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| - My son has been attending day-care here for over 2 and a half years. He recently moved up to the pre-school room. I was nervous about the move to say the least. Not just because I am totally resistant to change but because I had yet to connect with the teacher. Plus buying uniforms over the holiday season when I loathe shopping and am extremely busy didn't sound like fun to me. Total silliness! It has gone so well.
Here is how it all began . . .
My son has had one main teacher since he first started attending school here; Ms. Sue and damn is she easy to love. He was 1 and still in diapers when he started and she helped see us through potty training, first friendships and verbalization, not to mention teaching him his ABCs, colors, music, numbers and so much more. We are really proud of what he learned from Sue. Ms Sue does amazing crafts with the littles. Fun stuff to hang on the fridge; and I made a alphabet book with the letter crafts she does with them. And she was so loving and caring. Just the type of woman you want to leave your baby (technically toddler, but he is eternally my baby) with. She cares about her curriculum, even with 2 yr olds, and is always willing and able to talk through anything. She is welcoming of parents into her classroom for observation or support. I dropped Gibson off one Halloween and I was also in costume so she invited me to "trick or treat" with the class and stay to enjoy the party. I did and had an excellent time along with a greater appreciation of the classroom dynamic. I have also stayed during lunch a couple times when my hours are erratic and I just what that extra time with my boy. The whole staff seems to be understanding of my erratic work schedule which sometimes affects my sons punctuality and attendance :)
FYI- they do have separate rooms for the ones, twos and threes; but mine started 3 months before his 2nd birthday so they started him in the twos and then Ms Sue moved to threes not long after Gibson did - so that explains why he had the same teacher for so long. He has had a couple other great teachers; but they were young women working on schooling or motherhood and have since moved on in life. All were great, both with Gibson and with us - I like a teacher that you can have a conversation with on the way in and out of the building. They do great hiring, most of the staff has been there the entire time we have, their core staff is pretty solid. Out of a staff of 10 or less people; 8 have been there since before we started. That is very impressive in this transient town we live in. (Update: one of our favorite teachers is back :) Gibson likely won't be in her class again, but it is great to see her every day.
We've only been in preschool for 2 months now, but it seems to be going well. I like the difference between Ms. May & Ms. Sue. Ms. May seems to be transitioning Gibson into what to actually expect in Elementary School. Not just with lessons and work, but in life situations. She requires them to be more independent - which is a great lesson for an only child and first grandchild in his primary family - he gets babied NON-stop. So some real world independence is doing him well. He is having honest conversations with us about his interactions with his classmates and I am enjoying this new chapter in our lives.
Another great thing about TotC - Trista, the owner. She is down to earth, friendly, honest. She gave me a great gift - here's the story . . . Although I hadn't talked to Trista or anyone about it, I had been looking at private speech therapy for my son . . . and boy is it expensive. But I was so concerned about sending him to Kindergarten without the tools to effectively communicate with his classmates or teachers. He is so smart, but sometimes you just can't understand his enunciation which is frustrating for him and whoever he is communicating with. One day, Trista asked me if I had ever noticed his speech troubles and I agreed. She referred me to a program with CCSD called Child Find. Months later we were accepted and now he is getting FREE speech therapy from the school district. I am so grateful that she would approach a sensitive topic with me and actually referred us to the outlet that worked for us.
So to sum it up . . . TotC is appropriately priced / dare I say inexpensive for the amazing job they do. The staff is friendly and more important - STABLE. The rooms are large and clean and the playground is just right for a small pre-school. I would refer friends and family to Top of the Class any day.
(Added bonus that has nothing to do with child care -- both Madhouse Coffee (reviewed here http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=stwmplf-HrcoPatLN7_jAA) and Super Burrito are located in the same strip-mall, so you have great options for coffee after dropping the kiddo off and yummy Mexican food after the pick-up!)
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