Alberta Academy (EMERG OPEN)

We are so happy to have found Alberta house day care! We have now moved to a different state, but really miss the place. Our little guy was 2 years old when he started here. There are not a lot of daycare options in Socorro, and after a bad experience elsewhere we came to Alberta house. They were very understanding and let me accompany our child for a few hours a day while he got used to the teachers and the new place. Once we started leaving him there alone, they provided great (verbal) feedback on how he was doing and progressing each day. Over time our child grew to love the place. At home he began to say things like "When I feel sad, Miss Gabby can make me feel better" and he would sing songs that he learned at daycare. It was nice to hear the good feedback directly from him! There were a lot of things I liked about it: - Plenty of teachers in the room so kids can get special attention when needed. While we attended there were 3 teachers plus the manager Nancy, who sometimes came in to help out. Some days there were only a few kids, and some days there were maybe up to 16 kids. - The head teacher, Diana, has a degree (I think?) in early childhood education. She was great in creating age-appropriate lesson plans that both challenged, taught, and engaged the kids. She sent back fun optional "homework" each week, along the lines of "color in this letter and find something in the house that starts with that letter's sound" or "use glue to stick these shapes on the right place on this page". My guy loved his homework!--and it felt good that he was maybe getting used to the idea of school. - They have a good balance of structured learning (during circle time, saying the days of the week, e.g., or practicing shapes together and things like that), outdoor play (good-sized fenced in sand yard with climbing equipment, digging tools, tunnels, kids trikes), and free play time. - They teach structure and obedience in a gentle way, e.g. they have footprints on the floor showing where the kids should stand in a line for hand-washing time. A few times when I was visiting I heard them all singing songs while waiting in line to help with patience. - Our child regularly brought home cute art projects, some worth saving. - Very sanitary, they wash kids' hands regularly and use gloves when getting out snacks and lunches, and when changing diapers. - They're very careful about allergies - regular notices/reminders to parents about allergies of attendees, and they have alternate snacks at snack time for kids with e.g. lactose intolerance. - They provide water regularly to the kids (each kid has a sports-ball-shaped bottle with straw, with their name on it). - Lots of diverse kinds of toys. There are different stations for puzzles, coloring, music, kitchen/food, doll house, science, blocks/balls, trucks, a bit of dress up hats, and fluffy toys. Lots of options for free play time. An just to balance things out :) here are a few things we didn't like: - The place is kind of annoying to drive in to; you have to do a U-turn just before the highway entrance. The parking lot out front is dirt and full of holes so particularly rough after a very heavy rain, although that doesn't happen that often. I am pretty sure that is my only complaint!

I was a teacher there for 2 years. I miss it everyday. Health issues was the reason for my departure. everyday was a joy for me. i enjoyed walking in those doors every morning. The parents were just as wonderful as those kids. If you need to take your kids to a day care or a preschool,the alberta house is the place for your kids to grow and shine.