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January 2024 by Bo M.
Happy Days Child Development Center in Santa Clara is a stellar early childhood education program. Their program is top notched in the Silicon Valley.My son was a student at Happy Days. In his first days going to school, we had some "separation anxiety". As parents, we were not ready to get him into a school environment and our son was not ready to get weaned off from "mommy daycare", but we had to go back to work. Dr. Marmen Mendoza and the team of teachers made it very easy for us to transition him to this new environment. They have set up a plan where we can drop him off without a hitch. Ms. Meena and the staff just know what to do and they do it best. We were impressed with their hands-on curriculum as it promotes learning using all sensory functions. He especially liked doing artwork to show it off to his family and friends. We were astonished to see all the creative work our son did as it was exhibited at the major events at school, to name a few: Diwali, Thanksgiving, Trick or Treat, the Holidays, Independence Day, St. Patrick's, President's Day, Spring Festival, and many more events in between led by Ms. Mila. Our son still talks about their field trip to the Planetarium, the Emma Prusch Farm, Animal Petting at the Zoo, etc. The campus is safe and secure. The complex is fully fenced up, the front door has a special closing & locking system, and everyone keeps a good eye on all the students. I always feel ease in leaving my precious son in their care.What can I say about the food the food they serve? I appreciate the fact that they pay great attention to proper nutrition and healthy eating habits. Up to this point, my son still remembers enjoying the hot meals, Lentil Soup, freshly cut fruits, etc. lovingly prepared by Ms. Freketa. Play time was special. I had fond memories of playing in the age-appropriate playgrounds supervised by Ms. Najibeh. It was always fun seeing my son having a great time playing, running, biking, and other outdoor activities with the other children.To say the least, my son had a wonderful experience at Happy Days. Because of this, his transition to first grade was easy. It is an understatement to say that we, as a family, had a wonderful time with lots of happy memories at Happy Days. From time to time, we still visit Happy Days to see the lifelong friends we made! Indeed, we had a lot of happy days at Happy Days! We highly recommend it to busy Silicon Valley families and professionals. I say it was worth every penny. I guarantee it!
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November 2023 by Keyur P.
We love happy days!! Our son is going here for more than a year and we did feel the difference compared to other daycares/ child development centers in terms of how they handle kids, how they celebrate different cultures and overall the positive environment.I like the fact that Dr. mandoza cares so much about a child's self esteem and focuses on bringing out the positive. Her positivity and energy is truly inspiring not only for kids but also for parents! We really think she is amazing ! We also love Miss. Mila who is able to provide the best care both in terms of behavior aspects as well as academics.Truly a good school for anyone who is looking for a positive space for their kids to grow up in!
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September 2023 by Kavya S.
Wonderful school. You child can flourish under all the teachers exceptional care. They pay attention to each child and nurture them. I have seen my child learn so many new things in a span of just weeks. A once shy child has come out of his shell and learnt to interact with everyone and be kind, gentle in his approach. Thanks to all the wonderful teachers of happy days , Santa Clara. Do not hesitate to put your child here.
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August 2023 by Sushmita C.
This is the BEST preschool ever! I've had my two children both attend happy days and I have to say it was the best decision I could make for them. My eldest child graduates with confidence, leadership, and knowledge. she is now doing great at her elementary, Thanks to Happy Days !!!My youngest son is about to graduate from Happy days and he learnt everything at Happy Days. We hardly had to teach him his letters or numbers at home. He has truly blossomed over the past two years academically and socially. Also, the camera system is a huge plus. it puts all parents mind at ease to be able to watch your child round the clock. The school provides a safe, loving and secure environment. Our children absolutely love attending this school.It feels more like a good family and I would recommend it to anyone without hesitation.
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August 2023 by Amrita K.
Our son went to Happy Days for almost three years. This is the best daycare I have ever enrolled my kids in. The daycare is a very pleasant, bright and lovely place for kids to feel loved, cared for and safe. The rooms are spacious, airy and bright. The teachers are very caring and my son formed a loving bond with almost all teachers in the classrooms he went to. Dr Mendoza runs the daycare with all her heart and pays attention to all the minute details. She is excellent in running the school and takes care of all parents and kids and their needs. We had the smoothest ride of almost three years at Happy Days and I couldn't think of any other place to send my child to. They also have lunch and my kid loved the food he ate! Overall, I never had any complaints whatsoever in three years, all thanks to all teachers and especially Ms Marmen. She is a gem!
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August 2023 by Kelsey R.
I've been debating for over a year now on whether to update this review or just delete my previous one. Ultimately, I decided I couldn't leave that review up any longer as it was.We had a great time here until my kid was about 21 months. About that time we also found out and notified Happy Days we would be moving in a few months. What became clear is that the school could not provide any individualization for kids that fall outside of specific margins. If your kid needs more stimulation or is ready to potty train early or is bored being in a room full of tiny infants, they can't accommodate. 1) Our kid was bored in the infant room by 20 months. The kids in the room kept getting younger and they couldn't provide him with anything more. They said they couldn't move him up to the next class room due to laws. (Our new daycare made it obvious it was that Happy Days just doesn't have the certification to do so). 2) When he was 21 months or so he started to show all the signs of being ready to potty train soon. We asked if we could start that soon and were told no that they could not accommodate a potty trained kid in their infant-23 month room. We were assured repeatedly by Dr. Mendoza that our kid could be potty trained as soon as he moved to the 2-3 year room. This did not happen and many excuses were given. 2) There are many behaviors, that while extremely frustrating can be part of normal childhood development. My kid was going through this and started to have biting incidents, which we believed was partially due to being bored in the infant room and not knowing how to better communicate. We quickly realized that Happy Days had no way to help our kid work through this. He was not being taught other ways to deal with his feelings or communicate. Happy Days told us just to send more food. When he did eventually move up the 2 year room he struggled with the transition - new kids and new teachers - and had some biting episodes. Happy Days response was to isolate him - essentially taking him to the principals office or making him sit at a table alone to eat. They were incredibly dramatic. I witnessed one incident on their cameras. My kid was sitting at the table and another kid came and got in his face. My kid bit his finger. Then one of the teachers/administrators in the room that day starting flailing her arms in the air, clearly creating a scene. It was absolutely abhorrent to watch. That administrator told us that she told our kid he should just bite himself instead. Now no one wants to be told their kid got bitten, which is exactly why a school should know how to help kids work through it rather than just punish them. We were supposed to keep our kid at Happy Days for another two weeks or so, but that day they decided they didn't want to work with our kid any more and we decided that we were not willing to tolerate their treatment of our kid and clearly their lack of ability to properly deal with normal childhood behaviors. Unfortunately, from what we saw Happy Days is not equip to provide children with any individualization - whether that be supporting them in potty training when they are ready or helping them through a tough time.While our kid did well there as an infant and his infant teachers took good care of him and supported him immensely (we loved them) the school doesn't have the proper resources for all kids as they get older.We have been at our new daycare/school for over a year and the difference is night and day. They immediately worked with him to teach him better ways to communicate than using his mouth, they weren't dramatic about it and the biting quickly became a thing of the past. I have friends who still happily have their kids at Happy Days and friends who had their kids there until Kindergarten and had great experiences, but I think our story is an important one to share.
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April 2023 by Kalyan P.
My toddler has been attending Happy days for 2 weeks now and we are extremely pleased with our experience so far. Compared to her previous day care, our child seems much happier (true to the name of the center) and well-cared for in this center. The teachers and Dr.Mendoza are wonderful and show a great deal of empathy towards the kids.One great example of their exceptional care is how they handle wiping the kids' noses. In our previous day care, this was never a priority, but here, it is evident that they take every little detail into consideration when it comes to the well-being of the children.Overall, we are very happy with this center and no longer feel the anxiety that we used to have when leaving our child in someone else's care. We highly recommend this day care to other parents looking for a safe, nurturing, and welcoming environment for their children.
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December 2022 by Sruthi M.
My son has started when he was 2 year 3 months at room 7. All the teachers are amazing and they helped my son to be potty trained, eat his meals and lot more things. Dr Mendoza has is amazing and knows every kid's name and their parents. They are very welcoming and we can get to talk to the teachers every day during pick up and drop off. Live camera is an amazing option to see your kid when ever you have time. All the events like Diwali, Halloween, thanksgiving are celebrated very well. School is decorated very well and encourages kids to go tot school. Overall we are very happy about the school. I would highly recommend the school because of the environment, teachers and director.
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October 2022 by Mihir K.
My 2 year old started in room number 7 at Happy days. He only took couple of days to get used to. Teachers are very friendly and you can have conversation with them during pick-up/drop off. This made it easier for us as first time parents. It helped us understand his behavior at school and if he needed any special attention. My son started wearing mask, got potty trained and made friends during last 6 months. Looking forward to many more joyful learning moments with Happy Days.All the teachers and Ms. Mendoza are caring and very friendly with the kids. The food served for the kids has nice variety and offers good choice.
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August 2022 by Shu M.
My son attended Happy Days (Santa Clara) for 2 years from ages 3-5. He graduated in 2022 and we are very happy with the school.They were one of the first to reopen the school in Santa Clara, even though many schools were closed due to Covid. The teachers were all wonderful, not only his homeroom teachers, but many of them remembered my son's name right away and were very kind to him. Still, my son spoke no English and hated vegetables, so we were very anxious for him to adjust to school. In fact, for the first few weeks, I had a very hard time getting my son to school.One day, as I was driving and Mariah Carey's Christmas song was playing on the radio, I was very surprised to find my son singing along. Another day he wanted to eat celery and my wife was very surprised. (By the way, I can't sing an English song and I don't eat celery.)We are very very thankful to the teachers and friends who have helped our son grow so much.
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July 2018 by Kerry He
The teachers there are super nice and my kids are really enjoy their school day.
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July 2018 by dan baum
We have recently relocated from another country and our son joined happy days in the middle of the year.
He came to happy days without knowing a word in English.
Today after 6 months, he knows to speak, read and write in English.
He learned very well and above our expectations.
This was done in a friendly and non stressing environment, with very friendly teachers that helped him do the transition.
We had a very successful period and I would highly recommend this place.
