Thomas St
Chesapeake, VA 23323

My daughter was in the Pre-K program and I can only speak to our experience with that program. I have 5 children and she is the youngest. This was by far the worst experience my family has had with a school . This school should NOT be funded for the Ealey Education Program as they are ill-equipped. The “rooms” are very small, dark and actually depressing trailers in the back of the school. There is no Dramatic Play areas for the children and very little room for them to move around.This school ignores the vast majority of research in early childhood education that shows kids gain knowledge through their experiences rather than having it spoon-fed to them by an adult. This school does not encourage exploration and discovery. They DO NOT provide rich hands-on learning opportunities to stimulate deeper understanding by asking probing questions. Play is not encouraged or tolerated; 4-year-olds must sit still and listen (they are expected to sit quietly for more than 15 to 20 minutes at a time) when their brains are wired to explore, their bodies are eager to move, and their verbal skills are ready to be unleashed. If a Pre-K student is being disciplined, teachers take away recess or outside time as a punishment. This is extremely harmful to a child in this age group and only leads to worst behavior. Activities never change or don’t hold children’s interest.When my child was at this school, I was called daily to report behavior problems. We tried to work with the teacher and staff but there was no empathy or consideration for her and the situation was actually causing her to digress and start to have tantrums (she never had them prior to attending the school). We decided to remove her from the school and place her in a private school. The 1st day at her new school, I was so worried I would receive a call. Nothing! I never received calls with bad behavior reports from the new school. During the parent teacher meeting, there were NO reported behavior concerns and she actually was moved to the highest reading and math level groups. The experience was a complete 180! Tragically, the very things that many uninformed parents desire in a preschool are the very things that are most harmful to their kids. I feel so sad for parents who have to send their child to this school and don't have the ability to look for an alternative.