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.