Testimonials

Families Love Sharing Their Experiences

"C5 set my daughter up for success. She went there from when she was ten months old until she was almost five. She left C5 thinking she could do anything and that her opinion was valuable, that she could problem solve as well as anyone. She believes in the power of her own voice and has the ability to problem solve. I saw C5 build that."

"I was really impressed by how prepared my son was for kindergarten. There was no rough transition, which a lot of parents experience, where kids are just getting used to what kindergarten is. I really value the fact that he was very confident, he knew what school was, knew how to be a team player, and knew good social skills in terms of being able to cooperate with other kids and do projects together."

"The teachers always make time for you, they’re always willing to talk to you and give suggestions. As a parent, I have learned tremendous amounts about how to work with my son.”

"The Daily Story is such an important part of my day. Especially as a working parent, it helps give me peace of mind to see what they’re doing. It keeps me connected. It enables me to have a deeper conversation with a child.”

"The Reggio-inspired program was definitely a selling point for us. It’s a very well-designed program for kids to put them in a comfortable environment and let them explore on their own; it encourages their natural curiosity and inquisitiveness."

More Testimonials from Families

She is in 8th Grade and Academically Excelling!

“Our daughter was at C5 for about 3 years. Today she is in 8th grade and is academically excelling. She has turned into a very well rounded, curious, and considerate person.

We travel a lot with our daughter and take her just about everywhere in the world. We have discussions with other families, friends, and colleagues of ours from my husband’s and my respective professional life. She’s able to sit there and carry on a good conversation with whomever is there at the table. I attribute that to C5 and what she learned there.”

Patricia L.

mother of daughter, Stephanie, 13 years old

My Son is a Pretty Confident Kid...

“My son is a pretty confident kid, and that has a huge amount to do with how he was taught at C5 and how he was cared for there. He was empowered to be the great kid that he is.

I was really impressed by how prepared my son was for kindergarten. There was no rough transition, which a lot of parents experience, where kids are just getting used to what kindergarten is. I really value the fact that he was very confident, he knew what school was, knew how to be a team player, and knew good social skills in terms of being able to cooperate with other kids and do projects together.”

Mercedes C.

mother of son Teio, 6 years old

My Daughter is a Poster Child for C5

“My daughter is a poster child for C5. She’s 11 years old, she is a straight A student, and she’s very self motivated and creative. She’s become quite a musician. She’s in a band and plays three instruments. She’s in travel soccer, is happily very competitive, and has adjusted to middle school beautifully.

My son is now in 3rd grade in a Mandarin immersion program. People say my son is very mature socially. Within his age group of friends he is a leader. He always has a great group of friends around.

My daughter was in C5 from age one to age five. My son was there two or three years. They are very self-directed. I like that they can approach things from different vantage points, can initiate their own projects, and they are very comfortable working with other people.”

Lani W.

mother of son, Kevin, 9 years old and daughter, Helen, 11 years old

They Both Have Straight A's!

“My children both entered C5 as infants and went through the preschool. My son is now in 8th grade in public middle school and my daughter is in 9th grade at Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory School. The both have straight A’s in school and are committed athletes.

The C5 program helped socialize my children to help think of themselves as a part of a learning group. It gave them a sense of the value of their own curiosity and it gave them a positive sense of adults as allies in their own learning processes.

Well into their elementary school years my children were still remembering and talking about their years at C5. They took enormous pride in the explorations that they had done and the expressions they had produced.”

Juliette H.

mother of son Eli, 12 years old, and daughter Miriam, 13 years old

C5 Set My Daugher up for Success

“C5 set my daughter up for success. She went there from when she was ten months old until she was almost five. She left C5 thinking she could do anything and that her opinion was valuable, that she could problem solve as well as anyone. She believes in the power of her own voice and has the ability to problem solve. I saw C5 build that.

Today my daughter is in 7th grade. She’s president of the Best Buddies chapter at Everett Middle School. Best Buddies is a program that pairs children with intellectual and developmental disabilities with children that don’t have those disabilities. They get together and do crafts at lunchtime on Wednesdays. She had so many ideas about how the program could be improved that the adults included her in the leadership. That’s a C5 thing.

My daughter cares very little about what anyone else thinks about her. She has very high self-esteem.”

Jennifer N.

mother of daughter Lily, 12 years old

They are Lifelong Friends!

“My children were at C5 from 6 months of age until they went into kindergarten. They are now in 4th and 6th grade. I trace much of the reason for their being good students and interested learners in their experience at C5. They are both very musical, inquisitive, and really love to get deep into a subject. They’re also just sweet human beings who care about other people and treat people with kindness and respect.

My daughter is still close with several of the friends she made at C5; they are lifelong friends. It’s almost like they went through an intense experience together and they bonded deeply.

If there’s a moment where they’re being asked to be creative, to come up with a new idea or a new plan or develop a project, my children are right there, they are just immediately able to engage. I don’t see that so much with other kids. My kids are right there and bursting with ideas. And they do it at home, too, it’s not just at school. They’re both incredibly creative.”

D’Vora T.

mother of son Nathan, 10 years old, and daughter Sydney, 12 years old

Incredibly Bright Kids!

“One thing that differentiates my kids from others is that they can find interest and enjoyment in things in under almost any circumstances. That amount of self-control and that amount of being able to create value for yourself instead of becoming a burden is a lifelong skill that they clearly have.

Both my daughters are incredibly bright kids. Some of that I hope is genetic but I have to believe some of it is C5. They have that natural inquisitiveness that I don’t know if I as a parent could fulfill as strongly as C5 was able to fulfill.

Our older daughter, age seven, who is more reserved, has this clear vision of the things that matter to her and openly can talk about them and openly drives toward them. Her natural inclination would be to be more submissive about it. C5 helped to bring out in her that this is important to do.”

Charles W.

father of daughters Nami, 8 years old, and Yuk, 6 years old

She's Become an Alum!

“My daughter was only six or eight weeks old when she started at C5, and she was there four years. She is now a freshman in high school. She loves to figure out music on her ukulele, she reads for pleasure voraciously, and she is really gifted in computer programming.

My daughter is 14 and she still likes to come to the C5 events and help out … It’s ‘her people,’ people she feels comfortable with even as she’s become an alum.

I will say this – and her Japanese teacher made the same comment – she’s often the one who reminds folks how we best learn together. The boys get a little unruly, and apparently she’s the one who can stand up to the disruptive elements so they’re all learning together.”

Catherine R.

mother of daughter Laila, 15 years old

She's an 'A' Student!

“My daughter was at C5 for five years, since she was 8 months old. She’s now in 9th grade at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts. She’s an A student. Her creativity is her most unique and highest developed part of her personality, and C5 did a lot to nourish that creativity – to recognize it, to start it, and to keep it going.

My daughter is 15 years old and she has social skills beyond anything I’ll ever have. I think that comes from the way C5 is run and how the kids are encouraged; their peer-to-peer relationships are very much respected and encouraged.

I credit C5 for giving my daughter problem solving skills: critical thinking, the ability to not rely on others for the exact correct answers, but rather to think through a problem. It’s really helped her in her math. She’s in advanced algebra now; she scored very high, in the top 2% in math.”

Barbara G.

mother of daughter, Zara, 15 years old

It's a Great Environment!

“For the preschool and younger education it’s a great environment; they teach foundational skills for the kids to live. They teach skills like how do I make friends, how do I resolve issues on my own. It helps kids be independent and make their own decisions.

Their approach is making sure, especially during the start-up transition, if they’re upset the teacher replaces the mom, hugs them, and doesn’t just let them cry. It was very comforting to know if your child is having a rough day the teacher will treat them like a mom.”

Milena T.

mother of 1 year old daughter and 4 year old son

I Really Like the Reggio Emilia Approach

“I really like the Reggio Emilia approach. They have a child-led philosophy that I appreciate. Very play-based and I like that openness of the day, but there’s structure too, a good combination.

The teachers are the best thing about the program. They are incredibly nurturing and have the ability to implement conflict resolution between toddlers in a calm and thoughtful way.

They value each child as an individual; they’re never condescending to children; they talk to them in regular words. They elevate them.”

Jennifer P.

mother of 2.5 year old son

I Have to Credit C5

“I’ve had a professional tell me that my son could identify emotions and that he showed a lot of empathy – advanced emotional development skills. I have to credit C5.

I love the Daily Story. It’s great to know what your kids are up to during the day, both the text as well as the pictures. When you first start there, you want that reassurance; you see they’re happy and having a good time, especially before they’re very verbal.

I know parents who stay at home but they’re carting their kids to music class or tumbling class … but those kinds of activities are included in C5. I never feel like I need to spend the money or the time. I never feel like I need to arrange play dates because of the socialization … and our weekends are mellow because of that.”

Jennifer K.

mother of son 2 years old and 5 year old C5 alumna daughter

What My Son Learned Allowed Him to Have a Smoother Transition to Kindergarten!

“What my son learned allowed him to have a smoother transition to kindergarten.

The teachers are so creative at coming up with things that even I wouldn’t be able to think of doing.

The teachers alone and in combination with other teachers bring so much to the children. Each time I think I have such a great teacher, and then I’m sad when they transition to the next one, and then the next one is so great.”

Hadara S.

mother of 3 year old son and 6 year old C5 alumnus son

A Very Well-Designed Program for Kids

“The Reggio-inspired program was definitely a selling point for us. It’s a very well-designed program for kids to put them in a comfortable environment and let them explore on their own; it encourages their natural curiosity and inquisitiveness.My kids really enjoy their school. They’re happy to be dropped off, and happy at the end of the day—so happy they don’t usually want to leave.

Our kids’ learning and development has been terrific. Learning and growing, both emotionally and intellectually—watching that has been great to see.”

Greg B.

father of 2.5 year old son and 5 year old C5 alumna daughter

I Love the Teachers

“I love the teachers. They’re so responsive and very patient, especially with first-time parents. I never feel like I’m bothering them. They’re open to suggestions and also open to working together to make things better.

Each child has a primary teacher; I feel like that is very valuable to have the one person. But it feels like a technicality, because I could ask any teacher in the room, and they are all fully engaged with every kid.”

Carly T.

mother of 3 year old daughter

C5 Really Cares About His Well Being

“I do not worry about him at all during the day. I know that he is being well taken care of, he is being challenged, he is being appreciated for his individuality. I feel like C5 really cares about his well being and his future.

The teachers always make time for you, they’re always willing to talk to you and give suggestions. As a parent, I have learned tremendous amounts about how to work with my son.”

“I can’t wait to look at the Daily Story. We read it together and talk about the pictures and talk about what he did in depth.”

Barbara J.

mother of 4 year old son

C5 Has Great Methodologies

“C5 has great methodologies for bringing out the best in kids. We’ve had a really great partnership coming up with strategies to help my older son grow and develop.

I really enjoy the way they nurture and support all the different kinds of kids and learners. It feels likes a partnership in our child’s development. It’s not like I’m just dropping him off and hoping for the best.” “I love getting the Daily Story. Even if I’m having an incredibly busy afternoon and don’t have time to look at it, I like to glance at it right before I pick my son up so I can ask him about his day.”

Anna S.

mother of 6 month old and 4 year old sons

There is a True Collaboration

“There is a true collaboration between parents and teachers. If there is a challenge at home, I can speak about it with the teacher so they know about it. We work together to find a solution. We’re all on the same page.

The Daily Story is such an important part of my day. Especially as a working parent, it helps give me peace of mind to see what they’re doing. It keeps me connected. It enables me to have a deeper conversation with a child.”

Anat S.

mother of 2 year old daughter and 4 year old son

C5 Has Shaped How We Work With Our Kids

“C5 has shaped how we work with our kids, it shapes how we do activities as a family. Our son is a very inquisitive kid and talks a lot about what he does at school and we try to support that at home.

The teachers are wonderful! Now that our daughter is walking, she runs into the classroom and goes straight to the teacher and gives her a big hug.”

Amanda D.

mother of 1 year old daughter and 4 year old son