Woodcrest Preschool

21772 Lake Forest Drive

Lake Forest, CA 92630

20 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-K
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on July 02, 2019

Our child grew with Woodcrest since 3 months old and graduated from Pre-K. All teachers we met were kind, loving, knowledgeable and yet strict. School uses "KidReports" to share pictures of children and notify parents activities and incidents. We're fortunate be part of Woodcrest family.
Submitted by parent on August 20, 2018

I have had the best experience at this school. Their app that they use gives parents realtime updates of what their kids as doing. It helped me feel so much more connected to my 3 month old when I had to return to work. They have fun themes each week for the kids like circus or American pride and even hire performers like puppeteers to come and enrich the kids days. I have had such a positive experience here and have recommended Woodcrest to multiple friends.
Submitted by parent on August 08, 2018

Experience was awful and I should of taken my child out sooner. I saw issues while I was there but I held my tongue because I thought it would be difficult to move him and I didn’t want to create any issues where the director may treat my child unfairly. The minute I tried to talk to her about my grievances the flood gates opened and the last two weeks at the daycare were the most horrible experience my child ever went through.
Submitted by parent on August 07, 2018

The school is awful. The classes are over filled and the teachers are stressed. The director, Leah, is awful to work with. A good school starts with the leadership at the school and she is not a compassionate and good leader.
Submitted by parent on May 21, 2018

We moved my daughter to this school for her pre-K year so she could get used to a larger, more structured, school environment in preparation for K. I love how organized it is! They have an app that sends you updates and pictures all day long, from what they ate, to what book they read at circle time and if they slept at nap time. My daughter has made a tight-knit group of friends and loves her teachers. Ms. Elena, Ms. Denise and Ms. Michelle are amazing. You can tell they love what they do and really care about the kids. My daughter has learned so much in the past 9 months, and is now more ready for K than before. She has noticeably matured, can count past 20 and can spell and sound out 3 and 4 letter words.
Submitted by parent on May 15, 2018

We live around the corner and were hesitant given this is our first child and we didn't know what to expect. I have not experienced any of the issues identified by others relating to the administration. My wife and I have found the administration to be responsive and helpful. Our daughter has really grown to enjoy the daycare teachers and environment and we feel safe with the procedures in place for dropping off and picking up our daughter.
Submitted by parent on November 21, 2017

We live around the corner and loved that we could walk our child to school. The administration is awful. I'll go ahead and answer your next question... "But does the administration really matter?" Sadly, yes. Yes it does. We're now going to do what all our neighbors do, and drive our kids to a real preschool. Should have listened to them to begin with... We live and we learn.
Submitted by parent on November 21, 2017

Administration is awful. Constantly lying and never taking responsibility for their mistakes. You might think that you won't have to deal with administration much but they inject themselves into everything and just muck it up. And when it really got bad they actually started singling out and punishing our kid. There are plenty of other preschools. Avoid this one like the plague. We pulled our kid within 3 months once the horrors got unmanageable.
Submitted by parent on November 15, 2017

The director of the school, Leah, is awful. She will always tell you what you want to hear at the time of asking, with no follow through. I had no idea the director of a preschool had any effect on a child at a preschool. I read other bad reviews about her, but didn't think it mattered. It matters. You will have so much unnecessary, unpleasant contact with her, it's ridiculous. We pulled our kid out bc I was so tired of running into her and listening to her drivel. Honestly, just wanted a good school for my kid. I found a place less expensive with a normal director. Don't make my mistake. The director matters.
Submitted by parent on September 29, 2014

This is a great school. My daughter began at about 18 months of age and now is 3. The teachers are very caring. They offer a large variety of activities, indoor and outdoor. We noticed an immediate improvement in our daughter's learning after starting Woodcrest. Our daughter became physically disabled in early summer and the school has been very accommodating, and the staff has been absolutely wonderful.
Submitted by teacher on September 21, 2014

I have been a teacher for more than 20 years, with a BA and MS in early childhood education and development. I have the pleasure of frequently working as a substitute teacher at Woodcrest Preschool. Everyone who works at Woodcrest cares deeply about the welfare of the children, and they are all very good at their jobs.
Submitted by teacher on September 17, 2014

I would like to respond to an earlier review. I am the Director at this school and take A LOT of pride in our program. The majority of teachers that work here have been teaching here for more than 10 years. I think that says a lot. If they were unhappy and unappreciated like one of the reviews say, I don't think they would stay this long. Our teachers receive the break times recommended by NAEYC so they do not feel over worked and I have an open office policy for them to tell me if they feel stressed. The teachers are also encouraged to attend workshops which help them with classroom management. Working with very young children is not an easy job but we teach this age because we hold a special place in our hearts for them. It takes a lot of patience and tools of the trade to teach this age. This being said teachers have lives outside of school and sometimes that effects how they are feeling. The review also mentioned a child crying and as we try really hard to engage with every child and help them facilitate friendships sometimes they do cry and it may be a time when we are busy with something else but we continue to try our best. I have great teachers, keep up the great work
Submitted by parent on August 06, 2014

At first glance, the school seemed great, but after I enrolled my child, I started to notice certain things that concerned me as a parent. For example, the classrooms are way too crowded, which puts stress on the teachers. The teachers seem tired and unappreciated. While walking to my son's classroom, I passed the director, who said hello to me. When I was in the classroom, I actually saw my son's teacher crying. Not sure if the director had been talking to her before I entered the room or not. A day prior to seeing this teacher crying, I went to pick up my son and found him crying because no one was playing with him. I really liked this teacher and so did my son. I do not blame the teacher for not noticing my son. I blame the director for allowing so many children in one room. The playground is very simple. My son's class plays with the kindergartens during outside time. The kindergartens seem too big to even play on the play structure. There seems to be too many children, with too many different age groups on the playground as well. Overall, the teachers are great, but because of over crowded classrooms and unappreciated staff, I have pulled my child out of this school.
Submitted by other on May 29, 2014

I visited the school and was not impressed. For snack, they give each child a handful of fruit loops thrown directly on top of the table. The teacher in the 2-3 year old class does not seems happy to be there. The class size (20+) is too big and is too chaotic. The infant program seems well run.
Submitted by parent on May 20, 2014

My children love going to preschool everyday. On the weekends they are sad because we aren't heading there to plat. I feel my children are allowed to express their individuality at Woodcrest and I love that.
Submitted by parent on May 06, 2014

This is a decent school, the only reason I put my kid in this one over others though was that it is one of the few schools around that have an infant program and price/location played a big role too. Even though it is expensive, it is not as expensive as some others in the area. As my child has gotten older and gone through a few of the classes, I must say they currently have far too many kids (24) in the 2 year old room for only 2 teachers. There is currently a 'replacement' teacher in the 2 yr old room who has a very harsh tone with the children all the time (seems overwhelmed with the 2 yr olds). When I have walked through I see kids just pummeling each other and the teachers don't really pay attention. Overall, it is an okay school. The kids are learning. **what would make it BETTER though: The school could definitely be a little CLEANER. And most importantly, instead of constantly trying to get new enrollments, they really should focus on hiring a few more teachers that are good with children lowering the teacher:child ratio (especially in the infant-3yr old programs) and thus giving more individual attention to the children which is so desperately needed there!
Submitted by parent on June 19, 2013

I looked at a lot of preschools for my only daughter. Woodcrest was the best on one of the only accredited in Lake Forest, CA. When she started she was shy, introverted and had some pretty sad anxiety when she would leave me. Since being at Woodcrest, she's outgoing and loves all her friends! All the kids are always so happy to see each other everyday! They hug each other by and she always asks to stay late so she can play in the afternoon. She has learned so much through the curriculum and can write her name, knows her numbers and has become very artistic. I can't say enough about the staff either. Her teachers are AMAZING!!! I can't say enough about how happy I have been with all the teachers there. They are so warm and nurturing!! The staff is sooooo nice, I feel so at ease when I leave her everyday. I highly recommend Woodcrest Preschool!!
Submitted by parent on August 30, 2011

This school as awesome outdoor play areas. The preschool yard has large trees to climb, bikes to ride and a great climbing structure. The infant yard has swings and inviting grass and the toddler yard has bikes, trikes and more. This is a great place to play outside and inside.
Submitted by parent on August 30, 2011

This school is wonderful! Both of my children have enjoyed growing up in this school and are more than ready to take on elementary school
Submitted by parent on March 24, 2011

They treated my son bad and yelled at other children. He was only 2 and I took him out after2 months.