Berkeley Parents Network: Duck Pond Preschool

Berkeley Parents Network

Duck Pond Preschool

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Preschools > Duck Pond

Editor note: there are 2 other preschools with similar names: Duck's Nest in W. Berkeley and Oakland- Piedmont Av, and Duck Soup in Rockridge

Oct 2006

Any new feedback on Duck Pond preschool on Park Blvd? Pros and cons of the school?
Trixie

I am responding to the question about Duck Pond on Park Blvd. I think it is a great safe space for young children. The home-like atmosphere (the school is in a house) adds to the general feeling that it is a comforting and cozy space. Also, I have seen the school being thoroughly cleaned every afternoon and after every party (there are many). It is painted every year and the toys are rotated very often. The backyard has a fabulous new playstructure (bought by annual auction proceeds) and has a place for the children to garden. As for the more important question, how is the director. Lois Cottrell is an excellent teacher with a very progressive vision. She wants the children to learn to be independent but also realize that they are part of local and global communities. She is like many of the people who work with young children: great with kids but sometimes not the best communicator with adults. However, she seems to be working on it and if parents approach her, she is willing to discuss anything. It would be a good fit for an open-minded, giving family that is willing to participate in a community, as opposed to simply wanting a place to drop off your kid so they can play.
lucky DP parent

Feb 2004

Hi -- we're considering Duck Pond Preschool in Oakland, and I'm wondering if anyone out there has some current feedback (the most recent post on this in the archives is a year old). What do you like/not like about it? I've heard Vanessa may be leaving next year, and I'm wondering what impact this will have. Any and all comments appreciated! Thanks. mom of a soon-to-be preschooler

My 4 year old started at Duck Pond this year, after waiting to get in for more than a year. We couldn't be happier. My only regret is that he only gets one year of this wonderful, creative, and nurturing experience. I spent several days with him at the school over the summer while he was transitioning in, and since he often doesn't want to leave when I come pick him up, I've spent many hours sitting in the backyard observing the scene while he plays for ''just a few more minutes.'' So I think I have a pretty good feel for the place.

As a parent, I really appreciate how thoughtful the teachers are about the individual needs of the children and the best way to help them grow and learn. Any issue I've raised with them has been dealt with promptly, kindly and creatively, and I really trust Lois's observations about what's going on with my son at different times. His creativity has blossomed there, and I love seeing how the teachers pick up on the kids' interests and obsessions and turn them into curriculum. For example, my son and his friends got very into playing restaurant. Soon they were writing (!) menus and making signs for their restaurant. Then they went on some field trips to real restaurants to learn what happens in the kitchen. My son can't stop talking about those experiences. Every day he comes home with armloads of stuff he made there, all of it inspired by his own ideas and those of his friends, not a teacher's decision about what he should make.

In addition, there is a wonderful group of parents at the school. It feels like a real community.

As for Vanessa, while she is a terrific teacher and one of the original attractions of the Duck Pond for us, she's only there part time as it is. The fact is, all the teachers are terrific, and Lois has a real knack for hiring smart, educated, creative, loving people. The newest teacher on the staff, Abby, started this fall, and she is amazing.

If you have any particular questions, please feel free to contact me. Dashka

My favorite anecdote about the Duck Pond is that after I told Lois (the director) that my daughter was resisting brushing her teeth, she planned a field trip to the dentist's office and incorporated a whole discussion about tooth brushing into her lesson plan. It made all the difference--now my kid actually reminds me when she hasn't brushed her teeth! Aarti

March 2003

Re: Preschool for child with food allergy
My child attends the Duck Pond (see previous messages) on Park Blvd. in Oakland. My son has food allergies to casein (dairy protein) and peanuts. He will generate hives at the point of contact with these items or will generate hives all over the body if ingested, eventually affecting his respiratory system.

Several of the Duck Pond students have food allergies/sensitivity issues and the staff are very good about making sure the children are not exposed. In addition, they educate the other children about their friends' particular needs in regards to their diet.

Currently, Duck Pond has a no peanut policy. The director was particularly concerned that peanut butter can spread to objects very easily and indirectly expose my son. The Duck Pond also excluded berries from its premises when a different child had berry allergies. The Duck Pond staff are very good about letting me know if he was accidentally exposed to these items and if they had to apply and/or give him medication. Furthermore, the Duck Pond reserves a Cuties/popsicles for my son when families bring cake/icecream for birthdays. It makes him feel special.

If you have further questions, you may contact me directly via email. Good Luck with your search. Doreen

March 2003

Does anyone have any recent experience with the Duck Pond on Park Blvd? Our impression of it was that it seemed lively and fun for kids, but that it was in pretty shabby condition. Also, the snack the day we went was just a box of bran cereal on the table, and none of the teachers were actually engaged with the kids -- they were just supervising. For those reasons, it would not be our first choice for our 2 1/2 year old to go to preschool, but she didn't get in anywhere else. Should we go to the Duck Pond or find a family daycare for a year and try to get in somewhere else for the following two years? My thinking is that my daughter can survive a messy environment for a year if it provides a lot of stimulation and love, but is that worth the cost? needing some insight...

My daughter has attended Duck Pond for the past two years, and we are extremely happy with it. It's true that the facility is not state-of-the-art (although it IS usually cleaner and tidier than what you describe), but in my experience, that kind of thing is more important to parents than their kids. What kids do respond to is the teachers, and Duck Pond's teachers are uniformly excellent -- warm, loving, fun, engaged, and very knowledgeable about early childhood development. Because the school's philosophy is that the teachers should facilitate the children's play rather than direct it, you do see them doing a fair amount of observation and supervision, but there is also lots of warm interaction between the children and the teachers, and plenty of structured time during the morning art and circle periods, for example, and at weekly music and dance classes. Another thing I love is Duck Pond's emphasis on experiential learning -- the children take field trips to places like Crab Cove, Ardenwood Farm, and the Steam Train at Tilden Park, and weekend family field trips create a real sense of community among the Duck Pond families. I guess the main reason I am happy with Duck Pond is that my daughter is so happy -- she loves going to school, loves her teachers and friends, and is developing strong academic and social skills. If you have any specific questions, please feel free to e-mail me. Karen

My son started in Duck Pond this year (moved from a ''less shabby'' school and I had lots of other preschool choices) and I am sending my daughter there next year. You are right: it is not neat, not modernized, and the facility is somewhat shabby. But the care is outstanding. In all the things you noted, what's most important? That the ''children are lively and fun.'' The philosophy is not one in which teachers lead but rather observe the children and develop activities and environments based on the children's interests. The teachers have extensive experience and participate in (in fact, teach) professional development classes. Duck Pond is also dedicated to creating a community of families that support the school, which is so important. I recommend it without hesitation. But you need to be comfortable and confident -- and that's a very individual thing. If the messy environment or less structure makes you uncomfortable then maybe it's not right for your family. But if you can get past that, I think you'll find it very rewarding. sbedford

To the parent asking about Duck Pond Preschool: I would look and look again before sending my child there. My son was enrolled there in the fall of 2000. After visiting numerous times with the old owner there, the school was sold to Lois (the current director) in fall, and parents notified of the sale (at least the new ones) AFTER enrolling in the fall. That was not pleasing to me at all. One reason I enrolled there was because of the old owner, and having her leave without much notice was upsetting.

My son was just about 2 1/2 when he started at Duck Pond. He's very verbal, but had a hard time adjusting to being away from home (he went 3 days a week, 9-3 or so) and from me. I was always very clear with Lois that if he cried for more than 10 minutes or so, I wanted to be called, so I could decide whether to come get him. After a number of times doing that, I was then told by Lois that everything was fine with him when I left, and at nap time. Another parent who was there with her child at nap time observed my son crying and crying (on numerous days) and finally called me to tell me about it. She was worried that his adjustment was being misrepresented to me. In addition, Lois described my son to ANOTHER parent in a parent/teacher conference as a ''troublemaker.'' He was 2 1/2! Lois did not choose to confide in me about her concerns or complaints about my son-- once again, I was told this by another parent, with whom Lois was supposed to be discussing HER child. As soon as I heard about this, I withdrew him from the school (this was November).

I did not speak to Lois frankly about why I was taking my son out of the school. I very much wanted to, but one of the parents who had told me about these things requested I not say anything, as she was keeping her kid in for the rest of that year and feared some kind of retribution. I don't mean this dramatically, just that she thought that Lois might not be as kind to her child if she thought the parent had been instrumental in our departure. Lois did call and want to discuss our leaving, and it was very hard not to tell her precisely how I felt, but I kept the confidence of the other parent and simply told her we felt my son wasn't adjsting well.

Other things that happened: my child fell down the back steps and had a pretty big bruise and a cut, which I saw immediately upon picking him up one day. It was not a teeny scratch. No teacher admitted to seeing him fall, although he told me that one of them did and did not comfort him. When I spoke with her, she denied seeing it or seeing him crying after it, though she was ''on duty'' in the back area--so either she missed everything completely (as she claimed, which indicated a serious lack of attention), or she chose not to comfort him, which made me sad. To this day, he describes Duck Pond as ''the place where I cried and cried for you.'' Fortunately at the time, I was able to hire back our old babysitter, work part-time from home, and enroll him the next year at MCPC, a co-op where we've been very, very impressed with the compassion and skill of the director, even in the most challenging moments with kids. She reminds us all never to label kids. It's just hurtful.

All that said about Duck Pond, my son did love Vanessa, who is still there. I thought she was very talented with the kids and liked her immensely. She was caring, and my son really missed her when he left.

The place was not a mess when my son was there, and the snacks were better than you described, so I'm not sure whether they've fallen off in quality there or if you went on an ''off'' day food-wise. I did like the attention to pre-literacy, and they had some great materials, and the animals were wonderful. But all in all, I would definitely advise visiting multiple times.

I'd like to add my response to some of the email postings I've seen regarding the Duck Pond Preschool.

My family moved from the South Bay to Oakland in December of 2001. The transition was much more difficult for my 4 year old son than we ever imagined. We were lucky to get a spot in a small, nurturing preschool/daycare, but my boy was not happy. After 5 months of tearful separations, I asked the school's director what she thought. She replied, ''He really could be happier; maybe this isn't the place for him.''

I called the Duck Pond, which had no openings when I was searching in the fall. This time, I lucked out. I spoke with Vanessa (then the co-director) and told her about my concerns regarding my son's East Bay experience. She assuaged my fears and assured me that the Duck Pond was a "Happy place!'' She was right; we enrolled our son and never looked back.

The Duck Pond's entire staff, Lois, Vanessa, Cynthia, Billy, Leticia et al took our son under their collective wings. He is a gentle soul, and was easily overwhelmed by even a small group. This said, he adapted himself to the routine and loving, fun atmosphere almost at once. His separation anxiety disappeared almost overnight. Lois and Vanessa were diligent in reporting on my son's progress. The following fall, when it was time to think about kindergarten in a year, Lois informed me that she really didn't think my son would be ready, even though chronologically he was the oldest child in the school. We knew she was right, but it was still hard to hear. Her honesty and professionalism were right on the mark. Our boy has always been very young for his age. In the spring of 2002 Lois was concerned about our son's ability to seemingly detach from the group. She recommended that he see an Early Childhood specialist to ensure that he would be on track for kindergarten. We found a therapist that our son bonded with immediately and Lois has worked with him to target the best way to teach to our son.

Our son has absolutely blossomed at the Duck Pond. I love and respect the staff and will always be grateful for the attention and professionalism that is reflected in their work everyday. lsenauke

Our impression of Lois while she taught our children at Hearts leap was that she was very practical, very utilitarian. She wasn't much for being touchy-feely and we observed her talking quite sternly to children when she didn't know that we were in the hallway, having arrived early for example. She also didn't give parent and child much transition time for saying their good-byes. She may be a great adminstrator. I do not know. I do know, however, that she didn't seem really nurturing and my then three-year old asked to leaved Hearts Leap because he didn't like Lois. (He did like the assistant teacher, however.) We then found a pre-school more in keeping with our attachment parenting style. Happy to be out of the pre-school picking stage

Our four year old son has attended the Duck Pond Preschool for the past year. We are very happy with the staff, the facility and the philosophy there (we're former Hearts Leapers, too). We like the professional direction of Lois and the rich mix of staff experience. The Duck Pond is well run, organized, thorough and family-oriented. Family participation and cooperation is encouraged. The staff is diligent about reporting all illnesses and injuries, major and minor. I have always felt confident that our son is in caring hands. We love the home-like layout (library, kitchen, yard, room for dress up/imaginative play, room for block play/circle time, arts/projects room, stations for fine motor play that change each day, etc.) Clearly, a lot of thought and knowledge go into the facility and resources. The environment has never struck me as messy or shabby. To us, it looks well loved and utilized. Small children are active and involved in a wide variety of projects there every day. We find the staff to be responsive to all our concerns. Lois and her staff give thoughtful, insightful and caring answers to our questions and we appreciate the feeling that they believe in communcication between home and school to provide the best care for children. For example, the staff requests information about changes at home (trips, visiting grandparents, death, illness or changes in the family, etc.) in order to be as sensitive as possible at school. We rely on Lois and the staff for help with our parenting issues as well, and find their advice to be caring and sound. Our son is thriving and learning, both academically and socially, at the Duck Pond. We'll be enrolling our younger son next year and highly recommend it to other parents. Please feel free to email me for more information. Kristi

2001

Duck Pond pre-school in Oakland Wondering if I can get some feedback on the school. We're looking at it for our kids, and I'd love to hear about people's experiences there. Thank you! Irene

Our daughter has been at Duck Pond full time since December 1999, and is just going on to kindergarten in a couple of weeks. She has been very happy there for the whole time. It has changed quite a bit in the last year due to a change in ownership, and I've lost track to some extent of how things are done now versus under the former owner. I would say it is more structured now, a little more academically oriented, a little less project/art oriented, stresses responsibility more, has much more parent/family involvement, and is more community oriented. There are fun field trips on weekends as well as weekdays. There are special music, gymnastics and African dance classes you can sign up for (and pay extra for). The teachers are all great - Cynthia was there before my daughter came, Luma for two years, and Venessa came with the new owner Lois from the center they were both at before. Perhaps the best recommendation comes through my feeling that my daughter has learned to interact with all ages of children (and adults) in a very positive way, can talk about and work through hurt feelings, has retained her excitement over things like spider eggs and snails, and retains her natural exuberance. I just hope kindergarten will continue to support all her positive feelings about herself and the world around her. Susan

1999

To the Montclair parent interested in recommendations on Oakland preschools: We did a fairly exhaustive search for preschools near(ish) our Oakmore home (just below Montclair, just above Glenview). Our 3 year old is now at the Duck Pond on Park Boulevard, which we love, but which required more than a year's wait on a waiting list. I would be happy to share our search experiences and perspectives on a range of local possibilities, but it would help to know a little more about your preferences (e.g., play-based -v- academic? full-day -v- half-day program?). Diana

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