Description: Come grow with us! We are an organic Montessori preschool and childcare supporting full family thrival in Mesa Arizona. We provide a joyful and balanced educational experience for children ages one year to five years old in our green schoolhouse with organic gardens.
Where possible, ChildcareCenter provides inspection reports as a service to families. This information is deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed. We encourage families to contact the daycare provider directly with any questions or concerns, as the provider may have already addressed some or all issues. Reports can also be verified with your local daycare licensing office.
| Inspection # | Inspection Date | Inspection Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| INSP-0157442 | 2025-08-11 | Complaint | Complete |
| Initial Comments: The purpose of the inspection was to conduct a complaint investigation. A full inspection was not conducted at this time. The following deficiencies were observed at the time of complaint #00138882 investigation conducted on 5/7/2025 and are subject to changes pending programmatic review. Please submit the Written Plan of Corrections via the LMS portal within 10 days of receipt of the Statement of Deficiencies. Ratios observed were: 2-year-old children: 1:6 3/5-year-old children: 1:11 There were 3 staff interviewed during this investigation. Compliance Officer attempted to contact the complainant via phone on 8/8/2025. Documentation observed was rosters. Upon completion of the complaint investigation #00138882 , it was determined from observation, interview and documentation, that 2 of 2 allegations were substantiated. | |||
| INSP-0131574 | 2025-05-14 | Compliance (Annual) | Complete |
| Initial Comments: The following deficiencies were observed at the time of the Compliance Inspection conducted on 5/14/2025 and are subject to changes pending programmatic review. Please submit the Plan of Corrections via the LMS portal within 10 days of receipt of the Statement of Deficiencies. The Notice Of Inspection Rights was provided to the licensee at the time of the inspection. The fingerprint clearance cards for 2 of 2 staff members were verified to be valid through the DPS website at the time of the inspection. | |||
| INSP-0044091 | 2024-05-17 | Compliance (Annual) | Complete |
| Initial Comments: The following deficiencies were observed at the time of the Compliance inspection conducted on May 17th 2024, and are subject to changes pending programmatic review. Please submit the Plan of Correction within 10 days of receipt of this Statement of Deficiencies. There were 2 staff files reviewed. The fingerprint clearance cards for 2 of 2 staff members were verified to be valid through the DPS website at the time of the inspection. The following was discussed, but is not limited to: *Classroom rosters being maintained *Maintaining rooms that are not in use *Completed Emergency, Information, Immunization Record cards Compliance Officer #1: AuReyon Thompson Bureau Chief: Margaret Bernal | |||
| INSP-0032037 | 2023-09-06 | Complaint | Complete |
| Initial Comments: Amended on 10/10/2023 The purpose of the inspection was to conduct a complaint investigation. A full inspection was not conducted at this time. The Plan of Corrections will not be accepted at this time. Ratios observed were: Space Classroom: 1:6 Napping Room: 1:4 Farm Classroom: 1:5 There were 2 staff interviewed during this investigation. There were 4 enrolled children interviewed during this investigation. There were 2 staff files reviewed during this investigation. Others interviewed: Director The Compliance Officer contacted the complainants via telephone on 9/5/2023. Documentation observed were fire drill logs for 2023 and 2021, 2022 was unavailable. Upon completion of complaint investigation #00062168, it was determined from observation, interview and documentation, that 3 out of 3 allegations were substantiated. Upon completion of complaint investigation #00061395, it was determined from observation, interview and documentation, that the allegation was substantiated. The following deficiencies were observed at the time of complaint #00062168 and #00061395 investigation conducted on 9/06/2023 and are subject to changes pending programmatic review. Compliance Officer #1: Elizabeth Enriquez Compliance Officer #2: Denise Ruffalo | |||
| INSP-0028495 | 2023-06-22 | Compliance (Annual) | Complete |
| Initial Comments: The following deficiencies were observed at the time of the Compliance Inspection conducted on 6/22/2023 and are subject to changes pending programmatic review. Please submit the Plan of Corrections via the LMS portal within 10 days of receipt of the Statement of Deficiencies. The Emergency Disaster Contact form was completed at the time of the inspection. The Empower Self-Evaluation was completed at the time of the inspection. The DES Contact form was completed at the time of the inspection. The fingerprint clearance cards for 3 of 3 staff members were verified to be valid through the DPS website at the time of the inspection. During the exit interview, the following items were discussed but are not limited to: *Diapering containers being accessible *Location of art supplies (shaving cream) *Fire drill times *Completion of the Criminal History Affidavits Compliance Officer: Elizabeth Enriquez Compliance Officer Supervisor: Dale Evans | |||
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I cannot begin to explain how lucky my toddler son and I were to find this little nook of nurturing! We could not be happier or feel more secure with his care and education at The Little Garden Schoolhouse. I could not speak more highly of Jennifer, the owner and teacher. Caring for small children (and the parents who love them!) is truly her calling. He had been at another Montessori in Phoenix and liked it, but we have moved to Mesa and wanted a preschool closer to home and now he LOVES going to "preschool party." He gets to interact with younger and older children every day, gets to do yoga class "like mommy" on certain days, participates in the growing, caring for and harvesting of the food they eat for snacks which he thinks is such fun (and subsequently eats things he would refuse at home), and has blossomed in his vocabulary and developmental skills. Jennifer has been fantastic in teaming with us to potty train him (he's been challenging to say the least). She's worked really hard to come up with ideas to help us find a way that will work well for him and our family and is consistent at school with the plan we decided on. I have never, ever, not even remotely, felt judged for the parenting choices I make,and she's always been respectful and encouraging. She is so supportive of us and one of her best assets as a teacher is she really tries to empower the children in her care. The environment is safe, homey and serene, the opposite of what I've seen with other day cares and preschools. *I* almost get sensory overload in those places, so I can't imagine what it would be like for a child. The kids are all so happy and content when I pick up and drop off my little guy. We could not have had a better experience here and I will be sad when he's old enough to go off to traditional school. I could not recommend this little peaceful corner of the world more highly. If I could give it 10 stars, I would.