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November 2023 by Xiuling X.
My kid is in Ms Janet's toddler class. We are so thankful to have Ms Janet as his leading teacher. She shared daily report for the kid with parents, which helps we know how he is doing every day. Ms Janet prepared different topics for each month and share the newsletter ahead with parents, like hibernation event, thanksgiving event for November.Ms Janet cares each kid in her class. My kid was shy and does't speak much in class. He feels much comfortable to talk and play with other kids with Ms Janet's encouragement and support.My kid and I love this daycare. The playgrounds are safe and spacious. The classroom is bright and tidy always.
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September 2022 by Christena M.
This should not even called a school is not good representation in Irvine. If you really really need to leave your kids for work or any reason this is the last school you should be thinking about they don't care about kids all they care about just collecting money and they will leave ur kids with no education no improving in anything when I tried to talk to Laura about it she said I am not sure if u are familiar with the Montessori system what they do very much they are blaming everything on the parents , and talking very rudely why would u send ur kids in school when you can't even as about how your child doing or anything . They are changing the staff like every week bringing unprofessional to the place who are yielding at the kids and punish them , they covered all the classes so u won't see how they treat the kids , one time I went to take my son and by mistake they had the curtain open they were not ignoring all the little kids crying . They train the manager to be so rude to scare parents away . They will make sure to send u emails every month to let u know about teachers birthdays party to get them gifts and You can't imagine if you won't bring the teachers or mangers gifts what ur kids life going to be . Don't give yourself a headache by asking about deposit back bec they won't return it to u in anyways good luck and I am sorry if your child in such a school
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July 2022 by Tina Q.
Stay away from this daycare! Rude staffLong waitlistnon-refundable depositIf you wanna throw out your money and buy unhappiness, this is the best place.
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May 2022 by Bella X.
Read this before you consider putting down deposit: I did the tour and put my kid's name on the waitlist when I was 5 month pregnant and paid $200 deposit to get my son on the waitlist. At that point the teacher that did the tour said that we should be able to secure a spot when my son turned 6 month since I put down his name so far ahead (we are talking about almost a year in advance!). Fast forward, my kid was turning 2 now and never ever did I get a call from the school about placement. When I called and asked multiple times, the school just told me that it was never guarantee and they had a long list to work through with priority for siblings of current students. While I was frustrated being told differently in the tour (and they denied saying so in the follow-up calls), I couldn't imagine that I still can't get a spot for my kid after 2.5 years on the waitlist and when I asked for refunding my deposit, they just refused, saying it is non-refundable. I understand the daycare situation is extremely competitive in Irvine area, but if daycares can just charge whatever 'non-refundable' deposit regardless if they can actually offer a place for you, to me it is just milking the working parents for shading profit and makes me question the entire practice.
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May 2021 by Jacqueline H.
I wholeheartedly believe that Spectrum Montessori (Woodbury location) is the best choice for my toddler daughter (2.5 years old). The school culture, policies, and environment are perfect for any family looking to support natural development that is hands on, self-paced, and joyful.Some background: I am a mother of a toddler daughter who started in the infant room at 7 months old and continue to be at the school today. I have also placed our daughter at a Montessori home school (AMI teacher) and also, at a traditional home school. Moreover, I have interviewed, researched, visited, and have been accepted at other local Montessori schools. Thus, I feel I can speak from an educated position.We had two priorities when conducting a search for our daughter: a Montessori approach that matched our family and also, ability to continue Montessori from start through kindergarten. I realize this is not important to everyone. If you prefer to have classroom cameras, then a Montessori school is not for you. If you want someone to prepare hot food, then I would suggest a home school or Great Foundations. With the selection of any priority, I understood that it comes at the cost of others (e.g. I am trying to limit early exposure to technology so a school with cameras or ipads for primary wouldn't be a fit).Infant room: We joined the infant room during a pre-covid era. Yes, the waitlist is long but that was true of any infant room in Irvine. Miss Ely and her team (Dida, Jenny, and Kim) are thoughtful and nurturing teachers. Aside from the cleanliness, the infant room is thoughtfully designed for tiny infants and also includes gross motor activities for older kids. Miss Ely somehow found the time to be truly present with kids, design a classroom curriculum, and rotate the shelves. Every single time I picked up my daughter, she was engaged in something new and at her level even if it was "just after care." Did this mean that my daily report was short? Yes, of course. I would rather have all the teachers focused on the kids rather than writing lengthy reports. She also emailed and responded to every one of my emails.I selected Spectrum vs. Great Foundations because the GF infant room had aspects that were not Montessori. I saw walkers and bumbo seats for the kids. The infant teacher was also cold. Also, Spectrum Executive Staff (Miss Lura and Miss Kayley) are warm, professional, and responsive. Most of my mom friends who had kids at GF shared they switched out due to a similar experienceToddler Room: to me, the toddler room is the gold standard and highlight of the Montessori school. Ms. Brenda's room is joyful, sensorial, and CALM. Yes, a class of 18 months to 3 year olds can be so very calm. It's a combination of her calm command of the room, the schedule, and the many activities she sets out for the kids. Our daughter is thriving in this room as Ms. Brenda and her team (Nef, Sari, and Jenny) are adept at scaffolding skills. How delighted I was that at 20 months that she could come home and say her full name upon request. And now at a little over 2 years old, she can understand numbers (see # of objects and tell me how many), embroider with a simple running stitch, and do a multi-step kitchen projects. This is due to the foundation laid out in the infant room and further enhanced by the toddler room. They also do respectful toilet learning and I had a potty-trained daughter at 2 years old. I'm sure you can see that I'm a very engaged parent so I also appreciate that Ms. Brenda takes the time to send me her lesson plans, answer questions over email, and also, share what is needed in my home environment to support my daughter's current developmental stage. My mom friends in this classroom share that this has been a boon to them especially when it comes to regressions.It's at this juncture that I notice the "most" difference between a traditional school vs. a Montessori one. Our pediatrician shares she's at the 3+ year old level for communication.When it comes to handling the pande
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April 2021 by Jeff M.
Sending our child to Spectrum Montessori Woodbury is hands down the best decision we made as new parents. The school is a finely tuned machine that balances fun and education. Our child comes home extremely happy every single day and wakes up excited to go see Ms Irene, Ms Lura, Ms Kayle, Ms Shok, Ms Krystal and many more. They all truly give so much of themselves to the kids. The work is challenging and customized to our child's rapidly advancing education, thanks to this school. We can't express enough our sincere joy and appreciation for everything The entire staff has done for our child. Thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU!!!P.S. the school masterfully handled the COVID-19 pandemic. Using science and common sense for their preparation, decision making, and perfect execution.
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April 2021 by Nicole C.
We've been at Spectrum Montessori in Ms. Irene's class for 3 years now and have had such a great experience here that we are truly sad our child will be aging out this summer. Coming from LePort, our expectations were high, but they were quickly exceeded in all areas. Ms. Irene identified our child's strengths and weaknesses and worked closely with us over the years to improve certain behaviors while building upon strengths. We've always felt like a team working toward the same goal and we are so grateful to have her as our child's teacher. It's hard to imagine a better teacher.Academically, our child has excelled in all areas. Day after day, we are so impressed with what our child has learned. Children are often capable of much more than we think and Ms. Irene has been remarkable at tapping into those capabilities through supported self-direction. Administratively, Ms. Lura and Ms. Kayley are fantastic and always a pleasure to interact with. They do such a great job organizing activities for the kids and it is obvious they put a ton of thought and effort into it. The summer schedule is typically jam packed with fun activities and learning experiences for the kids. Our child absolutely loves it. Pre-COVID, the school also offered enrichment classes, like art and music, year-round at no additional cost. The art and music teachers were great and it will be so nice to have them back on campus once COVID restrictions are eased.Ms. Lura has also done an amazing job handling COVID. We've been back at school since they were able to safely re-open and have been very impressed with how they've handled things. To have so few cases in that type of environment is so impressive. They have always been transparent and in the VERY rare instance there is a possible exposure, they follow all guidelines for notification, quarantine and closure if necessary. We have never once felt like our child was unsafe here. As far as tuition goes, we've always thought tuition and the yearly rate increases were reasonable. When we were at LePort, we experienced insane rate increases on top of an already ridiculous tuition. That has not been the case here. If you are considering this school, we would highly recommend it all the way through kindergarten. To see the kids go from being mentored by older kids at 3/4 years old in the primary classroom, to becoming the mentor to the younger kids at 5/6 years old is so cool to see and teaches them valuable lessons you wouldn't find in a traditional school setting. The mixed ages in the primary classroom is really awesome.
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December 2016 by Albert H
This place has a waiting list of 1.5 years , seriously.
