Kindergarten Testimonials

 

In a word, Small Friends kindergarten is super-wonder-fantastic-al.  The curriculum is challenging and implemented in a engaging and fun way for the children.  Teachers Lisa and Wil are dedicated, enthusiastic and caring, and have an obvious passion for teaching and love for the children.  Music in the classroom on a daily basis is to me an added bonus.  My son is learning so much academically, emotionally and socially during his Kindergarten year. He is developing a real love of learning that will serve him well as he goes on through school.  As a parent, what more could one wish for? (Andrea)

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We enrolled our son in the Small Friends Kindergarten program in the fall of 2010 and are continually amazed at his personal and academic growth since becoming part of this learning community. The teachers are patient and responsive to the children and we are always impressed with the creative ways learning concepts are reinforced. When our son told us about how they were using shaving cream as a medium to practice writing their letters, we thought, “Wow, that sounds like fun!” The program is very well-run and it’s apparent the amount of work the teachers put into educating our kids and communicating with parents through weekly updates and other means. We would highly recommend this program to anyone who is seeking a quality program for their kindergartener. (Lorrie)

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We have a child who has an end of summer birthday. So the debate began, kindergarten or pre-k. We decided pre-k but then we found Small Friends and are so happy we did. When we first met with teacher Lisa and teacher Will, they promised us our little guy would make a years progress during the school year, it may be to full-day kindergarten the following year or first grade but he would make a years progress; we were pleased with that and truly expected to have our child go into full day kindergarten next year. Turns out he has moved forward by leaps, bounds and so much more. Our child is thriving in this environment. We are thrilled with the progress he is making, the social maturity he has gained and most importantly the confidence that continues to grow. There is no doubt in our minds that he will be ready for first grade next year. We believe this to be entirely the Small Friends program combined with it's wonderful and patient teachers. Besides the exceptional quality of the teachers, another of our favorite things about the school is the feedback you receive, newsletters, emails and Friday folders to list a few. We could go on and on. It's has been a wonderful fit for our child and we strongly recommend Small Friends. (Marne)

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My daughter is so joyful at school! It has been such a treat to watch her grow socially and academically this year.  This could not have happened without the stellar curriculum and loving, safe, environment that Teacher Lisa and Will have created.  Their research based methods provide students with lots of choice and creativity, meet each and everyone’s individual abilities, and always use manipulatives so that while my daughter is learning to read and to think mathematically and scientifically, she is really learning to love learning.  This is what kindergarten should be!  It is with great enthusiasm and love that I recommend Small Friends Kindergarten!  (Courtney)

 

Academics

I really appreciate how each subject you've presented to the kids has been so well-covered. I feel that the process of learning has been multi-dimensional, and rather than race through topics for the sake of covering a lot of information, everything the kids have learned has been carefully and thoughtfully presented in a variety of ways. This allows students the time to absorb the new information, or, if the information is familiar, they are introduced to a new method of learning, which helps to reinforce their existing knowledge.

The progress that Julia has made in all academic areas is evident in her day-to-day play at home. She opened a bag of conversation hearts and immediately made a "grapht" of the different colors. She is confident in her written work and isn't afraid to tackle writing sentences, making charts or labeling her drawings. Her spelling is perfectly phonetic, which allows her to master long words, such as "sparkols" and "zookiney". (from her chart of "I lik" and "I dont lik")

I really think your creative approach to academics has kept the learning environment enjoyable and dynamic, while successfully reinforcing the building blocks of reading, language and arithmetic.

 

Social Skills

Here's where I feel I owe you a huge hug and a thank you. Julia has grown so much more aware of herself, she understands better how her actions and speech affect others and she is getting better and better at managing herself in a group. I have certainly seen a lot of progress--I can nearly hear your voices when I ask Julia to calm down or change her tone of voice, her responses sound very "school-like". I can tell she's heard similar instructions at school (not always directed at her, I think she's also learned a lot by example), and I love the ability to share that authority with you, her teachers. It is so important at this age that kids understand that school is not just a place for fun, games and play, but an institution dedicated to learning, and the particular rules that go along with being a member of a learning community. I think having a small group certainly helped in this regard, and I know Julia is more than ready to engage with a larger group of kids next year in first grade. And to have so much of the learning take place in teams or groups, what a great concept. This is so much more meaningful than just sharing a group of desks as kids fill out worksheets, which is what I observed Miles doing in Kindergarten. Pairing the kids up to solve problems,  read to each other and conduct experiments really reinforces the social and reciprocal aspects of learning.

 

Fun Stuff

A few more highlights include the ritual of gathering together at the start and end of the day with songs, another way you emphasize community and manage the transition in and out of school. Also, your efforts to communicate the classroom happenings and keep us informed are superb. I love the weekly newsletter, photos, explanations of activities and clues about what kinds of questions to ask about school. It's all been so helpful and enjoyable.

I found it ironic that from a financial perspective, we spent the same amount of money to have Julia attend Small Friends as we would have spent to have her stay for full day Kindergarten. I never considered  the full day program as an option for us, but I also didn't envision paying for Kindergarten. :)

I am so glad we found your program and that Julia was able to part of the first year. It has truly been a wonderful experience. I don't think she missed out on any opportunities, academic or otherwise by not attending full-day Kindergarten this year. I think in fact, she has been lucky to participate in what may appear on the surface to be a much less formal learning experience, but what turns out to actually be a much deeper developmental process, which I think is what Kindergarten ought to be! (Erica)