Berkeley Parents Network: Walnut Creek & Concord Preschools

Berkeley Parents Network

Walnut Creek & Concord Preschools

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Preschools > Walnut Creek & Concord Preschools

April 2007

I'm just starting my search into preschools for my son. We live in Walnut Creek, but I'm also looking in the Lafayette area as well. The postings for recommedations in WC are fairly old, so I'd appreciate any feedback good or bad with preschools in the area. anon

Our 3 year old son goes to Kid Time (http://www.eastbaypreschools.com/kidtime/index.htm), located on Geary Blvd. - west of the 680 (Pleasant Hill/WC border) and a straight shot over the freeway beyond Treat Blvd. The staff are wonderful. The owner and director are engaging, energetic, resourceful, excellent role models for the kids, who obviously adore them.

Outdoors, there's a huge, tree covered yard laid with a deep bed of tan bark with paths meandering through it, really neat play structures, sand boxes, trikes, a chicken coop (our son was SO stoked to bring home an egg straight from the nest!), rabbits, etc. The building itself is a sprawling ranch house that looks like a kid's favorite place to chill. It is warm and inviting, decorated nicely inside. This program embodies a well-balanced combination of early child socialization, academics, down-on-the-farm fun, and your favorite local playground. This program really does seem to serve the needs of a wider breadth of children than the others we investigated.

If your priority and emphasis is on socialization and, overall, ensuring as warm and fuzzy a world as possible so your child feels comfortable and enthusiastic about diving into life head first, then you'll likely find Kid Time as attractive as we have. NOTE: They have the $50/month potty-training-in-progress option, as well as a full kitchen where healthy meals are provided. - Daddy

As you start gathering information about preschools, you might check www.eastbaypreschools.com -- this doesn't list every school, but does list many, and provides enough information to rule many in or out. We started here, then went to visit a few locations to get a sense of what we really wanted for our son. Best of luck! Mom in W.C.

Oct 2005

When I moved to Walnut Creek three years ago I had trouble finding a preschool with extended care for my daughter. It seemed the preschools I liked catered to SAHM and did not have sufficient hours for a working mom. I finally found Kidtime and it is wonderful. Kidtime offers half day or full day care. Kidtime offers a relaxed, nurturing, creative, play-based learning environment. They have about 36 children in the school so it is not as big as many daycare type environments. Much of the day is spent in mixed age free play. Children are divided into groups for certain activities. The owner, Steve, is great. He works there as a teacher. He has cultivated a wonderful staff of bright, intelligent teachers. The teachers are from diverse backgrounds. There is a wonderful, large shaded backyard. They have chickens, rabbits, a duck, and a vegetable garden. Parent visits, participation are welcome but not mandatory. Andrea

May 2004

My husband and I are moving to the Walnut Creek area soon, and are beginning to look at preschools for our son. We are quite unfamiliar with the area and would appreciate any recommendations for preschools to help narrow down our search. I have checked past posts in the archives but would appreciate any additional and more recent advice. Also our son is now 14 months and I have heard that some preschools require an application at least a year in advance; if you have any experience with this process I'd appreciate hearing your story. Thank you very much! Kim

Recommended:

Garden Gate Montessori Walnut Creek

Sept 2002

Re: "Traditional" school 2-3 mornings a week
I know this is too far away for you, but I just wanted to mention the City Of Concord Leisure Services preschool because it is EXACTLY what you are looking for (except for the French, but we do get some Spanish!) I was looking for the exact same qualities and searched every preschool within 25 miles of my home. I finally discovered that what I wanted was right under my nose, and dirt cheap! I suggest checking into the city leisure services programs - Concord may not be the only city offering such a great preschool! Of course, I would highly recommend coming to Concord if you are up for it! One family drives in from Oakland and another drives from Oakley - to some it really is worth it! The teacher for the 2 year old class (must be 2 by 9/1)has been there for 9 years. It is STRICTLY part-time, semi-academic, and REALLY fun. My daughter wants to go every day! Jaime

April 2002

I've been watching the lists and checked the archives, but I haven't seen too many preschool recommendations for the EAST East bay :-) I was wondering if anyone knows of a good preschool in the Concord/Walnut Creek area. So far we are considering Walnut Ave. Community Preschool in Walnut Creek and Myrtle Farm Montessori in Concord. If you have any experience with those, please let me know!

I'm also interested in coops, but was concerned to see the high student-teacher ratios. I understand that parent participation is essential, but I worry that there may not be enough teacher participation with so many children in one class! Jaime

I can highly recommend Creative Play Center (a co-operative school) in Pleasant Hill for your child. I have had both my children there for the past three years and just absolutely love it! My first concern was also the teacher to child ratio, as it is 1:24 at CPC. Once I actually got involved and saw that there are also six parents there every day carrying through the teacher's directions for at least four different stations of planned activities my concerns went to the wind and never have returned. It has been such a rewarding experience not only for me but for both of my girls. They just love having their mom there as well as all their good friends' parents! Having a community of families to which you actually belong and participate with in running the school makes a tremendous difference in the entire family's life. If you haven't seen our school please contact us and come for a visit or two. We also have a pre-kindergarten class which has far exceeded anything my daughter has gotten in public schools subsequent to that experience. Farrside4

My daughter went to Morningstar Preschool in Walnut Creek--we were pretty happy with it. If you're interested in a family daycare setting, she also went to Annie's Little Farm (Ann Cohen), which we liked a lot. Deborah

I would recommend you check http://www.cocokids.org/ which is the Contra Costa Child Care Council, which provides free guidance for choosing daycare/schools. We live in Walnut Creek, but our daughter goes to White Pony in Lafayette and we love it, as does she. A friend of our daughter's and her sister go to Kidtime in Walnut Creek and love it. I also checked out The Child in Lafayette and really liked it a lot. Our friends' kids went there. I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the schools you mentioned. Good luck! Lori

October 2001

We are new to Walnut Creek and are looking for a pre-school, our child will be 3 in Feb. We have checked out the parent's network website and were wondering if there are any other preschools that parents would highly recommend. Thanks, Angela

The White Pony Preschool (Meher Schools) in Lafayette, close to the Lafayette/Walnut Creek border is supposed to be really good. Its at 999 Leland Drive, if you take Olympic from Walnut Creek, make a right onto Pleasant Hill Road, a right onto Condit, and a left onto Leland. Richa

We live in Pleasant Hill and I checked around extensively befoer sending my daughter to preschool. She (and we!) have thoroughly enjoyed Peter Pan Preschool in Pleasant Hill on Gregory Lane. The 3 and 4 year olds play together at the start of the morning, then are divided into small groups (10) for the rest of the morning until circle time near the end of the morning. The small groups are wonderful and allow for lots of individual attention. When the children turn 4, they go 3 days/week and only the 4 year olds go on Monday ams, which is sort of their "science day". Parents come in and help with stations where the kids get experience in whatever the theme is for the morning. We were also impressed with Mary Jane's Preschool on Geary, just near the W.C. border and have heard rave reviews about Creative Play (a co-op) in P>H., although I have not been there. Trish

Lori 12/99
Does anyone have any direct experience (positive or negative) with either the Early Childhood Services (preschool and kindergarten) at the Jewish Community Center in Walnut Creek or the White Pony school in Lafayette? We're considering these for our daughter - each seems to have a lot going for it. My daughter is now in a daycare center and is 16 months old, but we have to plan ahead for the transition to the next step. She can stay at her current daycare up to 3 years of age, but we might want to switch her to JCC or White Pony before that. Also, how much time would you recommend for transitioning from one daycare situation to another? She has only ever been at this daycare and started there when she was 3 months old. Thanks.

From: Deborah (2/99)

When looking in Walnut Creek I was NOT impressed with the centers I visited: lots of standing in line, counting kids to keep track of them, calling the teachers "Miss Mary" or "Mrs Joan"--not the cozy, child-centered feeling i was looking for. Also, lots of preschools have a religious component, which I didn't want. BUT, i found a family daycare that I like a lot, and my 31/2 yr old has been there for a year. It's at the home of a woman named Ann Cohen, (925) 935-6492, who lives right near the N. Main exit off 680. Ann is licensed for 12 kids ( most days has fewer) and there are always 2 or 3 adults there. Kids range from babies to pre-K, which I like. Down side is that are only a few kids of each age. There are four 3-4 yr olds and two 4-5 yr olds (starting K in the fall). Program is very unstructured, lots of music, art, and dance. Ann and her husband Allen and their house remind me of my childhood in Berkeley in the 60's, and I mean that in a good sense, although I don't think everyone would like it. Also, they serve mostly organic produce and generally healthy food. I also visited another family day care recommended by a list member. I liked it a lot, but it was far for me. Perhaps the same person will write in the name/number again.

The opinions and statements expressed on this website are those of parents who subscribe to the Berkeley Parents Network. Please see Disclaimer & Usage for information about using content on this website.