North Cambridge

My son has been at Banneker for 3 years now and they never cease to amaze me! They are absolutely wonderful!!

Peabody has a wonderful, diverse community of families. The children thrive in an educational environment that stresses art and music. There are many caring, dedicated teachers who strive to support all students. The special education and IEP team are outstanding.

I'm a parent of a current 1st grader who's been there since Kindergarten. We do not speak French at home, but our child took to it very quickly and has an excellent pronunciation. Within the first year she was fully comprehending the teacher's lessons and communicating in short sentences. In addition to the bilingual classroom, I credit this to the excellent FSL teachers who support new students and help their fluency develop. Another thing that drew us to the school was the introduction of a third language at a young age; in addition to French she has decided to focus on Mandarin and is excited about that as well. ISB cultivated a joy of learning and going to school in our child. She likes to show off what she's learned, particularly writing, reading, and math. It's been inspiring to see the first grade teachers build on this love of learning, and already I can see her making further gains in those areas. We have not yet experienced many extracurricular activities at ISB, but they do have clubs you can sign your child up for (things like cooking, karate, math games and many others) which the children enjoy, and also a very flexible a-la-carte afterschool care which we make liberal use of. We see ourselves staying at ISB for a long time to come!

I have had three separate children attend ISB over the past 7 years and while each of them is a different kind of child, they have each had very fulfilling experiences there. One of my children just graduated last year and is currently at Columbia U. After really embracing all of the international travel and exchanges she was able to participate in over her years at the school, she knew she wanted to be in NYC for university. My second child is in middle school and is really enjoying the careful attention she is receiving (she is a little anxious) and especially loves her German class. We only speak English at home, but now she and her sister both speak three languages! And my little guy is in 1st grade now after finishing up in the maternelle last year, where indeed, there are (as another reviewer pointed out) some teachers who may have a Caribbean background. But that, to me, is a great thing. Regardless of their backgrounds, all of the teachers are wonderful and caring and most have been there for years and years. I actually think it is wonderful that the teaching staff is so diverse! ISB is a hidden gem. Go check it out! I am so glad I did.