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January 2024 by Christina P.
Based on our personal experience of having our child enrolled at Guidepost, I would not recommend this school to any parent. While we are extremely grateful that our child's teachers were outstanding the entire time we were there, we cannot say the same about the corporation that owns all Guidepost schools, Higher Ground Education, Inc. Our child was enrolled for 10.5 months; and during that short period there were a total of 3 Heads of School, several teachers and other administrative staff resigned, and abuse allegations were made against one teacher. On March 9, 2023, we received communication from the Head of School that a teacher's aid was put on administrative leave. The e-mail was very vague and spoke about how the individual needed a break to recharge for an undetermined period to reflect on her journey in education and take some time to herself and her family. Within a week, more information came out through other parents (not the administration) that there were allegations that several children were affected by abuse from this teacher. Trigger warning: Per the police report filed with the Orange County Sheriff's Department (Report DR# 23-008774), "On 3/9/23, [head of school's name redacted] was approached by seven of her employees who were concerned about a teachers aid named [teacher's name redacted]. The employees felt [teacher's name redacted] was being both physically and verbally aggressive towards the students. The employees stated [teacher's name redacted] would verbally abuse the children by calling them "losers" and telling them to "Hit other children because they deserve it". They also alleged [teacher's name redacted] would also slam kids down on their feet hard and slam them on bicycles seats when asked to ride a bicycle." Unfortunately, several teachers reported these allegations to the prior administration sometime at the end of 2022, but due to the administration turnover, these allegations were not taken seriously until March by the new Head of School. This negligent oversight enabled the abuse of children to continue for months after the first allegations were made. We are extremely lucky that our child was not directly affected by this teacher; however, after the abuse allegations came to light, we had severe anxiety dropping off our child to school. Every day we worried that a teacher outside of our child's two teachers would harm our child. There was one day that both the lead and assistant teacher were out, so we did not have our child go to school that day because we did not trust anyone other than our child's teachers. During the 10.5 month period my child was enrolled, the school received 3 citations. One citation was because a child was left out in the play-yard without any supervision from staff (4/10/23). Another parent, who was picking up their own child, had noticed the child was alone on the play-yard without any staff present. Please visit ccld.dss.ca.gov/carefaci… to view citations and reports filed for Guidepost (Type A Citation Total: 1, Type B Citations Total: 6). As for security, there were no working cameras. In fact, there weren't any cameras installed in the front exterior or playground area. We received communication on May 17, 2023, that front exterior cameras were installed and that two exterior cameras would be installed in the playground. It took two months after the abuse allegations to get the cameras installed and working. Also, to enter the school only a short numerical code is required to enter and most of the time, no employees were monitoring who was coming into the school. The lack of monitoring made us fearful about the ease in which someone could gain access to the classrooms. Our child's teachers were outstanding despite all the challenging events that occurred, but it was difficult to see them not being taken care of by the administration. We truly hope Higher Ground Education will provide better benefits for the teachers because they are the heart of the school. The
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October 2023 by Angela N.
Just an update from my review a year ago as of things have slightly changed for our household. Now both of my sons attend. Each in their respective class for their age group and both my husband and I could not be happier. Both of our children are thriving and doing well. We can see their growth in leaps and bounds. Ms. Dora in nido class aka the infant class, has been so warm and welcoming. Her and the entire nido team have been amazing with my baby adjust and integrate into the class. While my toddler who will be moving up to the next class has continue to thrive and grow with the help of Ms. Ashley and Ms. Rozzy. I cannot describe how amazing this school is. Even with the numerous suddenly resignation of staff across the board, our children's teachers have maintained to be rock solid and really ensure the kids day to day is not disrupted. The new head and assistant admin have been kind and great with all of questions and concerns. We have been there for over a year now and even though there have been a couple of extremely rough patches, I'm happy we stayed.
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July 2023 by Ancy K.
If I could give a zero, I would. This is my personal and direct experience as a parent who sent their kid to this school. Most of these "5-star reviews" are parents who were encouraged to do so during a raffle. We were encouraged to write the "best" review. *RED FLAG*I am writing my personal review because a great deal of parents (like myself), rely on accurate social media reviews to chose a daycare or school for our children. Since my son started there June 2022, 2 head of schools left, 1 assistant head of school, 3 lead guides (1 returned after change in leadership) and 5 assistant guides (1 got terminated for physically and emotionally harming the children-which I will get into more detail because my son was 1 of 7 children affected). That is a total of 10 people in a year who have left (not including the person who returned). No consistency for our children. *RED FLAG* During the months of October 2022-March 2023, my son would cry during drop offs and pick ups. We didn't know why, we thought it was normal toddler behavior. We were then notified that our son by the current head of school at the time on 3/2023 that our son experienced abuse by an assistant guide who was first put on administrative leave then terminated a few days later after interviewing staff who corroborated the allegations. Specific examples of witnessed abuse against my son included this person intentionally tripping him when he was running outside, pulling him by his arm and pinning him down in his chair to sit by his shoulders. These were only the witnessed accounts. The current head of school told us that these concerns about abuse were told to prior head of school who left end of 2022 but nothing was followed up. Which breaks my heart as a parent to think all this abuse was ongoing without further investigation. *RED FLAG*We wanted to leave at that moment when they disclosed all the abuse information but the head of school insisted we stay to make things right since that employee was terminated. We agreed only under the contingency that if we saw any emotional distress in our son, we would be leaving the school. He was having serious behavioral issues/changes. He probably didn't feel safe at that school so we left. I would never recommend this place. Another huge *RED FLAG* is when there are multiple violations posted on their front door for the public to view. Hope our feedback and experience help other families make an informed decision.
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May 2023 by Aman J.
Guidepost Montessori - A Truly Transformative Experience for My Daughter!I can't express enough gratitude for the amazing year my daughter had at Guidepost Montessori's pre-kindergarten program. The dedication and care provided by Ms. Gaby and Ms. Joyce, her teachers, were outstanding. They truly went above and beyond to connect with her, delivering personalized lessons that catered to her interests and needs. I was thrilled to see her weaknesses turn into strengths within just one year! The writing instruction was particularly impressive, laying a solid foundation for her future. If you're seeking an exceptional Montessori education for your child, look no further than Guidepost Montessori. Highly recommended! 5 stars#GuidepostMontessori #TransformativeEducation #DedicatedTeachers #PersonalizedLearning #HighlyRecommended
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September 2022 by V P.
Carnival day at school! Thank you team for hosting. Our kids had a blast! Bouncy houses, artwork, painting, popcorn, cotton candy, were all great!
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September 2022 by Julia H.
Staff is professional, personable and kind. Super communicative but not to the point where they're calling you for every little thing. I feel like they handle more than what other Montessoris/preschool normally wouldn't. Our kids have been attending for almost 2 years and they've demonstrated A LOT growth.
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September 2022 by Bethany C.
My daughter has been attending this school since she was about 3 months old. The Nido community is wonderful -- the guides are so patient, kind, and trustworthy. We are so grateful for them! They have worked with her on weaning, napping, and her motor and language skills. It truly is amazing to see how much small children are capable of doing. The other day, my daughter wiped down our coffee table because she's been shown how to do it at school. She was so proud of herself and clapped when she finished. That's what Montessori does well: instilling confidence and developing competence in our children. We love Guidepost and our Nido community!
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September 2022 by Alice L.
Adding on that I'm really thankful to the Nido team for doing a fantastic job with my second child. They were able to get my stubborn child on the bottle when we were unsuccessful at home. Myriam, my older child's Children House teacher is also the most loving teacher we could ask for. My eldest has had a hard time dealing with the change of having a younger sibling and Myriam has been there holding our hand every step of the way by helping my eldest navigate her feelings, giving her a sense of responsibility, and making sure to cater to my daughter's love language.
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September 2022 by Edgar A.
I highly recommend this school. We have 2 little ones here and both have grown and learned so much. They teach everyday skills to help them be independent and we couldn't be happier being here.
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December 2021 by stephanie nguyen
After searching for daycare/Montessori options for our then-newborn, we found Guidepost Montessori and have never looked back. We love the super clean facility, friendly and knowledgeable staff, and other boastings such as:-brand new equipment/learning materials-a user friendly app with frequently updated posts about my child's meals/diapers/lessons/daily ongoings, including pictures!-open 7AM - 6PM, which fits with our normal 8-5 work schedule-open practically year round, and even open on most holidays-integrated learning opportunities between age groups-frequent opportunity for teacher conferences/touch base-optional healthy meal service delivered straight to their classroomIt was really a no brainer to enroll our child here, and that was over 2 years ago. Now we have our youngest daughter, 8 months, also enrolled in the Nido program. We feel safe and secure with the staff and structure at Guidepost, and can confidently say that their methods have helped make us better parents. We are so thankful our kids are able to come here to learn and be taken care of. Thank you, Guidepost!
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December 2021 by Simeon Ivanov
After a very long search, we finally found a school that we love. We had a very enjoyable and professional introduction to the facility and the curriculum by Diana and Sarah (Head and Assistant Head of school).The sign-up process was all digitalized, very fast, and hassle-free. At every step, you can feel that the place is run by smart people who know what they are doing.Our children were then assigned to Ms. Gaby and Ms. Shahzia's classroom. We loved both of them (as well as their assistants in the afternoon) from the first day, but the even better news is that our children loved the whole team as well.Both our kids felt very comfortable and loved their experience at school from the first day. Their classmates and their parents are all great people.The school is clean, safe, and very well organized.
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December 2021 by wei p
Summary:Pros:- New teachers seem better and actually teach kids skills- Looks clean (not actually sure how clean it actually is since my kid comes home with dirty feet all the time)Cons:- Naps aren’t consistent- Expensive (around $1k more than other daycares)- Tracking is inaccurate- Items are misplaced- Diapers, wipes, and food not included- Lack of transparency about CovidNapping:I put my daughter here when she was one after moving to SoCal. It was the only daycare that had an opening and would let the kids sleep more than one naps. I filled out a mountain of forms that described my kid’s eating and sleeping habits, but it didn’t seems like anyone looked at the forms. But they seem to only put her to sleep when she has no energy left instead of sticking to the napping schedule. She’d come home screaming because she was so over tired. Sometimes I can’t even feed her dinner. We discussed with the teachers several times about how and when to nap, but her condition didn’t improve until new teachers started. Even then, there was still no consistency to her napping.Covid:After a couple of weeks, there were emails from the school saying there’s teachers who’s family member got Covid. So I asked about the vaccination status of the teachers but got a generic reply saying they can’t disclose that information. Soon after, the teacher decided to quit.Turn over rate:After a month or two, all the teachers have changed. They never bothered to read any of the forms either and the old teachers clearly did not pass any information over to the new teachers. The good thing is that the new teachers seem more organized, and actually started doing Montessori activities with my kid, and my kid seems happier than before. However, naps continue to be a problem and my kids would still be fussy coming home sometimes. From this experience, I’ve learned to always ask how long the teachers have worked in the daycare as a major factor for selecting daycare.Logistics:They keep track about when naps, diaper changes, and feeding occur and you can see that information on a website. I never trusted that information because sometimes it’d show my kid napping for 3 hours, but when I picked her up, she’s tired. When I asked the teacher said whoever did the recording of the nap probably forgot to stop the timer. Pictures are poor quality and they upload repeated pictures sometimes. Pictures are almost never uploaded on the same day.Personal items:All parents are suppose to bring food, diapers, and wipes for their kids with everything labeled. We still get other people’s labeled food containers from time to time. My kid also wears different brands of diapers than we bring from time to time as well.Pros:After the teachers changed, my kid learned (somewhat) how to use spoon, fork, and drink out of a cup.Aftermath:After a month of seeing my kid unhappy, I signed up for another daycare (waitlisted for a long time) that did not have any of the issues mentioned above. The adjustment time to the new place was less than a week and now my kid goes there happily and comes home happily.Conclusion:Would not recommend. I think it’s better to go to a place that gives them one good nap instead of a place that *may* give them 2+ possibly bad naps. Remember, there ARE places that are don’t have ANY of the issues I mentioned.
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October 2021 by S. I.
After a very long search, we finally found a school that we love. We had a very enjoyable and professional introduction to the facility and the curriculum by Diana and Sarah (Head and Assistant Head of school). The sign-up process was all digitalized, very fast, and hassle-free. At every step, you can feel that the place is run by smart people who know what they are doing.Our children were then assigned to Ms. Gaby and Ms. Shahzia's classroom. We loved both of them (as well as their assistants in the afternoon) from the first day, but the even better news is that our children loved the whole team as well.Both our kids felt very comfortable and loved their experience at school from the first day. Their classmates and their parents are all great people.The school is clean, safe, and very well organized.
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December 2017 by Rebecca Girn
Excellent school. My two boys went here until recently, and we only switched because a new Guidepost sister school was opening up that offered Spanish immersion, so we took advantage of that program. But before we switched, we were extremely happy at this school, and it was a very difficult decision to make the change.The Nido (baby) classrooms are absolutely unparalleled. I don't know what it is about those teachers, but they have such a lovely, calm, positive aura, and such positive teamwork. You just walk into those classroom and feel "THIS is the kind of place I want my baby to be when I'm not around". They pay a lot of attention to your individual family needs, including your preferences for nutrition, which obviously is so important for babies in particular.Between the two of them, my boys have been in most of the classrooms, because my younger son Hugo moved up from the Nido to the Toddler classroom, and my older son started in the other toddler classroom and then moved up to the Children's House. So I can speak with confidence when I say that each and every teacher in this school takes so much care with each individual child, and is passionate about a strong educational vision that just plain works incredibly well. I saw the effects in my children at home. They are more confident, more independent, calmer (few tantrums), more willing to keep trying before they give up.I just can't thank this school enough for everything you all have done for my children.
