Lakeshore Montessori School

I had hoped to be writing a good review and was looking forward to my 2 1/2 year old daughter's first preschool experience, but her only 2 days turned out to be a nightmare for me. Day One she came home with a bump by her eye and two scrapes on her legs and when I asked how she acquired these, nobody knew or even seemed to care. asked if they had anything written up about them, like schools usually do, and they did not. When she had a potty accident at school they sent her home in the Lost and Found clothes, when I had already provided them with 4 changes of clothes for this purpose. Day Two they called me saying she was very upset and to come and pick her up. I left immediately. When I pulled up on a busy road, my daughter was on the side of the road, crying inconsolably, accompanied by 2 Good Samaratins. The staff were nowhere to be found. I called the school immediately to let them know I found my daughter on the side of the road by the school, and they had no idea she was even gone. When I went to the school to talk to them, at first they ignored me, so l had my husband come meet me to talk to them. (A good thing, because I was livid !). Needless to say we pulled her out immediately and we are now so scared to even place her in school period. This was every mom's nightmare.

My son has been attending Lakeshore for almost two years now and I couldn't be happier with them. They take good care of him while providing a safe place for him to learn and play as well. The staff are very communicative and have a noticed interest in every child that comes through their doors.
We researched a lot of places around Vancouver and haven't found one with a similar combination of education, focus and a learning/playing environment that offers so many things to do and ways to learn. That's not to mention how much trust they've earned by providing feedback and adapting to my son's individual needs.
I would recommend Lakeshore first for anyone looking to get a good start on their child's education or even just looking for childcare in general.

I like what I see at the school. It’s only been a short while for our son, but their dedication to a strong, self-productive learning environment is obvious. They seem to give the kids freedom to express themselves, explore and be independent, while still offering structure and discipline. These are very tough things to balance in a bunch of 2-6 year olds, but they do it well.

We did an extensive search for quality early childhood education programs in Southwest Washington before enrolling in Lakeshore Montessori. We found that Lakeshore Montessori offers everything we were looking for: the Montessori academic tradition, outdoor exploration and play, creative art and music activities, and an early introduction to many other cultures. Our family and children have formed lovely friendships with this community of families who embrace the same values. Both of our daughters were reading at 3 and excelling in mathematics based on Montessori principles taught at the school (and applied at home). The reinforcement of manners, grace, courtesy and other independent life skills our children receive at Lakeshore are an additional bonus.

We have had one child graduate from Lakeshore's program and another child attending currently. We adore this wonderful little school and could not be happier with the quality of care and dedication from the head mistress Katrina.

Lakeshore Montessori Preschool & Kindergarten is a rare gem - and, in our opinion, the very best early childhood education choice in all of Southwest Washington. We visited every available option and tried two of the elite, more expensive schools in our quest for the best. We found everything we were looking for at Lakeshore - a director with a postgraduate degree in education who combines the esteemed Montessori academic tradition with plenty of outdoor play and creative activities. The classroom is a contented hive of secure, happy, engaged, peaceful children. Our son exploded into reading his first month there and is learning cursive this year, alongside multiplication, soccer, and Swahili! He has developed wonderful friendships and blossomed socially as well as intellectually. We cannot say enough good things about this school.