Charleigh Lundie

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My daughter has attended Beyond Montessori for the last 3 years. She started right after her 2nd birthday and she is now 5. Although we are not Chinese or even Asian, I wanted my daughter to get exposure to other languages and cultures. After the tour with Ms. Sophia, I knew Beyond would be the right place for us. Her philosophy on child development, positive discipline and focusing on the whole child really resonated with my style of parenting. My daughter has thrived since we enrolled. She really loves the Chinese language and culture and her academic skills have exceeded her level. We recently took several academic assessments while applying for private schools and her scores were phenomenal. She scored an above average readiness for kindergarten and we were officially accepted into our private school of choice. During the pandemic, Beyond stayed open with stringent procedures and we made it through all 2020 without a single case of COVID. I highly recommend Beyond and have referred other parents. Many centers have the bells and whistles of technology, but Beyond truly focuses on nurturing the child.

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Melissa W.

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We enrolled our 2-year-old son at Beyond Montessori in the Fall of 2014 after attending an open house over the summer. At the open house, we were able to speak with the staff and get the educational backgrounds of all the teachers. The teachers are well qualified, with Early Childhood Development training and have earned BA's or Masters degrees. Over the school year, our son's speech development really began to blossom. He is now a chatty young man and likes to count in Spanish and Mandarin. He has learned social grace and is sharing amongst his friends. The children are independent and know their responsibilities, even at a young age.  

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The recent graduates are at the 1st and 2nd-grade reading proficiency level in English, Spanish, and Mandarin which is amazing! The school also offers cooking projects, cultural studies, yoga, music classes, gardening, and composting.  

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The program is well suited for following Piaget's stages of development; where the child learns at their own pace, but still learns sequentially. Manners and grace are well taught throughout the day. During snack time, the children sit and wait until everyone is served, sing a song, and then proceed to eat. Moreover, the physical space of the school is inviting, clean, and well organized. It's not overcrowded with toys or sterile from any imagination, unlike some other schools that we visited.  

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The play area is AMAZING! It is surrounded by redwoods and has a big gazebo that offers afternoon shade for the children. The program director Mrs. Sophia is wonderful with the children and is always looking to improve upon her program. The staff is warm and inviting and really know the children based on their individual personalities and preferences.   

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I can't say enough about how much our son has developed in such a short amount of time. Our son loves going to school and we look forward to his continued growth as a well-rounded person. 

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 Cheryl C.  

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It's been almost a year now since our daughter started preschool at Beyond Montessori.

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I remember first visiting the school and sitting down for a few hours, and leaving feeling that we finally found it. The give away was, all the other preschools felt like they were managed by babysitters. Whereas in BM, everyone is an educator. And that was important to us.

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Through time, I've also learned to appreciate the exchanges I have with Miss Sophia (school's directness) whether we were discussing our daughter's progress, or sharing about our experiences growing up. I love the idea of working together and continuing our child's learning especially at home on even the smallest things. We had hoped for our daughter to be curious, and so far so good. 

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Max G.  

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I love the place! Our son started at the school several months ago and he totally loves it! The program is amazing, the director, Mrs. Sophia, is wonderful, thoughtful, and very gentle with children. She hired only the most experienced teachers with extensive experience and Montessori backgrounds. It is also notable how all teachers work in great coordination with each other. The tri-lingual program helped our son to start speaking not only our native Russian and English but also some Mandarin and Spanish. He loves to sing and sometimes he comes home and sings in Mandarin or Spanish, which is a great way to learn for a three-year-old.

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The most important for us when we were enrolling were two things: low student-to-teacher ratio and gentle kindness and compassion from the director and the teachers. Of course, the advanced Montessori program was also a must. This school met all of our requirements and we are very happy to have our son enrolled at the school!  

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The Yu's Family

“I highly recommend Beyond Montessori if you believe in giving your child the best and highest quality preschool education. Ms. Sophia is amazing in her dedication, enthusiasm, and love for teaching and the care she has for her students. She has designed an impressive language curriculum teaching children English, Chinese, and Spanish. The languages are taught in a manner that is fun and easy for kids to absorb and understand. Moreover, the school has outstanding teachers who care about the children and take the time to understand and develop each child’s skills and talent.

 

The name of the school is perfect since the curriculum truly goes “beyond" the Montessori method. While the Montessori philosophy has many wonderful attributes to offer, Ms. Sophia provides additional programs that create a truly outstanding experience for the students. For example, in addition to the core curriculum, she teaches the students about art, music, dance, world culture, and geography and offers field trips and exciting cooking projects. She also teaches the children important values, such as being responsible, appreciating our environment, sowing seeds and planting crops, composting, and recycling. The school’s physical learning environment is also impressive. The classroom is bright, clean, and brand new. The classroom’s design provides an immediate calming effect and reflects a natural outdoor setting with trees and skies decorated on the walls. The outdoor playground is beautifully landscaped and filled with new and fun toys. In addition, great care is taken with offering a snack menu that offers delicious and healthy snacks, such as yogurt parfait, cucumber, and cream cheese, English muffins, milk, and a variety of fruits and vegetables.

 

I wish I had the opportunity to learn and play in such an amazing school, staffed with outstanding teachers when I was a child. Fortunately, I am able to offer this school to my child. Although I commute an hour every day to send my child to Beyond Montessori, I know it is worth the time and effort. Watching him learn, thrive, and having fun is my greatest reward as a parent.”

- Michelle Yu (Parent of children attending Beyond Montessori)

 

Linda, Parent Of Child Attending Beyond Montessori

“My family and Sophia Jai's amazing preschool go back to January 2010, when my daughter Annette was almost three. We were looking for a good preschool that also spoke both English and Mandarin, and Jai's Montessori seemed like a perfect fit. Annette adjusted to its routines and environment very quickly, and soon she was flourishing. She liked the school's integrated approach, combining learning and playful exploration. For example, the cooking project might be a dish served at a coming holiday, and the students learn about its cultural significance in the introduction, then math and science during the measuring and combining of ingredients.

 

After she left Jai's and started attending the Mandarin immersion program at Azevada Elementary, several of her teachers have commented that her preschool has prepared her well for further education. Our second daughter Nora is currently enrolled in Beyond Montessori, which is a vision come true for Sophia. Nora was also very happy at Jai's, and we were concerned when she transferred to the Dublin facility. We had no reason to worry. The Dublin school has a beautiful environment, and clearly shows Sophia's care and thoughtfulness in all its details.

 

The classrooms seem to hum with harmony and stimulate one's curiosity at the same time. It includes all that made Jai's a wonderful preschool and then some. Nora comes home brimming with stories she's heard and activities she's done at school. She often asks provocative questions that clearly arise from her learning and exploration, and we can see she is absorbed and happy. I believe Sophia coming into Annette and Nora's lives is a stroke of luck for us. Sophia and her teachers are caring and enthusiastic educators. Nowadays when she sees Annette, she still shows real interest in Annette's development and offers a lot of encouragement. Nora is learning so much in their care, and I expect it's the same for her classmates.”

- Linda Lindley (Parent of child attending Beyond Montessori)