Berkeley Parents Network: Downtown Berkeley YMCA

Berkeley Parents Network

Downtown Berkeley YMCA

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Classes & Lessons > Downtown Berkeley YMCA

Childcare at the Berkeley Y

Nov 2003

I would give the Berkeley Y another look. I have put both of my children in Childwatch since the first was four months old and have been very happy with it. They have a low staff to child ratio and if you go regularly you will get to know someone who really relates to your baby. The Y has so many classes and a great facility for you. I would recommend a visit so that you can see for yourself. Also, if you do decide to use Childwatch, go out of your way to get to know the staff, I think that makes all the difference. Joan

Hello! I am the Family Director for the Berkeley YMCA. I'd love to speak with you or encourage you or anyone with questions to come down for a tour. We have done extensive remodeling of both our physical space, drop-off procedures, staff training and more. We did have ''growing pains'' a few years ago, and some of those posts were written shortly before the pains prompted the remodel and additional infant room. You can reach me at 665- 3238 or the email below. Thanks! Eden O'Brien-Brenner

I love the childcare facility at the Berkeley YMCA... it is an amazing place with an incredible staff and an amazing selection of toys. My daughter loves it there and I've been going there since she was 8 weeks old. (She's 18 months now.) Definitely check it out! I'm sure you could spend an hour hanging out in there before deciding to join. The women's fitness center is wonderful, and supportive and friendly and I really enjoy the pilates and Yoga classes. Not to mention all the free kindergym classes and tiny waves open swim for young kids. They also give out financial aid which helps moms who are home with their kids and not making extra money.... -- Love the Berkeley Y

Hello, I'm a member of the downtown Berkeley YMCA and there are many mommy & baby classes offered each week, but I believe your child has to be under one. I've taken several of the classes there and I highly recommend the Karuna class that's from 11 to noon every Friday. anon

Dec 2002

I'm thinking about joining the Berkeley YMCA mainly because of the child watch service they have. I'm concerned, though, because my child has severe food allergies (dairy and peanut are the worst)and I'm pretty sure I will not have THAT peace of mind leaving my child there while I do my classes. Do any of you have any experience with this, any advice? Can you recommend an alternative to the Y? I'm mostly interested in taking yoga classes, but since a monthly pass to yoga class aroud here is about $80, I thought it would be better to join the Y and get some other benefits from it. Thanks anon.

We use the Y Child Watch regularly for our 4yo and have never had a problem. I've found that if you approach whoever is on duty and give them your specific requests, they are very good about it. For example, they will often take a group of kids to the kindergym, we prefer our son stay in childwatch and they have always respected this. Once when we picked him up, we were told he wanted a snack that one of the staffers had, but would not give him anything without clearing it with us first. I think if you emphasize the severity of your child's allergies (EVERYTIME YOU VISIT), there shouldn't be a problem. Teresa

I really want to recommend Berkeley Y Childwatch for your child with severe food allergies. My son has gone to their program for over three years and the staff is sensitive and knowledgable about food allergies. When you first bring your child in, bring a list of foods that they should be careful of - and make sure to send safe snacks with your child. Happy Mom

I have spent a fair amount of time in Childwatch (trying to get my girl to stay) and have not seen issues with snacks. There are clearly posted signs that forbid ''problem'' foods, i.e. peanuts, raisins, etc. Also, any food that is left for the children is clearly marked with their names. A friend of mine once put grapes in her daughter's snack and she was told when she came back not to bring them again. All that points to a pretty good awareness for food allergies/safety.

Overall, I think that Childwatch is a nice service and a good value. As stated in earlier messages, spend the time up front to get to know the staff and let them know specifically what your child needs. There is a tendency to leave the children that seem OK until they are crying, but if you make sure that someone engages with your child before you leave that seems to help. Joan

I had similar concerns with the Child Watch Center and eventually stopped using them as a result. Once I came into the center to see my child under the plastic picnic table eating crumbs off the not-too-clean carpet. Not only had I informed a staff person but had also place a tape sign on my son's front and back saying ''no wheat''. Plus he had his own food. The excuse I got was, ''We tried several times to keep him from the crumbs.'' Mind you, the people who volunteer to work with children love them and wish to do their best. Too often, I thought, their skills were inadequate for the tasks at hand. My experience was 2+ years ago, however, and I trust that Eden (who runs the place) has taken to heart the many suggestions parents have made. Another mom

Go to the berkeley YMCA child watch location & talk to the people that work there. Tell them you are concerned because of food allergies, and that you won't have peace of mind leaving your child there while you do classes. I bet they would be willing to pay special attention that your child doesn't get into anyone elses food. Maybe your child can have super cool blue colored masking tape on his back with his name on it (instead of the regular tan masking tape they use for all the kids right now). Something simple like that would surely work. The Y is a great place, and great people work there, especially in the child watch area. Good luck - anon

I am a member of the Berkeley Y. In child watch, peanuts are not allowed. There was a boy with severe peanut allergies whose mom used to put a piece of tape on him saying, ''No peanuts.'' I recommend that you call the head director of Child Watch, Eden O'Brien-Brenner and talk over your concerns with her. One of my children also has a very bad reaction to dairy products, and he has never had a problem at the Y. The most risky time is when they are toddlers and then to want to ''graze'' on any food in sight. You could request that a toddler be kept in the 2 and under room, which is away from the snack area. You could also ask about less busy times and try to go then. Good luck! Happy Y Member

I have been using the Y's childwatch for 4 years and have been volunteering there for the last few months as well. I have to say I have always been very impressed with the staff's vigilance about snacks. They always tell first time parents what not to bring and are especially strong about peanut products. Just as an example of their caution, the other day, when the Y was giving out granola bars as some kind of promotion, the staff of Childwatch posted a big sign just inside the doors saying the free bars were not allowed as they contained peanut products.

That said, the problem isn't with the staff but with parents. I often see people sending their kids with snacks that are on the ''verboten'' list, but we can't always catch it because they are often inside lunch bags, etc. However, the staff is also very good about not letting kids eat outside of the designated snack area so even if they do manage to bring some kind of offending snack, it doesn't get out of the snack area.

Here's my recommendation: go to the Y, use Childwatch, give your kid a snack before she goes or after she leaves, when you put a nametag on your child put another tag on her that says ''HIGHLY ALLERGIC TO PEANUTS AND DAIRY,'' then inform two of the staff members that she should not go into the snack area under any circumstances. If you do this, I think you can feel confident that she will have a safe and happy time at Childwatch. elisabeth

I wanted to thank everyone for their positive comments, and reinforce the message that we are always open to feedback. Our staff and volunteer team is always working to improve. Our goal is to provide a safe and fun environment for children and parents. Please feel free to contact me directly if you wish. Eden O'Brien-Brenner, Family Program Director, Berkeley YMCA. 510-665-3238. You may also visit our website at baymca.org.

Feb 2002

I'm interested in hearing from those of you who have recently taken your infants to ChildWatch at the Berkeley YMCA. I took my sleepoing 4 month old to ChildWatch the other day and I was a little alarmed. I wasn't acknowledged by staff. I finally had to ask where I should put my son. I was told that I could put my infant in the infant toddler room but that no one was in there right now -- all the staff were in the front room -- so it was suggested that it might be better to leave my son in the main room. That should have been a no brainer. Then one of the staff finally said s/he would sit in the infant toddler room. The whole experience felt very odd to me. It did not inspire a lot of confidence in the service and I spent my workout feeling uneasy about whether my son was being well cared for. I cut my workout short and went to pick up my son. When I arrived, he was awake, seemed content, and was being held by a staff member who hadn't been there when I came in. I used to take my oldest boy (now 2.5 yrs) to childwatch when he was a year or so old -- previous to the expansion-- I felt okay about ChildWatch at the time. Does anyone have any experience they can share about their infants (12 months or less) and ChildWatch. I want to figure out if I want to leave my child there while I work out or make alternate arrangements until he is older. Thanks. Signed: W.R.

I know the post asked for recent experiences, but I want to share a BAD experience my child had at Berkeley YMCA child watch 3 years ago. My daughter asked to go to the bathroom, and one of the adults opened the heavy door for her. There was a baby crying continuously, so the employee childcare person left to take the baby back to his mom, leaving a volunteer in charge of 3 other kids. She FORGOT about my 4-year old, until 5-10 minutes later (or longer?) - by which time she was hysterically crying. Although they fixed the door so this exact thing could not happen again, it was symptomatic of the lack of training and careful attention to each child on the part of some volunteers. Needless to say that was our last visit. The staff were very defensive and dismissing of my daughter's obvious upset - her eyes looked like she had been crying for an hour. I recommend that you only consider leaving a child there after connecting with a particular person, and getting assurances that this specific person would be responsible for your kid the whole time you will be gone. Just leaving your child in what can easily become a very crowded and stressful situation without enough trained staff is in my view dangerous, or at least asking for an upsetting experience. Anonymous

My son is a little older now, but I did take him to childwatch before his first birthday. I have mixed feelings about the Y childwatch program--you really do have to find someone and personally talk with them. I usually spend a few minutes with both my child and the caregiver. Still, I often found my son in someone else's care when i get back, although he was supervised. Once, however, he was in a corner out of view of the caregiver--I did not like that. FYI, I have boycott the Y childwatch and Kindergym since December, because as colds and flu season approached, every time we went there, my son would get sick the next day: colds, pink eye, roseola. It just wasn't worth it. I wish there was something that the Y childwatch staff could do to keep the germ level lower (having parents regularly help clean the toys; have a box of wipes to clean hands going in and out; actually enforcing the no fever rule), but it just doesn't seem a priority to them. Carolyn

I have always heard good things about the ymca childwatch but was not overly impressed when I tried leaving my son there. I was also not greeted or made to feel secure when leaving. The hardest part for him was that the person I spoke with would finish her shift or have a break and he would fall to pieces. When the new staff member would come to get me from my workout the information I had given regarding my son would not have been passed on. I tried going and staying with my son a couple of times but decided instead to work out when my husband could be at home. christine

I had a similar feeling that there was no-one in charge when i started taking my daughter to childwatch when she was about 4 mo. old. It's true that the staff includes volunteers and parents who don't work long hours there and thus there is some turn over during the day. I think it's also true that there are always some more senior people in charge there at any given time. Overall I like the people who work there and think they do a caring and competent job.

After a few uneasy visits it finally began to work for me when I started bringing my daughter in regularly (1-2x/wk) and at the same time of day/week. I got to know the staffthat worked those shifts and there were specific people who took a special interest in my child who I would seek out to leave her with, and who she became attached to. I think it helps to be assertive and ask ''who's the senior person in charge here?'' and then to clearly communicate to that person or whoever is taking your child any specific directions: he especially likes to be held, he should have this bottle at 1 pm, please find me immediately if he cries, etc.

Dance Classes

Re: Informal dance/movement class for 3-year-old (March 2004)
Check out the Berkeley YMCA for ballet, tumbling, and hip hop classes for toddlers and preschoolers. My 3 yr old son is currently enjoying his hip hop class with Ms. Nancy. Mama on the move

Kids' Club Afterschool Programs

August 2002

I'm looking for opinions on the Kids Club after school program sponsored by the Albany YMCA. My daughter will be going to Malcolm X and Kids Club is at the school site. What do they do with the kids? I would appreciate anything you can tell me about it. Thank you. Berkeley mom

My son currently attends the YMCA Kids Club at Malcolm X. He has participated since kindergarten and he is now in 3rd grade. The program has a fun, caring staff. While we are still adjusting to the losss of one of the teachers due to retirement, the remaining staff members are all very enthusiastic and creative. The teacher/student ratio is wonderful, and the mixed age setting works well there. I think the kids that attend are all just wonderful, and no one thinks twice about playing with younger/older kids. Every day the kids have art activities, physical play (great games such as ga-ga ball, and Star Wars), board games and story times. The kids learn cooperative play, and a homework time is available daily. In the past, the kids put on wonderful plays written and directed by Nancy, and I think that may continue. My son is still raving about the program, and he thinks of it as the highlight of his day. I would like to see a more diverse environment, but I don;t have the answer to that. I think the program is excellent, especially for younger children. My son has made some of his best friends in the program, and he is NEVER bored. Bennett

1998

My son attended after-school programs sponsored by the Albany-Berkeley YMCA Kids Club from 1st-5th grades (1992-1996). The cost in 1996 for 5 days/wk. (2PM-6PM) was around $340.00 per month. This was pro-rated for shorter months (December, Spring Break, etc.). I'm not sure if YMCA operates Kids Clubs at every public school. My son's school (Emerson in Berkeley) had one, but I think that there were some kids who were bussed to Emerson after school from other schools. I was very happy with the programs. The staff was very good and there was a wide variety of activities available to the kids. The Kids Club office was run out of the Albany YMCA, but the only time I ever had to go there was to register him at the beginning of each school year. Randal

Yoga Classes

Re: Yoga Class in El Cerrito (May 2004)
I'm 40 and I take a seniors yoga class with B.K. Bose at the Berkeley YMCA. The class is a good mix -- people between 40-70, half of the students men, and half of them women. Very comfortable for those of us who arent so comfortable with our bodies. New yoga fan

Re: Preschooler Yoga Class (2001)
The YMCA in downtown Berkeley has a great family yoga class for parents and kids but I'm unsure if it's weekly. Ann

Re: Preschooler Yoga Class (2001)
The Berkeley YMCA was planning to offer family yoga that included small children too. Call them at 848-9622. Community membership is possible if you are not a full service member. Nori

Re: Prenatal Yoga (1999)
Throughout my pregnancy I went to the prenatal swim class at the Berkeley Y.

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