Hacienda School

Really, everything just depends on the way you learn. For someone to thrive in this school, they would need to be motivated to learn. In my opinion, this school was amazing.P.S. For those of you saying that the picture on the website with kids in goggles and white jackets was not at Hacienda, that is not true. Those two kids attended Hacienda a while ago and are in high school or college right now.

Nothing beats the student-directed learning approach. We have tried the alternative and, even though all the advanced material might impress parents, students will not gain true knowledge if not delivered in a way they can integrate and build on. We've tried the alternatives. My child was in a different highly academic environment where the brighter kids, including my own, figured out how to get the points they need to get the grades their parents want to see. They all sounded so smart when regurgitating what they learned. Try to get them to explain what is behind the information or challenge the information critically, and you realize all they did is absorb facts. In contrast, when my child completed the math book at Hacienda, the teacher then went back and taught the applied version of that same math so her student understood how what he mastered is used and what it represents. The only criticism I have is I wish their grading for middle school report cards mirrored the "typical" grading in the school community (A, B, C, etc. instead of O, S, etc.). I think making it more relatable to the outside would be good for the students when they move on. Their assignments are graded with As, Bs, Cs, etc, so I'm not sure why this doesn't translate to report cards.Also, I am not sure why the previous poster is stating there is no computer work. The students learn technology. My child uses google docs regularly for the multiple writing assignments so it is actually required.

"Buyer be aware" Science consist of watching popular children science videos. No Social Studies Curriculum. Picture on website with kids with goggles and white jackets is not at Hacienda. Better Montessori Education option at Valley Montessori in Livermore. Hacienda does not have enough room. Students are doing independent work time with music, chinese, group spelling or reading groups going on in same area. Spanish is held in the kitchen. Computers in lower school are not used and in fact most computers don't work and no IT person on campus. Just ask Director. School is not Accredited that is the clue not a good fit for parents looking for a solid education.

Very disappointed. We felt the full day program matched our work schedule well and we had a Montessori preschool program that we loved. However, we really felt that the attention was more on the generating conserving money than the kids. We moved out to a local public school and have been really happy and it has been good for our child who needs extra challenge. We were surprised that the expectations for reading levels was higher in the new school. I guess if we didn't have an excellent public system it would have been good though.

N/A