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November 2023 by Cindy N.
I had a rushed admission experience. On the same day I had a tour and was asked to pay $99 to get on the waitlist, I was offered a spot for my baby. Then their app was sending me urgent notices to pay the holding fee which will serve as last month fee. The focus on money was excessive. When I asked to be placed on the waitlist as my baby was too old for the infant group and a little too young for the toddler group from what I saw at the tour, the business manager responded with " you need to pay another $99" in a space of 72hrs or thereabout from my previous $99 payment. Initially I was given the impression there was a long waitlist. Overrall, I felt the school was money minded, profit driven or a ripoff in the way they tried to get my money. The outdoor policy during bad weather was concerning, plus I read a review that stated that all the good reviews on that platform were wrtten by workers at the school. I should have followed my guts or headed those reviews. My experience was not very professional and felt unfriendly and money driven.
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October 2023 by Jenise Marte
My 5 months old thrived at H4K La Cumbre. He would still be attending if we had not moved. Ms. Natalie, Ms. Marlene, and Ms. Marina felt like family. They helped my son learn how to sit independently, did lots of sensory play and art, and helped me get him on a solid napping schedule. You can see how much they love their jobs.Doing mostly nursing at home, they helped my son transition to purées. I miss H4K.
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August 2023 by Amy Nicole W.
Our child spent some time here this summer during the closure of our home school. It was such a wonderful experience! Even though Luca was here for a short time, the staff took the time to learn about him in advance so he was set up for success on day one. They went out of their way to accommodate his nutritional needs. He participated in a lot of fun activities and we got updates and pictures so we knew what he as up to which was both fun and reassuring. And he came home happy every day! If we lived in Santa Barbara we would feel lucky yo bring him here every day, and we cannot wait to come back. Thanks to Dominique, Diego, Dava, and Tamara!!!
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June 2023 by Meg Lutz
We had an excellent experience sending our toddler to H4K. She loved all of her teachers and playing outside all day. She learned so many new songs, concepts, and phrases, and blossomed in the toddler classroom that contains kids ages 2-5. We moved out of state or else we would have sent her there until kindergarten. The staff are all wonderful people and will be missed.
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January 2021 by Monique M.
Hope 4 Kids is such an incredible environment for children to learn and play. The teachers care deeply and have been so welcoming to our family. Our boys come home happy each and every day! And I'm happy because I know they are in great hands. Can't recommend it enough.
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January 2020 by Sara Kopp
We have been sending our 2.5 year old daughter here since she was three months old. They have taken such great care of her. She loves her teachers and the environment, especially being outside all day. We have two more on the way and will be sending them here as well!
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January 2019 by Noelle Buben
Hope 4 Kids (H4K) is an amazing program. I have two children ages 7 and 4.5 years of age and they have both attended Hope 4 Kids for several years. My daughter started when she was two years old and she was in the program through preschool graduation. My son started at Hope 4 Kids when he was just 3 months old and he’s almost 5 years old and still attending.I love everything about the program, especially the outdoor philosophy and curriculum. Each day is planned with new age appropriate activities. My children have done so many different activities from gardening, water play, sensory play and more. They are constantly challenged and never bored. My daughter attended for almost four years and has developed lifelong friendships. She is still very close with the children that she attended with and we often still get together for play dates. When my daughter was completing her last year at H4K, her class/group was very ahead of the curve and they even started reading. She was very well-prepared going into Kindergarten and was already well ahead of the curve. Her time at H4K certainly set a wonderful foundation and I believe it’s helped her not only emotionally but also mentally. My son is doing great too and I am confident he is following in the same footsteps and will be ahead of the curve once he begins Kindergarten.The teachers and staff are also wonderful. They all deeply care about the children and care for them as if they were their own children. I've developed great friendships with several of the teachers.I also love that the program focuses on healthy eating and nutrition. They have a wonderful outdoor garden that not only serves as a teaching tool, but also provides food for many of the healthy snacks that are provided. The morning and afternoon snacks are thoughtfully planned out and are delicious. I love that healthy eating is a priority at H4K and a main focus as it’s so important for children to be well-fed with not only nutritious but delicious foods.Our family is very lucky to have found this program and we are so fortunate that our children have been able to attend for so many years. I highly recommend this program and always encourage people that are seeking childcare to enroll their kids at H4K.
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January 2019 by Lauree Cannon
Hope 4 Kids Preschool's Outdoor Classroom Project is one of the coolest things I've seen in a long time. Dedicated to reintroducing the great outdoors to our children, there is hope that the screen time will diminish and our kids will not only get back to sunshine and playtime but also return to kids who know how to be social! LOVE THIS PRESCHOOL!
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January 2019 by Rosalyn Tomblin
It was an unpleasant preschool experience for our family. We felt they lacked expertise in early childhood development. We would not recommend Hope for Kids preschool. Look other places such as St. Mark's Preschool for quality care and education for your child. (Most of the positive reviews are from staff).
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January 2017 by Megan Soderborg
Our family feels incredibly grateful to have discovered Hope 4 Kids! We have been fortunate to watch our two children grow and thrive in this learning environment. Hope 4 Kids is dedicated to enriching and educating the “whole child” in a play-based, nature-centered setting. The teachers use current instructional best practices to meet the needs of all types of children. We’ve been so impressed by the professional growth opportunities provided to the staff and the value the school places on attracting quality teachers. It is very evident the teachers are dedicated to making the learning experience meaningful and joyful for all children! In the spirit of life-long learning and continued growth, Hope 4 Kids staff takes time to check-in with parents and make changes based on the needs of current families.We especially appreciate the emphasis Hope 4 Kids places on emotional intelligence and development. For example, each month students focus on a “Fruit of the Spirit” (such as Kindness or Self Control) to help develop student character and promote positive interactions between peers. The Outdoor Classroom is another magical aspect of Hope 4 Kids! Students have the opportunity to engage in hands-on learning about their surrounding world and develop a sense of environmental stewardship. Of course, we also see such value in the kids getting to enjoy the food they worked hard to grow– such a wonderful way to encourage healthy eating too! Thank you to all the wonderful teachers at Hope 4 Kids who work tirelessly to make it a wonderful place!
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January 2015 by Teresa Hahn
Hope4Kids is a wonderful, creative, innovative, highly motivated preschool. The curriculum and Outdoor Classroom are developmentally appropriate and lots of fun for children. The staff is warm, knowledgeable, attentive, and playful. The play yards are gorgeous and very creatively set up for children each and every day. The fact that they love children shows through in everything they do. I would highly recommend this program if you want your child to be engaged and happy.
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January 2014 by monica rodriguez
H4K sells itself as an innovative outdoor program that uses children's free play outdoors or in nature, to guide children through rich learning experience. In my observation the free play is for the child but I did not observe discriminate, careful, selective guidance by the teachers but random, chaotic play with the teachers just standing around. There was a student who was an English Language Learner and a student with delayed speech and I did not observe at any point effort from the teachers to elicite language or any higher level thinking interaction with these or any of the other children. I was deeply disappointed. Also an 'outdoor' program is not new, Anne Sullivan innovated it more than 200 years ago as her first 6 years of work with Helen Keller were all outdoors and with a free curriculum but with a careful, thoughtful and caring intent from her teacher (totally absent at H4K). I removed my child since for chaotic non-discriminate play I can do a better job of guiding him in my house and do not need a "preschool" (that is not a preschool) for that.