Our Little Sunshine Girl

I've been debating whether or not to continue touring schools as a public service or to just to make this announcement and be done with it. I've chosen the latter. We received word that E's been accepted at Little Sunshine House starting in June!!!!!!! I am overjoyed as this is our absolute first choice school (perhaps tied with Little Owl which is not an option). There are a million reasons why we loved it, but here are a few;

• The staff. With the directors both having master's degrees, and Ms. Gerry even being an MFT we felt that the staff at LSH was the crem de la crem. The classroom teachers are well educated, engaged and friendly too.
• The feel of the school. It feels like a happy place and we've decided to trust our guts and go with the school that made us happiest.
• The location. It's super-close to Scott's work so drop off will be a breeze. 
• The ambiance. We mentioned warmth a lot in our reviews and LSH was super warm and home-like. The cheerful colors, the bright and sunny classrooms, the warm hardwood floors, the wooden furniture, the neatly organized classrooms - all of it. It's an attractive space where we can see E spending her days.
• The price. It came in under budget!
• The focus on art. LSH has an art-based curriculum and the children create beautiful and individual artwork.
• The program. We like the Reggio approach best of all the philosophies so it's great to know we've found a Reggio inspired school. We like the flow of the day and everything the children get to experience. The schedule and the activities seem well thought out which we appreciated. 
• The balance. We saw schools that were really nice and polished looking but kind of institutional, and schools that were homey and warm but seemed to lack that structure and professionalism. LSH is the perfect mix of these qualities. 
• The reviews. Everyone we've spoken to from Yelp reviews to random parents we ran into at the tour seems to love this school. 
• The parent community. Between my work in the environmental world and Scott's dedication to information access and literacy we have a lot to give to a preschool community. LSH is a wonderful program, but we can also see where he and I can contribute to the growth of the school. We now know who will be the beneficiaries of all of those great condition low-cost books from the library sale and I can't wait to help them grow their gardening program as I discussed with Ms. Gerry on the tour. 
• They're certified. Ever since being super inspired by Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg and learning about "high quality" childcare we've been wishing for a certified school. But it seemed like so few of them had gone through the process. LSH is a member of CAEYC which is amazing!
• The size. LSH has a maximum capacity of 28 children
• Their score. No one scored higher on our crazy rubric.

I decided that it would be hard to continue to tour schools and review them objectively knowing we've accepted a place at a school we love. So this will be it for preschool reviews.

It seems like this has been such a long journey. We toured our first preschool in March of 2013 at Maple Village, and after seeing 10 different preschools (Maple, Little Owl, Creative Beginnings in Downey, Montessori Children's Academy in Downey, Rancho Los Amigos in Downey, Memory Lane Preschool in Downey, Around The World Children's Center in Downey, Carousel Preschool, Edgewater Preschool, Little Sunshine House, Great Beginnings, and finally ABC123 Learning Center) I think I've done my due diligence and I'm 100% comfortable ending the search even though I never got a chance to see Kidworks, Long Beach City College Child Development Center, and Creative Arts preschools which we have appointments on the books to tour. If anyone would like to review a school and post it here I'd be happy to put it up for you. Or if you'd like my detailed impression of any of the unreviewed schools listed above I'd be happy to post. For now we've found a place for E and we're thrilled. Thank you for taking this journey with us!

Final Rubric

Rubric Results

Here are the final scores for each school. Remember that each quality is graded between 1-5 and that grade is multiplied by the weight so that more important qualities contribute more to the total than less important qualities. 

School #4 Little Sunshine House Preschool

Little Sunshine House
1814 7th Street
Between Cherry and Walnut
License No: 198014010 Capacity: 0023
Website
Yelp Reviews
Little Sunshine House

All Photos from School's Website and Yelp Page

We used to live right down the street from Little Sunshine House (at 7th and Redondo above the Bull Bar) so the warnings in Yelp reviews to give it a chance despite the area didn't worry us. We arrived early in the morning and parked in back as instructed. There are several parking spaces reserved for parents there and a coded gate to enter the playground. The school itself is in a little yellow house converted to a preschool. We were greeted at the gate by Nina, one of the Directors at the school and welcomed. E immediately ran to the great play structure and began playing with the other children. The other Director, Gerry came out to begin the tour and was kind enough to offer to take us around separately so that one of us could stay behind to keep an eye on E who was absolutely not going to leave the playground to go inside. My husband went in with Ms. Gerry first and I stayed outside. The playground is very nice with a small track for tricycles circling it. E was busy in the dinosaur sand pit and I chatted with Ms. Nina for a bit. E wandered around the yard and even played in the small house with several other children. I noticed that even though there were only about 12-15 kids outside, there were four staff member which was really impressive. I struck up a conversation with one of them and it turned out she is the teacher in the two year old room. I even got a chance to chat with a parent who was hanging out for a bit after drop off. Everyone had wonderful things to say about the school and all of the children looked happy. I loved the outside area and their two small gardens. Everything looks organized and well cared for. One of the trees had been a little harshly pruned (ya'll know how I feel about that by now) but it was a very nice space.

Once Ms. Gerry returned with Scott it was my turn to take a tour inside. It was also time for everyone to go inside and I was surprised to see E take a seat along the wall with the rest of what would be her class when the bell was wrung. Ms. Gerry and I entered the back door and came to a small sink. All of the children wash their hands when returning to the classroom after recess.  We passed a small kitchen and Ms. Gerry explained that the school provides meals and snacks, freshly prepared on site. We proceeded into the two year old class. What a beautiful, bright, and inviting room! The inside of the school is also painted a cheery yellow and it's the perfect compliment to the soft brown of the hardwood floors as well as the table and chairs. The room was well organized and there were plenty of toys neatly arranged on low shelves. I was pleasantly surprised by how large the area was. The walls were covered in student art work and it was clear that while the students were studying a particular theme (blue circles) they were allowed to execute their art in their own ways. It was really cool to see how everyone did something a little different. By this time the students and two teachers had entered the classroom and were sitting around a small table eating fruit for snack time. After a few minutes one of them began to set up the next activity in the room and placed playdough at one of the tables, art supplies at another and set up the train table for play. It looked so inviting. I loved how happy and warm the room felt.

Next we moved over to the older children's room where Ms. Nina is the lead teacher. These students were sitting in a cozy nook looking at a book before getting ready for snack. This room was even more beautiful with lots of green plants and two chirping parakeets in a little cage. Ms. Gerry pointed out the check in area and the parent information area. One of the things I loved at Edgewater Preschool when we toured was the parent board - a place where parents could read about what their children are learning and working on. Little Sunshine House had one too, as well as a novel way of storing and sending home student artwork - a giant file with a tab for each child. How nice. We also saw the office and Ms. Gerry gave us a brochure and schedule of the day. Carousel take note!

By this time E and Scott had joined us and we watched as the older kids made their way to snack before exiting to see the side of the schoolyard where there was a great shade structure and small garden area. Hooks for student jackets and buckets to hold other personal belongings lined the wall there. I loved that the students bring their own sleeping bags from home for nap time. So much nicer than those mats and cots  you see everywhere!

We chatted with Ms. Gerry and asked a few questions before she walked us out and said goodbye. We were really impressed with this program. Best of all they are CAEYC (the California affiliate of NAEYC) certified which is something we'd hoped for but had basically given up on. What a cute little school!

If I were in charge of marketing/program at Little Sunshine house there is very little I would change. I would definitely not top the tree in the playground and I would expand the garden. I also didn't hear as much about a school chef or field trips as some of the other schools we toured so I guess there's room for growth there too. I would have liked a menu too come to think of it.

Little Sunshine House is a Reggio schools. It accepts 2-5 year olds and will take children still in diapers. Lunch is prepared on site and full time is $740.00.

Conclusion
We loved this school and loved E's reaction to it. It seemed like the kind of place we could see ourselves leaving her and feeling comfortable. Little Sunshine House even has a transition system for introducing new students to the school which is something slightly nervous parents like us appreciate. All in all a great school.

School #3 - ABC123 Learning Center

ACB123 Learning Center

909 Pine Ave

Pine and 9th 

Facility No: 198015878 Capacity: 0030

Website
No Yelp Reviews

ABC123 Learning Center

All Photos from the School's Facebook Page

We had high hopes for this little center on Pine that advertised as an "eco-friendly preschool". We had an unexpected afternoon free so we called up to see if we could stop by without an appointment and was invited to come on down. We arrived at about 4:00 pm and the Director had gone for the day, but the receptionist gave us the tour. The building is small and maybe a little shabby from the street, but there is a secure intercom on the front door and another locked door in reception between visitors and the center. The receptionist was with a parent when we arrived so we had to wait which gave us a chance to walk around and look at the lobby. Children's artwork using recycled materials and a large recycling display area showing which types of materials the preschool recycles were featured. We also got a chance to take a look at the school menu which was really impressive. All meals are prepared by the school chef, many featuring local produce and I have never seen a more wonderful selection on preschool menu. The day we visited lunch was a delicious sounding grilled talapia. Other things that stood out where fresh baked cream cheese muffins and pumpkin cookies. Nice! Once our tour began we were really impressed with the receptionist, her knowledge of the facility and the extensive admission process which includes a family interview with the Director.

Unfortunately things kind of went downhill from there. In the photos on the school's blog the rooms look barren and unfinished (and what's up with the creepy whiting out of the eyes? Everyone knows you add a photo release to the application form and when parents sign up their kids you now have permission to post photos of them right?). We'd done some research and knew that the school had changed hands pretty recently so we surmised that they may have still been in the process of decorating. Nope. The school still looks cold and barren. There are several rooms, with good spacing but every single wall is "institution white". No posters. No signs. Not even much artwork. It was downright depressing! I asked the receptionist about it and she explained that they were going for a "clean look" in keeping with the school's green asthetic. Um, no. I speak green fluently. Good design and eco-friendliness are not mutually exclusive. I wrote the book (or at least several magazine articles) on green interior design. I know that things can be attractive and non-toxic. To make matters worse, many of the school's rooms are on theinterior and so don't get any natural light. You absolutely have to decorate these rooms to keep them from being so drab! I was really disappointed with the ambiance and complete lack of cheer and warmth of the school. I have to say that the photos I'm posting here were taken 2 years ago and the rooms look much more cheerful in them. I'm not sure why. Time of day? Just the aging of the rooms? No idea.

The program itself was a bit better. My husband who runs the circulation department for a branch of the city library pointed out that a book shelf in one of the rooms was practically empty with only three books. They made up for this by having an entire library, but come on. There seemed to be very few toys around too. Maybe another misguided attempt at minimalism? What did score well was their enrichment program. Between the ballet and tap classes offered, walking field trips to the local farmer's market, recycling and composting programs, coming-soon school garden, and the cute little library, I was impressed with some of the extras ABC123 offers. The playground was lovely too and E liked their play structure a lot. Like with Great Beginnings it was unclear how much of the schools focus on the environment trickles down to the day-to-day curriculum, but I did see some efforts in that regard.

If I were in charge of marketing/program at ABC123 Learning Center I would hire a green interior designer (I would be happy to send you my deeply discounted non-profit rates) to make this a place parents can see their children spending their days happy and cheerful. You're already in a dodgy part of town. The school should be a warm and welcoming place that makes being environmentally friendly attractive - not a sacrifice. I encourage the Director to visit Little Owl Preschool in Long Beach. Their building is amazing, yes, but you can also see how they decorated including the paint colors used and selection of wooden toys around that makes the space welcoming. I'd also be clear in communicating how our eco-friendly values influence the curriculum which I'd be willing to advise them on for free (seeing as that's kinda my job).

ABC123 Learning Center (I'd also change that name!) usues an "Emergent" child-led philosophy. The school accepts children 2-5 and will potty train for you. Their amazing lunch menu is fresh prepared off-site and brought in. Full time is $700 a month.

Conclusion

I so wanted to send E here. How cool would that be to be able to send her to an eco-friendly preschool?! But some things would have to change in order for that to happen. The good news is that ABC123 Learning Center is totally on the right track and with a few tweaks, this school would be in high demand! Director lady...call me!

School #2 - Carousel Preschool

Carousel Preschool
366 Cherry Avenue
4th and Cherry
License No: 198010107 Capacity: 0042
Website
Yelp Reviews

All Photos From School Website

Carousel Preschool is easily one of the most beautiful and well-outfitted preschools I have ever seen. The building is top notch all the way. From the bronze sign by the front door, to the toys and playground equipment, everything is just so. We arrived early on a Monday morning and I think we surprised the Director who'd forgotten that we'd made an appointment to see the school. She was there alone with the kids so she invited us to have a look around while she waited for another staff member to arrive. The school is one main room and a smaller auxiliary room off to the side. The toys and equipment all look brand new but you can tell that they've been played with and cleaned. Everything was beautifully organized and the decor was bright and cheerful. There are separate boys and girls bathrooms with small toilets and sinks and another small sink in the main room with gorgeous and expensive looking tile work above it. In fact, most of what was around at the school looks to be top of the line which we found kind of surprising. E wandered around playing with one lovely toy after another while the Director spoke with 5 or 6 kids outside. Soon another staff member arrived and the tour began. The Director, Joanne, was warm and friendly and very down to earth. She walked around with us and talked about the school.

This is where things began to unravel a little. It just wasn't clear how the program works, what, if any curriculum they have in place, or how the day is structured. It was the most confusing experience! On one hand there is this gorgeous room that looks like it was put together by a team of child development experts with an unlimited budget, but the Director isn't able to tell us exactly what our child will be doing all day. And no, it's not like I wanted a definite schedule or anything, but most schools can give you an idea of how the day unfolds and what to expect- little clues that some type of learning is taking place such as Reading Time, Art Time, Science Time etc. And I am 100% fine with a play-based curriculum, but that doesn't mean an all day free-for-all either.

The outside of the school was neat and inviting with a great play structure and a small track with tricycles. A long garden bed runs along the side and Joanne said that they hope to start a garden soon. She showed us the small room off to the side where a beautiful saltwater fish tank houses some cute clown fish. She did say that the children watch some television and a TV was prominently displayed in the corner of the smaller room which I didn't love, but she assured me that the TV is not turned on every day. The students go on walking field trips to the nearby Alamitos Neighborhood Library, and an annual trip to the pumpkin patch.

I requested a brochure (again, top-notch, high quality folded cardstock - not the sloppily folded pamphlet that's been xeroxed too many times you get at some places) and left the lovely school feeling completely confused about whether or not it is the right place for E. I even called the next day to see if perhaps I could get someone else on the phone and a clearer picture of the program. No luck. I spoke with Joanne again and even though she is sweet and the school looks wonderful, I just don't see any structure or program in place. She explained that their philosophy is play-based, but that was the extent of the information. She also invited us to visit anytime which was very nice of her.

If I were in charge of marketing/program at Carousel I would hire (they can clearly afford it) someone to develop a curriculum for the school. Play-based is wonderful, but when do students actually use that fantastic science table? How does your play-based philosophy shape how you teach certain things? What is the flow of the day? What types of things do students do? People would be knocking down the door of this school if only things were a bit more clear and structured. I would absolutely develop a small schedule and some words about the curriculum to hand out along with their lovely brochure to prospective parents.

Carousel is a play-based school. It only takes children who are 2 years old and potty trained. Lunch is BYO and full time is only $565 - a great price! The school is only at 1/2 of its capacity so child/teacher ratio is excellent.

Conclusion
We loved the look of the school and warmth of the building, but E tends to be shy and thrives on routine. She does better when she's invited to come along and join in whatever's going on. A school at which she was basically left up to her own devices to wander around and find something to do is not the program for us though I do believe certain students could thrive here. I still have no idea what a typical day for E would look like at Carousel. I hope that if you decide to tour the school you will have better luck than I did deciphering the program. I am sad to cross it off of the list.

School #1 - Great Beginnings Preschool

Great Beginnings Preschool
3027 E. 4th Street
4th and Orizaba
License No: 191602651 Capacity: 0039
Website (though it's been down lately)
Yelp Reviews
Article Written in LA Times About Great Beginnings

Photo From Website

Great Beginnings Preschool is in a converted private home (non residential) with a converted garage in back which has been made into a classroom in addition to the classroom space in the regular part of the home. It sounds weird but it's actually very nicely done.The garage classroom is the 2-3 year old space complete with preschooler-sized bathroom and sink, while the older children meet in the main house. The school has a large play yard with climbing equipment, sand box, toys and lot of room to run around. It's a great space.

The website for Great Beginnings is really impressive. The black and white photography draws you in and makes you want to see more of the school. The text sounds well thought-out and the Director's background as an LA Zoo docent was intriguing. We made several phone calls to make an appointment for our visit and only reached voice mail but that's a good thing right? That means the staff is engaged with the students and not sitting behind a desk. The Director, Marian, returned our phone call with a long and detailed message inviting us to stop in any day after 9:00 am which we liked better than having a specific visiting time.

We visited Great Beginnings on a Monday morning around 11:00 am. There's no parking but there is a green curb directly in front of the school and street parking on 4th and on Orizaba. The building was secure and we had to be let in. Nice! The older students were in the classroom while the younger students were outside. At first glace the school looks really cluttered. There is stuff EVERYWHERE. It's not particularly clean either as the floors looked like they could use a good sweeping. I wouldn't say it was dirty - just in need of some attention. Upon closer inspection, however the things that were lying around were wonderful. Science books and diagrams, figures of various birds and animals. Frog life cycle figures next to a nice fish tank filled with chubby, happy looking gold fish. The front window had an impressive display of these types of things and reminded me of a shelf or display one would see in a natural history museum. We were really digging all of the science and nature stuff in the room.

Marian greeted us and invited is to walk through the room. E loved the front room and wanted to play with all of the little things there, but Marian invited her to come outside and see the chickens. That got her moving. Walking through the school we spied a hodge-podge of tables and chairs that were reasonably clean. Not scrubbed down every week clean, but dust and debris free. The ambiance of the school in general is kind of pieced together. There's no clear color scheme or unifying theme. This is neither good nor bad. I'm just trying to paint a picture of the space. There was one shelf full of books and board games that looked as if they had all been shoved in there and would all come tumbling down if anyone were to touch them. The older children in the corner having circle time seemed engaged in what the teacher was saying. We smiled and nodded at the teacher as we walked by but didn't receive any acknowledgement which is ok - she was working, but unusual as it seemed like most places we visited had very friendly teachers.

Walking out into the large backyard the chicken coop and bunny hutch were immediately to our left. There was adequate shade provided for the animals and they looked well-cared for. I give schools that have animals high marks on the enrichment side since I think that caring for animals has lots of teaching opportunities for kids. There was a large easel set up out in the open and E made a bee line for it and proceeded to paint a small mark on another child's painting. Marian immediately went over and clipped a fresh sheet onto the easel for E to paint on and she did so happily for the rest of our visit. Very nice engagement with her and they scored well on this. There are lovely little vegetable and a native plant gardens in the yard where students grow veggies for the bunny and grow milkweed for the butterflies. These plants are clearly thriving as I saw caterpillars on the leaves. The students study the life cycles of butterflies here too which is wonderful. The only negative I saw outside was the absolutely horrible pruning of their mulberry tree. Tree topping is a common practice in which people cut trees way too far back in what they believe is a good pruning practice. It is really harmful to trees and should never be done. Marian showed me how well her tree was pruned and didn't seem to believe me after I explained that pruning tress in this was is very harmful - even after I gave her my credentials. My bias is showing but that did not sit well with me. Please take a moment to learn why you should not hack the heck out of your trees here. Why Tree Topping Hurts Trees.

We then visited what would be E's classroom - the 2-3 year old room in the converted garage. The teacher seemed nice enough and the children, who had come in from outside by this point, were engaged in a felt board activity. The theme of the moment was clearly whales. Marian explained that the school had a whale watching field trip planned and all of the students were learning about whales and California sea lions. The walls were filled with whale paintings and a whale craft in which the students had taken whale cut outs, painted them gray and glued cheerios onto them to simulate barnacles. Very cute, though I'm more a fan of self-directed art - not pre-made "here kids stick these on just like this" kind of projects. But it really was cute. This classroom could use a good scrubbing and vacuuming too. Not dirty, but just not as clean as I would like. Kids are messy. I get it. But maybe a cleaning service could come in and give things a sweep and a wipe down every once in a while?

When discussing curriculum Marian and I really connected since I'm an environmental educator and we know a lot of the same people and programs. Her experience at the LA Zoo and her research in Borneo with orangutans are impressive! She is a sweet lady who really knows her stuff and has a clear passion for animals and the natural world. A kindred spirit! But it's unclear how much of that passion trickles down to the students. Does the curriculum reflect this interest? Are the students at this school learning more about nature than preschoolers at other schools? And how much access do they have to those cool diagrams,and books, and figures displayed at the front of the school? Do the teachers share this enthusiasm? We noticed lots of wonderful books but they were all up high on a shelf as if to keep the kids from reading them.  I could see some evidence of nature in the day-to-day but not as much as one would think in this environment.

If I were in charge of marketing/programming at Great Beginnings Preschool it would market itself as a "Science Preschool" and do a much better job of telling prospective parents how all of the stuff they see actually makes it into the curriculum and benefits their child. As far as I heard there was no other philosophy in place (waldorf, reggio, montessori etc.) so for the parents who like these kinds of labels this would be a smart move. Parents would also see evidence of children making science discoveries and learning about the natural world around them. There is so much potential here, and children are naturally inquisitive and naturally want to learn about animals, plants, and natural systems. Increasing the language on the tour and in the materials that support and illustrate this kind of learning taking place would make this school a must-attend for many parents.

Great Beginnings has no formal philosophy and accepts students 3-5 who are potty trained. Lunch is BYO and full time is $650 a month.

Conclusion
We really liked Great Beginnings. They have a resource rich school and the longevity of their staff (they've all been there for at least 7 years and Marian started the school in 1977!!!!) is impressive. The Director is cheerful, friendly, knowledgable, and sweet. The school definitely has its own special focus and the building seemed safe and secure. They scored lowest in Professionalism (that office!), Potty Training and Diversity with a question mark next to their score for Program.

I have a feeling we'll have to grade the schools on a curve so I'll post all of the scores together once I've reviewed all of the schools.

Criteria Explained - How We Made Our Rubric

So yes, I'm a bit of a geek, but here is a list of what was most important to us in this search and what, specifically we were looking for. There are three categories;

1)Building, meaning the school itself and how things are set up. We saw a school where all of the toys were up on shelves - absolutely nothing at child level which made us wonder how much choice and free access the children have. After that we added that to the rubric.

2) People, meaning the people who work and volunteer with the kids as well as any support staff or office personnel (we figured we'd be dealing with them enough to warrant paying attention and read a few reviews about schools who lost payments and things like that). We were also looking at how they engaged with E on the visit, and the diversity of the students as far as we could see while we were there.

3) Program, meaning what the students do there including extras like music lessons or dance classes and field trips. This is also where we took any special philosophy the school claimed to have and rated whether or not they seemed to stick with it.

4) Policy, meaning how they handle things like pricing, meals and potty training.

BUILDING
Brightness - 4
Ambiance - 5
Access to Toys - 3
Playground - 3

PEOPLE
Engagement with E - 2
Friendliness - 3
Professionalism - 4
Diversity - 3

PROGRAM
Access to Nature - 5
Specialness - 3
Enrichment - 2
Philosophy/Curriculum - 4

POLICY
Meals - 2
Price - 2
Potty Training - 2

The number next to each represents the weight we assigned to that quality from 1-5 with 1 being less important to us and 5 being more. It would be crazy to just give a number to each of these qualities when some are clearly more important to us than others. For example, we have a big yard and E spends a lot of time outside everyday. We wanted her to go to a preschool that let her play outside a lot so that she wouldn't feel caged in. Weighing each quality helped us to score the schools based on the things that were most important to us. When we visited a school we gave each quality a 1-5 with 1 being terrible or non-existent and 5 being wonderful or ideal. Then we multiplied that number by the weight to get a final score. It's a little crazy and far from perfect but this is how we did it.

So for example Little Owl Preschool which I've already mentioned we loved has an open door policy. The kids can pretty much choose to go inside or outside whenever they want. We gave them a 5 in Access to Nature and so they ended up with a score of 25 in that quality. On the other hand they are WAY above our price range so we gave them 1 on price for a score of 2. When all of their numbers are added up, it reflects how they did in the qualities that are most important. If you adopt this model (and I understand that most sane people will not) you'll have to decide which qualities are most important to you.

Still with me? I told you I was nuts. I'll post the complete rubric with each school's scores once I've reviewed them each individually on here. Next post will start the reviews.

The Search Begins

Working From Home

These are the notes from our preschool search in the City of Long Beach for our 2 year old daughter. My hope is that by writing this, I can help another parent who is undergoing a similar search. This document will be static so it would be great if others chime in with their photos and experiences as time goes on so that an accurate picture of the schools can be seen.

First, a disclaimer. These are all just my opinions. There are certain things my husband and I are looking for in a preschool and I want to be clear that this document will be full of lots of biased, unsubstantiated half-impressions from my own brain. I am not wishing to offend anyone with my criticism, but in the interest of keeping it real I will tell you the good and the horrible I find along the way. That being said I’m willing to bet that most moms are looking for the same kinds of things – a nurturing, welcoming, caring environment for their kids, though not everyone shares my obsession. There will always be people who use preschools as a place to keep their kids safe while they are at work, and do the choosing by simply googling the nearest center, calling to see if they have room, taking a perfunctory tour to ensure that there are no sharp objects lying about or child molesters hiding in the shadows, confirm that the ABCs will be sung, and sign the paperwork. There is nothing wrong with this approach. We simply have different criteria. I will also say that as an environmental educator, the physical environment of a school is very very important to me. Bright clean spaces, access to outdoors, healthy food, and well-made wooden toys make an impression on me and I’m most likely to rate a school with these features higher than one without. I’m also a sucker for a garden since I know the positive learning impact growing food and plants can have on a child so schools with gardens ranked high in my mind too.

Criteria. We are looking for a bright, cheerful, nurturing space for our daughter full of engaging, well-made toys, caring staff, and lots of space for play and exploration. We’re looking for a school that will provide her with a variety of experiences and a somewhat structured, mentally stimulating program. A school with no program where kids just wander around all day is not what we’re looking for. Our daughter is biracial, and we’re also looking for diversity at the school. A school where 75% of the students are all of any one race won’t rank very highly.

In the interest of full disclosure our preschool budget is $800 a month. That will get you a lot in some neighborhoods and barely anything at all in others. This will help you to see why we chose to tour the places we chose.  I’m also looking for a full time, year-round program. I am not about to go through this all again when summer rolls around for a program that is only open during the school year. Ain’t nobody got time for that! Even though I work from home a couple of days each week I’m looking for full time for those days when I have to go into the office on a work-at-home day because there’s an event or big project coming up. The idea is to have full time status even if we only use it on the days 2 or 3 I’m in the office. That way, I’m not scrambling for coverage when things get busy at and I’m working more than usual.

Automatic disqualifications. Because there are so many preschools in Long Beach, we had to eliminate some at the beginning. These eliminations were completely made with my biases in mind. Here’s how we chose which schools to tour.

1.            We did a google search (yep, real technical) of the area in which we’re interested. This was Long Beach – south of the 405, east of the 710, and west of the 605 with a few outliers. 
2. .          We eliminated any center that took infants since we were looking for more of a preschool atmosphere as opposed to a day care atmosphere. 
3.       Also eliminated; churches, in-home daycares, and chains like Kindercare (whoops , there went my advertising on this page). Converted homes were ok as long as no one was actually living there.
4.         I checked websites. If the business did not take the time to put together at least the bare bones of a website then they were immediately eliminated.

Did I possibly eliminate a wonderful, high quality center with these criteria? Maybe. I’ll never know and I’m ok with that.

We also tried to avoid the wonderful but too expensive. We toured and joined the wait list for Little Owl Preschool and we absolutely loved it. I was in eco geek heaven at that school. But $1300 a month was just too much even though I’m sure that technically we could swing it. Same with Edgewater Preschool. We liked this school pretty well though we weren’t as impressed with it as its $1050 a month price tag would have you believe.

Also out were schools with wacky schedules. We really like Maple Village Waldorf school but as a working mom (even one who has a very flexible schedule) I cannot pick my child up from school at 1:00 pm every day. So I’ll let the stay-at-home moms have that one and keep it moving.  Same with Belmont Heights Church Preschool* 3 hour a day “preschool enrichment program.” I need real options for my very real work schedule. I work Monday – Friday all day, but I get to work from home on Mondays and Fridays.On the days I do go into the office I leave home at 6:30 am and leave work by 3:00 pm so I’m home around 4:00 pm every day. Because I have so much flexibility at work it’s so discouraging when even my schedule won’t work with a preschool. These schools seem to cater to stay at home moms or moms with even more flexibility and I had to cross them and their wacky schedules off of my list.

We'll try to post as we go along and add photos when we can too. Hopefully you'll follow along.

*A church! It came highly recommended from a friend so we at least took a look at their website.