Turtle Rock Private Kindergarten

1 Concordia

Irvine, CA 92612

10 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-K
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on January 19, 2025

Where can I begin about Turtle Rock Preschool. It has been one of the best investments that we have made in both our children's lives. The school feels like our home, and all the staff and teachers feel like family. Everyone learns your child's name and makes them feel so loved and special. When our children graduate and leave to elementary school, we know that we will feel a deep hole in our hearts. I am pretty sure we will never experience an institution like this again. As parents, I can say with confidence, that sending our children to this school has been one of the best decisions of our life.
Submitted by parent on October 27, 2024

My daughter and son have been at Turtle Rock Preschool since the age of two. Both of them have received an excellent education. The classrooms are well organized and clean. The playgrounds are safe and well-supervised. The staff is well-qualified and administration is high-effective.ClassroomThey have a well-organized and high-quality classroom environment. All the materials are easy for kids to get. The types of play (loud, quiet or social ) are separated by shelves and furniture in order to build a clear boundaries.TeachersTeachers at this school are effective and beloved. They are very genuine and always listen carefully to the children and parents. Incidents between children are very low because the staff deal with them effectively.Classwork & HomeworkThe amount of homework depends on each kid special requirements. They always have advices available for parent to positively evolve children’s learning process. They make the learning process full of fun. I always know what is expected and have an approach to engage my kids according to teachers advices.
Submitted by parent on October 27, 2024

Our son has had an amazing experience at TRP. Best choice we have made in the last three years. My son has received excellent education (probably the best among the ones he has attended) from some very experienced teachers such as Miss Arlene and made some great friends. Based on what ive observed from his friends i think TRP did a great job recruiting some real great kids - i am reassured he is getting good influence from kids he plays with. Sending our second boy there too and we are so happy we get the opportunity to attend this school.
Submitted by parent on April 14, 2024

This school is no better than any other Kindergarten in the area. In fact, it is worse. Unqualified staff, uncredentialed teachers and overpriced fees. Unsafe school with classroom doors left open frequently. Regret choosing this school after I thought it was good. Most people I know who have older kids have shared similar negative experiences at TRP, too. Save your money and sanity and choose someplace else. Irvine has many excellent options.
Submitted by parent on March 10, 2023

They don't teach kids to be organized, they are not fair to kids, I have seen favorism for certain race kids, since the school is right on the street, there is not clear campus separation (there is always a risk of a kid sneaking or running out in seconds of time). Very messy and small classrooms.
Submitted by parent on July 01, 2022

I absolutely love this school!!! My 6-year-old finished kindergarten this year and went off to first grade at Vista Verde. The teacher said that they prepared him very well. That his reading and math are at a second-grade level. What I love about this school is that the staff is always, I mean always, very friendly and approachable. My two younger kids still go there. They just moved to JPK and PK. They love their new teachers and the classrooms.Would definitely recommend this preschool. We have been there for over 3 years.
Submitted by parent on July 27, 2017

Overall TRP is a great school as long as your child doesn't have any "issues." However, if anything comes up - it will be very difficult to work with the director of the school and upper administrative staff because they are extremely careful that their reputation is not tarnished. Many of the teachers are creative, loving and nurturing, as are most of the front office. Overall, I would recommend this school, but be mindful that the director is not easy to communicate with.
Submitted by parent on December 13, 2016

We left the school two months ago because of a job transfer. I was so sorry to leave. We have had 3 children go to Turtle Rock and have had such a great time. They were one of the few schools that take infants where we lived and it was so hard to leave each baby but the care given the children was so warm that it made it an easy transition. My oldest was there from age 2 months through kindergarten. Their costs are reasonable and even though tuition has gone up a little we can see the money is being put back into the hiring of good teachers and adding new things to the classrooms. Now that we are at a new school we realize how good Turtle Rock was. The new school is okay but we miss the family atmosphere and unlike Turle Rock which is locally owned, the new school is run by a large national corporation and so there is little personal interaction. The long waiting list is understandable in order to get into Turtle Rock considering the good reputation (over 29 years in its location) but it can be frustrating -- but well worth the wait. Also anytime I had a question or concern I was given a lot of time and was always happy with the communication.
Submitted by parent on May 07, 2016

This school is no better than any other daycare. I wish I had put my child in the public school Pre-K or kindergarten program. My child would have learnt something. The director is rude on your face. The director, the owners mother and couple of other teachers shamed me in a room. The director and the schools owners mom questioned my parenting and said that I am not a good parent to my face. Learning and playing: My child learnt nothing in this school. The kids get free time and nap time and snack time. And for the outdoor play area 4 and 5 year old kids have to do the baby activities like play with the truck, the sand, the rusted tricycle or just sit quietly. They cannot play basketball or any other active sport. It is for after-school kids who come and join the kinder class as TRP does not have enough space to accommodate them. They do have room to collect the checks, so they keep the kinder class full of after-school kids. Don't be schooled if your 4/5 year old comes home and speaks bad language. That is what happens when you mix 4/5 year olds with older after school kids. About the teachers: One of the teachers yelled at my child in front of me. And she was wrong. She later came to me and apologized! No wonder, that teacher has not been successful in her teaching career and ended up at TRP. The attrition rate for the teachers at TRP is very high. My child has been going to daycare since 2months of age and this school had the highest rate of teachers leaving. We had 3 teacher changes in one class at TRP. The teachers are very young without any experience. Learning/ asking questions: it is not allowed in this school. My child was made to sit aside for asking a lot of questions in the class. Being the smartest kid, who got the most stars in the class, was asked to sit outside the class group all the time for asking questions!!! There were instances, where the teacher did not know how to answer the questions and yelled at my child for asking so many questions. The reason why I write this review is because I would like all parents to do a thorough review of the school, the teachers, interview the director and the owners mom to see if there is a fit. If you want your child to be a child, I would not recommend this school.
Submitted by parent on March 28, 2016

Would give less than 1 star rating for the experience I have had with this school. First of all, this has to be the most overrated hyped up school in the area. If parents use their brains and really look at the curriculum it is no better than your average day care, only difference is the arrogant director and her chums with all their pretentious bogus remarks about this being the best of the best schools. So we fell for this hype just like any other parents who want the best education for their kids.My interview with "the director"She goes on to talk about how great this school in very general terms, of course. She has no specific answers to "distinguish" her school. So goes off on a tangent on how kids are not permitted to eat birthday cake and sweets, they are not allowed to eat sugar because some of the parents get "very offended" if their kids were to eat birthday cake and sweets. Ok and, how are you different from other schools? The question remained in my mind.Still, no clear answer, very general, circumlocution. Besides,get this, her question how I discipline my child. She had the audacity to question my parenting skills. He's 3 years old for godssake. I let him be a child. Her response was "oh, you don't say no means no."Well, he's a well behaved child, doesn't need "disciplining."Ok, she rolls her eyes, and sneers.Then goes with her rant about how she takes kids with the "right fit" parents and kids. I am MD subspecialist physician and my husband is a PhD from University of Michigan with both sides of the family including grandparents having minimum masters and doctoral degrees. Not sure, what else they are looking for. All in all, I felt like I wasted $100 on a waiting list, for a school you can find anywhere else. But, perhaps that $100 taught me a very valuable lesson...let your child be a child. That is what encourages creativity and success. Don't let some lame school label your child as this and that.And by the way, the harping about NAEYC accreditation, which is the most useless accreditation ever...my son attended these schools all along...no better or sometimes worse than your average school.No one has the time to even return phone calls.