child.My ICNS work days were literally ("literally" used per its correct definition rather than in its current trendy sense) the highlight of my week.
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September 2023 by Brooke Tawanna
Warm, loving community where we felt safe sending our children. The teachers are a wealth of knowledge and understand child development thoroughly. We can’t recommend this preschool enough!
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June 2023 by Simba Zhuo
A small lake, many geese, ideal place to have a small party
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November 2022 by Agnes Joyce G.
My son lovessss this school and his teachers mrs Donna and Mrs bushra they are wonderful and amazing with the kids.
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November 2022 by kristine a.
This school was absolutely hands down the best thing to happen to my kiddo. We started in the parent and me class then moved up to the 2-day class. As a result, my child was incredibly prepared for kindergarten. Her current teacher said that she is one of the brightest and most mature in her class. That is all thanks to Ms Donna and her team at ICNS. Under their care, the kids learn how to communicate effectively and how to socialize with others. The diversity is amazing. As a woman and mother of color, it really warmed my heart to see so many different cultures represented and appreciated in the school. ICNS is amazing for the parents as well. As a co-op you are required to work in the classroom and attend meetings. As a first time parent, you learn age appropriate milestones and behaviors, how to handle difficult situations, how to communicate to toddlers, etc...you also make life long parent friends. It really is a community.Honestly, I MISS our ICNS days. We LOVE them. Ms Donna truly LOVES her kiddos...each and every one of them. She treats them as her own.
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October 2022 by Carolyn Shepardson
2 of my 3 children went to ICNS. It is a wonderful learning co-operative environment. I was fortunate to be part of this wonderful school for several years & supported Ms. Donna as a substitute teacher needed someone.
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February 2020 by Alan B.
I understand all the 5 stars as the teachers are great, and the mommy and me program is wonderful, however it kind of stops there. For the price it's good, but you have to keep in mind it's a co-op. This means 2.5 hour meetings once a month, 3 work days every 6 weeks (including brining snacks), and having a school job (running events, filing, pet care, supply inventory, etc.) If you miss ANY of those, or your kids are tardy or picked up late, on top of a bunch of other rules, you get charged fees. Worst of all, there is a mandatory fundraiser that you pay for, which negates the affordability of the school. Everything is a responsibility even if you enroll later or leave the school. Also, you need to keep in mind that this is a play based school. I observe children at many different preschools for special education assessments so I understand what different preschools are like. This school is more like a daycare than a school, in that they don't teach lessons. They have free play inside, free play outside, non-mandatory small group and 2 large groups (songs and storytime). For 1 year, this is fine, but any more then that, kids definitely need to learn more structure to prepare them for elementary school/kinder. Our daughter now attends the paid pre-school in her district and they follow standard common core. It's not that much more expensive either. Meaning she's taught to write letters, phonemic awareness, thematic units (space, countries, etc.). None of this is formally taught at this school. They attempt to have themes, but none of it is formally taught (e.g. parents may run a non-mandatory lesson on sticking letters on a paper). Again, it's what you want for your child as they're different approaches to education. The school is age-appropriate, however if you're looking for your child to learn to their potential, I would look into more structured programs.
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December 2019 by Cutberto Hernandez III
Children have the unique opportunity to choose what they want to do each day all day. There is a very low parent to child ratio, and our family has appreciated two children passing through. We were thankful that their creativity flourished and no one clipped their wings.
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December 2019 by Phil P.
Attending ICNS has been a wonderful and rewarding experience for our entire family. This is more than just a regular preschool. It promotes community, in addition to all the regular things you would expect in a place for your little ones. The teachers are outstanding people, incredibly patient and kind. You can feel how the teaching styles and the interactions with the children have been passed down and fine tuned over years of experience. The outdoor playground is big and spacious and there are endless activities, toys, and games for both inside and outside. Lastly, and definitely not least, when it comes to the financial side, you will not find better value anywhere, most definitely in Irvine, and probably all of Orange County.
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November 2019 by Evelyn L.
This is my second review and now my 6th year at ICNS with my third child. This will be our final year at this school and I am just overcome with conflicting emotions. I'm sad. This school owns a part of my heart and my favorite years were spent here. Saying good-bye will be difficult. Proud, of both my soon to be graduating son, and myself. I have grown so much as a parent and definitely have honed those skills. It never gets easier, you get stronger, and ICNS has given me both the tools and the support. But mostly Gratitude. Gratitude to the teachers for their limitless patience, gratitude for the other families who have loved and treated my children as their own. ICNS is a place where our children are safe, both physically and expressively. It is a place where they are not judged by how they look, nor how they speak. The teachers foster and cultivate an environment of nurturing, enthusiasm and acceptance. If there is a negative, it would be that this school has stolen my heart so wholely that all other experiences pale in comparison. I love ICNS a bushel and a peck.
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November 2019 by Christina H.
A wonderful school experience for both my son and me to grow and learn. In this unique setting, I have had the privilege to really be a part of my son's preschool experience. I knew that I didn't want to entirely outsource my child's education nor do I want to keep them at home all day without preschool so this was the best middle ground between the two. Without family nearby and little knowledge on child development, I was desperate to learn how to better approach parenting and child rearing. This school gave me a perfect opportunity to learn, take notes, and practice how to speak to other kids, how do resolve conflicts, how to manage a classroom of children, how to bake apple pies, how to engage in conversation with children, and so much more. Life is just a collection of experiences. Thank you ICNS for providing me all these new life experiences.
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October 2019 by Anwar M.
I absolutely love and miss ICNS so much. My daughter attended icns for two years of preschool. She is now in first grade and still talks about how much she misses miss Donna and the school.
