Saybrook Learning Center

My Grandson goes here 4 days a week. Very cozy place for kids. Very well organized, each staff has special & great in-​put to be connected with children. Great indoor & outdoor activities response & reporting is precise. There is a welcome smile on the face of each staff members. Great place for kids. Seems they are the best in Walnutcreek

I think this school is ok. It seems like the teachers are doing a good job preparing them for kindergarten. It seems to be well kept and clean. Parking is good when dropping off and picking up.
My only concerns are the gates, the door bell, and the director. It seems like the gates are too easy to get into, it worries me that anyone can open the gate and get inside. When the door bell rings, they let any child open it. Sometimes I don’t even see a teacher watching the child open the door. I know it’s Walnut Creek, but it doesn’t mean it’s the safest place just because it’s a nice city. I see cameras inside, but not sure if they really work. It would be nice to have some type of lock pad to open the door where everyone has their own code. My daughter went to a school that had a lock on the door where everyone would enter their last four digits of their phone number to unlock the door. I thought that was great security.
As for the director Ms. Solis, it seems to me as when every time I drop my daughter off she’s sitting down on her phone texting and paying no attention to the kids around her. As a director I would expect her to be greeting everyone, making sure everyone is playing safely etc. The school also doesn’t have any internet so there’s no way of emailing them or sending out reports to parents which seems kind of weird that they cannot afford that. It makes me think what is the tuition really going to… Of course paying the teachers and food (which is mediocre also). I think all teachers should write a weekly report if not daily, on how the children are doing and progressing and if their were any problems or conflicts at school. My daughter will come home and tell me things and or forget to tell me things and it’s would be nice if the teacher told us. We can’t depend on our young children to remember things all the time. I’m sorry, I don’t think this is too much as I seen another school do it for the same price in tuition. Unfortunately we had to move schools due to my work.
It would also be nice to have someone in the office at all times, when we have questions, need receipts, updated information etc. I don’t think the center director should be teaching and doing all of that stuff at the same time which obviously, she cannot handle. It was nice to see her painting her nails this morning next to children with that strong smell as I was dropping my daughter off.

Easy to park your car for drop off and pick-​up helps for getting to work and after a long day. Fun holiday based school events, they offers multiple languages, prices are normal for walnut creek area. Teachers our good and for us just as important low drama (not uptight stuffy type). Important to have a good leader and ms. Soli has always been that person for our family and many others. We have sent two kids through saybrook and have other friends children attending. No one has anything but positive things to say about the experience. Glad that we ended up choosing saybrook over the other three or four schools we looked at. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you do not. For the last five years saybrook has certainly made it easy to be grateful!

Graduated!

My daughter attended Saybrook for almost three years and loved it. We had her in another pre-​K near here and I don’t think she was being challenged enough.
The staff is really great. Ms Soledad is like family and really cares about all the little ones. She’s irreplaceable. I think the curriculum has prepared her well for kindergarten. They have lots of activities and spend plenty of time outdoors. So there’s a good balance.
You won’t go wrong putting your child through Saybrook.

Our kids have attended Saybrook for a year, and they love it. My older child has graduated pre-​k this year, and is moving on to Kindergarten this August. So their time is up at Saybrook. When he first started, he had just begun to recognize the alphabet, but now he is able to read some sight words. He enjoys learning and always asks if there is more homework for him to do. They bring home many completed projects that they are so proud of, and had so much fun doing. I feel that his time at Saybrook has prepared him well for school.. The hours are from 6:45am to 6:15pm. Most other places operate from 7am to 6pm for a full day. They provide breakfast and lunch and snacks. Needless to say, this works out great for busy parents and commuters like us. Saybrook is a learning center. From our experience with our children, to get the most benefit, enrolling children all day for at least 3 days a week minimum is best, so that they can participate in the learning programs in the morning and later in the afternoon. Saybrook truly is a learning center, not only for kids, but also for us parents. I think that as much as the toddler years are filled with fun, they are also filled with much frustration and seemingly impossible challenges. The owner and staff at Saybrook has been very patient with us, accommodating us through the tough times, giving tried and true recommendations, and celebrating with us in our success. They are very encouraging and supportive, and always welcomes open communication. I highly recommend Saybrook Learning Center

Saybrook provides a great balance of academics and fun for my daughter. She enjoys her academic lessons, crafts, music, outdoor play and many other activities. She always brings home projects she is so proud of and had fun making. The staff truly cares for each child and teaches through encouragement. We are very happy with Saybrook.

I truly disagree with go k in her review. Saybrook has been very flexible and supportive of our needs when it comes to caring for our 5 yr old son. I know this for a fact because my son from full time, has experienced being on half days for five days in the morning for a few months when we could not afford it. They were even willing to have daniel in a 2 days sched if we wanted to but we didnt have to do that. Soledad really worked with us through these hard times. Daniel was fed lunch at 1130 am and i picked him up at 12 pm. He also received academic work, exercise, play outside and projects even when he was there only for half the day. Saybrook is a great school. I take my son there with a peace of mind. The teachers say i love you to daniel. They hug him. It is home away from home. I call from work and they let me know how daniel is doing. My son has been there since he is 3, when he has not been potty trained. Saybrook had him pottytrained in 2 weeks! Also that incident in the parking can happen to any school. So i think that should not be taken against the school. Lastly, regarding setting parents expectations from the school, this is clear to us. We have sat down with soledad and have taken her recommendations as to implementing the same principles they do in school. You reward the kid for good behavior and take stuff he likes when he is exemplifying bad behavior. You emphasize no hitting, no screaming and cleaning up after playing. You have them wash their hands after going to the restroom for good hygiene. You call when you wont show. You read a lot to your kid and you encourage doing workbook… I was also told it helps when my son is well rested for him to have a good day and any irregularity in schedule affects my sons behavior. Hope this review helps all the parents get a fair evaluation of saybrook. I plan to keep daniel there until he is kinder ready!

My daughter was enrolled in the part time afternoon program which starts at Noon and after 2 months I am happy that I took her out from Saybrook. On the Saybrook website and contract you are promised an afternoon preschool program but in reality this program does not exist in the afternoon which is also confirmed by Soledad the director. Soledad also tries very hard to convince parents to enroll their children in full days to bring in more money. Soledad also does not included lunch in the afternoon program even though the program starts at Noon. Since the full time kids eat their lunch and immediately go to sleep for nap time, my daughter’s preschool would start off by going to sleep from Noon until 2:30pm. In addition, learning and advancing academically is not a priority for Saybrook. I also came to notice that the staff is overwhelmed by having too many children in each group. I was also surprised to find out that the parking lot at Saybrook has a history of car break ins and that the owner refuses to install cameras. As a new parent I was never given a full explanation or tour of how this Learninig Center is run and what is expected from the children/​parents. Overall, my daughter has had a very hard time adjusting to this Learning Center which right away put her to sleep. I am also very disappointed with the money I spent only to learn that this program is just a Play Center with false promises. Considering all the issues as well as the expensive tuition at Saybrook, my daughter now attends a Montessori Preschool part time in the afternoons for the same price.

WE LOVE SAYBROOK!!! My son is 4 has been going to Saybrook Learning Center for almost 2 years now and we are grateful for the brilliant staff, excellent hours (early drop off), and the learning and love enriched environment of the best preschool in Walnut Creek. Miss Soledad, the director is the reason behind our intial choice and we couldn’t be any more impressed with her care and teaching. Miss Debbie and Ingela are always on top of each child’s daily interaction. I am super impressed with the written and verbal communication from the staff here.
Also, they potty trained our 2 year old son in a week (thank you, Saybrook), this year he is taking Chinese and Spanish for only $ 10 per year for each language (amazing price! — and last year is was German). He can read already (ok, we also take some credit), knows about his Presidents, Months/​days of the week, colors of the rainbow, etc. (the Winter Program is the best!).
We have been impressed from the start, and it will be sad when he moves on to Kindergarten, but we look forward to sending our youngest there in a few years.