Big City Montessori School

We have been extremely happy with the quality of care and education that we’ve gotten at Big City. We particularly love the mixed age classes and the wonderful teachers and special programs (Spanish, music, yoga). The family community has been wonderful and our child has thrived here and is well prepared heading into Kindergarten this year. We’re looking forward to sending our second child here this fall.

Our daughter is about to complete her second year at BCMS and we plan to send her there for another year before enrolling her in a K program. We have enjoyed our experience at BCMS so much that we are going to be sending our son there next year as well. Both our kids are/will be in Miss Amanda's class and we have nothing but positive things to say about my daughter's experience so far. We have seen her grow and learn and develop a real curiosity and interest in learning more. She truly enjoys going there every day, sometimes even wanting to go on weekends. She doesn't like leaving early in the day either. Some things we love: 1. Communication: We get a constant stream of updates every day of the activities the kids have been up to through Brightwheel. This is amazing as we can follow along with what they are learning and talk about it with her after school. We can also message the staff on the app and get responses usually within minutes. 2. Variety of activities: The Montessori method likes the children to be at the forefront of what they want to learn. Instead of having a rigid schedule or just play time, there is a combination of structured learning and then unstructured learning where kids can choose to do a lesson or work on a particular type of activity they find interesting. 3. Support for parents: Miss Amanda is happy to set up time to talk with any struggles we have when parenting our kids, especially at home, and is an excellent partner in making sure our kids learn how to make the right decisions by themselves. 4. Availability: There are no long school closure periods. The largest closures are 2 weeks in the winter and 1 week in the summer. Additionally the school operates from 8am-5:30pm offering great flexibility to working parents and no need to think about significantly long camps during vacations. 5. Parent community: There are so many great parents and the school makes a real effort to keep parents committed. There is no pressure for parents to fundraise and many/most parents come mainly for the social opportunity. Really the biggest measure of how happy we are is how happy the kids are. My daughter comes back every day with a smile on her face and she is never unhappy to be dropped off (after a few days of adjusting up front, of course). She adores her teachers and her friends. Also, reading some of the negative reviews, I do have to set the record straight with respect to the allegations of "borderline racism", which in my opinion are objectively false. In our daughter's class there is a broad mix of ethnicities and we (as an Asian family) have not faced any racism whatsoever. And the argument that "Hispanic staff members... are relegated to roles such as doormen and kitchen staff" is just... blatantly incorrect. All the teachers in Miss Amanda's class are of Hispanic descent and the school's co-director and Spanish teacher (Miss Hilma) is of Hispanic descent. Besides that, all staff are treated with the utmost respect (that they deserve) and it is demeaning to define their roles as "relegations" as if they are not critical to the functioning of the school.

Our daughter had a wonderful experience at this school and we were very satisfied with the teachers, facility, and curriculum. Thank you for taking great care of her!

It's been a year since our son has attended BCMS and we couldn't be happier with the leaps in his growth & development. As a 3.5 year old, he has good fine motor skills (drawing & writing), is able to focus for long periods of time (completes 100-piece puzzles on his own), and is starting to read & write simple words -- much of this is because of BCMS's montessori style of teaching & structured program. The teachers are experienced, loving, calm, and helpful; the adult to child ratio is 6-8:1. We very much appreciate how CLEAN the facility is, and the space is just beautiful & enriching, indoors & outside in the playground area. There is music, art, and spanish enrichment programs every week, and even on-site field trips that allow my son to learn hands-on about things from wildlife to different cultures & holidays. Lastly, they have an onsite kitchen with freshly prepared hot lunches everyday.

We loved our 2 years at Big City when our daughter was 3-5 years old. Wonderful teachers, great enrichment classes (yoga, music, and art every week) with outside teachers, on site field trips--what a dream! School is supportive and the other families are great as well. Highly recommend.

I generally don't write reviews online, as I prefer for people to discover a business's value on their own. However, I feel it is a public service to share my experience with this school, given that it involves the safety and well-being of children. When you schedule an appointment to tour the school, you'll meet with the owner, Ms. Amanda, and the office director. During this tour, Ms. Amanda will likely take the opportunity to casually brag about a children's book she wrote on phonetics. The school facilities may appear impressive at first glance. However, behind this facade lies a persona that lacks the basic integrity required for teaching. I agree with previous reviewers who mentioned concerns who may affect your child's development: **Dishonesty About your child's mental health**: They will claim that a specialist observed your child during class and that he/she does not belong to this school. However, if you ask for the psychologist's name, they will quickly change the subject. **Lack of Diversity and Subtle Racism**: The school is not diverse in its student body. If you drive by the school between 8 AM and 9 AM, you can see this for yourself. Beyond the surface, you may notice a borderline racist attitude from the owner, particularly a disdain for Asians, Blacks, and Latinos. While there are some Hispanic staff members, they are mostly relegated to roles such as doormen and kitchen staff. **Unfair Expulsions and Financial Practices**: I won't cover in detail the monthly tuition and the constant request for donations. They have a tendency to find reasons to expel children and keep the $1,000-$2,000 deposit. We considered filing a lawsuit, but the school's contract is written in a way that is unfavorable to parents, as is often the case with private schools. If other parents have had similar experiences, I strongly encourage them to file a complaint with the Department of Education.

I am a traveling music teacher and have been working with BCMS for a while now. From my very first visit I was blown away by the beautiful facility, outstanding staff, and attention to detail. The children are so clearly happy to be there, and after seeing the level of professionalism of the staff at BCMS, I see why. As a traveling teacher, I see many different schools and BCMS continues to be my favorite school to work with. I feel comfortable, respected, and welcomed each time I visit!

Best and safest place to have your children in. 3 of my kids attended Big City. One in the late 90’s, early 2000’s and late 2000’s. Rest assure your kids will be well cared for and educated appropriately individually. Ms Amanda and staff are wonderful. The building is kept up very well.