Allaire School

50 El Camino Drive, Gamma Building

Corte Madera, CA 94925

7 Reviews

School District
Grade

1-9
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on October 20, 2014

What a tremendous disappointment. We enrolled our child in this school and paid for special testing and a full year in advance. We explained that our child is challenging and that we have had behavioral problems in the past. Ms. Allaire promised that her great experience and attention would be up to the challenge, but she wasn't. What's particularly disappointing is the way Ms. Allaire handled the matter. She became rude and hostile to our 10 year old child. Rather than developing an empathetic relationship, as many have with our child, she was cold and unfeeling. Our child was expelled and I want the world to know that our experience at this school has been terrible. Beware.
Submitted by parent on March 20, 2014

Mary Allaire and her school are fantastic! We had our child at Allaire for two years and wish it could have been four. Mary does an incredible job individualizing programs to student s learning styles and needs. After attending Allaire, our child transitioned to a public high school. Her transition was successful primarily due to the organizational, social and athletic skills she learned at Allaire. Don t let this small one room school concern you. Mary has been doing this for over 30 years and she is a master at it. Mary encourages the students to do their homework independently, a great skill to learn. She wanted to know exactly what our daughter was capable of on her own so she could teach her the necessary skills to succeed. I must also mention that for those couple of parents who wrote negative reviews, I assume they never accepted or understood Mary s approach and style. All Mary s teaching assistants were wonderful. They are in the same room as Mary and work with her hand in hand. Mary is also very careful and precise at screening students that are a good fit for her program and is very honest with parents. Superb School all the way around!
Submitted by other on March 20, 2014

I attended Allaire School for two years and I really liked it! In high school last year, I had a project on a country and I was able to complete it on my own because I got the tools from the international dinner project. We got to do science experiments at the science fair. We have all sorts of school events before tests to get us prepared for the test. They show us how to memorize our notes. In the morning we work alone at our own level of ability and then in the afternoon we work as a class on the particular subject. Miss Allaire sets aside time to organize our work and our desk. I became very neat and organized through time. Everyone is really nice at Allaire school and if they aren't she knows how to handle them. My math teacher at Allaire taught us music appreciation with everything from classical to jazz and rock! He played basketball and ping pong with us too. One of my other teachers taught us how to speak Italian and interesting social studies. I was given an Italian name! We had the best overnight field trip to the Marin Headlands. We had field trips to museums and went on hikes. I learned how to play volleyball, advocate and read a lot better. Miss Allaire is awesome!
Submitted by parent on March 19, 2014

Allaire School is the best school for children with learning and social challenges. Mary Allaire is on top of her game, compassionate, sets challenging, reachable goals for her students, fully understands each child's learning/ social issues, operates with a high moral compass and demands respect from her students, staff and parents. The students learn to engage socially. Students train for a triathlon! Mary and her talented staff carefully coach them on each core academic subject. From this one room school, graduates are well prepared for academia and other ventures. The staff follow Mary's style of teaching, so there is nothing inconsistent. There are no class "pull outs" for "extra" programs. . There is parent involvement for carpools, etc. However, the children learn how to do their homework independently which is nice if you've ever dealt with homework battles:) Our daughter, now in tenth grade at a local high school, is doing well in her courses and participates in school sports. She is organized in her approach to high school, a talent learned over her two years at Allaire School. We are deeply grateful our daughter was at Allaire, under Mary's guidance.
Submitted by parent on March 09, 2014

The Allaire School was a tremendously positive experience for our son, Jonathan. He gained academic skills and confidence that enabled him to move on and thrive and succeed. Jon is now a software engineer, living in the Bay Area, and very happy. Thank you, Mary, and the Allaire School!
Submitted by parent on March 09, 2014

My son is Thirteen and through testing and different schools I have learned alot. Mary has been instrumental on helping me with tutoring and testing to understand how my son will learn best and teach him the organizational skills he needs. Will all have different learning styles and Mary has run this school for thirty years. If you go in and observe the organizational skills the children get you would be amazed. I saw one review that was pretty negative so I felt like i needed to express my opion having worked with lots of educators and read thousands of books! I am less concerned about the "Hype" of schools that are fast moving and academic. I want to raise a child that is a critical thinker and has the skill set that can carry him through life.
Submitted by principal on March 07, 2014

The Allaire School is for students with learning differences and/or ADHD who would like to progress at a challenging pace in order to achieve their learning potential. Students move ahead based on their individual levels of mastery rather than their age or grade level. Through a safely structured and supportive environment, we nurture each student s strengths while stimulating improvement in challenge areas. Using the psychoneurologic approach to understanding the process of learning, a child s particular learning style is determined. This style is composed of perceptual, cognitive and motor abilities. When students styles and levels of success are used to plan their educational programs, learning takes place more efficiently. Organizational, study and thinking skills are taught early on, so they can be generalized to future learning experiences. As a result, students can focus on more complex subject matter. As students learn to take responsibility for their own progress, they can approach new tasks with self-confidence.
Submitted by parent on February 21, 2014

My son has been at Allaire School for one year. This school has been an amazing experience for our family. Our son is getting an individualized education from an incredibly experienced teacher, Mary Allaire and her staff. The kind and supportive teachers Mary has working at the school compliment her wonderfully, teaching art, social studies, drama, etc. We looked around at schools and Allaire School is the only one that is teaching executive functioning and study skills integrated into the daily routines of the students. These skills are essential to be a successful students and lacking in many children with learning differences. Mary Allaire believes in her students and it is obvious that she loves what she does. My son feels this and his confidence and academics have grown immensely.