Testimonials

"Deciding to send my three children to the LEAP school has been one of the best child rearing decisions my husband and I have made for our family.  Every staff member at LEAP has been supportive, kind, understanding and reassuring as we have worked our way through these important developmental preschool years.  The skills my children have learned at LEAP, particularly through social interaction and encouraged imaginative play, have served them well and more than sufficiently prepared them for elementary school.  My children have enjoyed their time at LEAP, sometimes wishing, even in fourth grade, that their new school would be more like LEAP!  We are thankful for the time each child has had at LEAP, for their unique experiences there and for the wonderful way we have always been treated."

- Gretchen and Chris R.

- Michele F.

“Having watched our three children move from LEAP into Kindergarten with ease and confidence, we can say with certainty that the LEAP program provides children unparalleled growth – emotional, physical and intellectual.  The breadth of the curriculum combined with caring teachers provides a unique atmosphere where children can be themselves while learning to thrive in a school setting. They are encouraged to explore new ideas, make new friends and develop personal awareness. Without reservation, we would recommend the LEAP program to parents looking for an exceptional pre-school experience.”

- Andrew & Liza C.

- Jenna and Derek S.

"All three children in our family have loved LEAP. We've been at the Bedford and Concord sites, and we give both very high marks and would recommend them to anyone.

We chose LEAP for its emphasis on the social/emotional growth of children, its structured day, and its committed and outstanding teachers and staff. 

The teachers are highly qualified and go through a rigorous screening before they are selected to work with our children. They are able to teach to a curriculum that prepares your children for entering kindergarten, but, even more important to us, they use every moment in the classroom as a "teaching moment" to help children sort out conflicts, learn how to be friends and share, and how to negotiate with each other. They provide a structured, predictable routine for the children so that they can feel comfortable anticipating what will happen next in the day.  At the same time, the teachers are very flexible: they celebrate children's different learning styles, working with us, the parents, on any challenges we might be having. One of our children has some learning differences, and the director and teachers worked carefully with us to ensure we had the proper supports in place to make his years at LEAP very successful. 

We really liked a couple of key features of the program; the "home visit" in the beginning of the year, when the teachers come to  our home before school start to make the transition to school easy, and the "weekly notes" that come home to parents explaining what is happening in the classroom as a whole, and individually, the child. The curriculum takes shape through stories that the children read every month, which provide a theme that they then learn about through art, dramatic play, song, and movement. As parents, we saw our children's love of learning take form at an early age. They love school!"

- Sarah and Jay K.

"Originally we chose the LEAP School for our daughters because we wanted them to have a strong social experience with other boys and girls. Our family put less emphasis on academic instruction and more on social health and overall happiness. The LEAP School really strives to create a balanced classroom with respect to genders, individual needs and strengths.  Not only were we satisfied with our daughters' emotional and social growth while at LEAP, but also her personal development. The LEAP School exposes children to many different ideas, activities, programs and arts. The units and instruction that were based on different children's books were so creative, engaging and truly nurtured a love for reading books for the kids--and our whole family. And how fun for the kids to practice yoga, science, music and movement with visiting specialists! We received so much more than we anticipated.

The teachers were energetic, engaging, fun and always interested in my child's experiences--both in and out of the classroom.  LEAP teachers are well-trained professionals with pre-school age children and curriculum, yet, they demonstrate personal warmth with children--and parents.  

I always found the directors, to be resourceful as issues emerged and responsive to any feedback or suggestions I had as a parent. I truly felt like it was a partnership in raising our children to be successful and happy. Though our family graduated from the LEAP School a couple years ago, I still refer to the directors for child raising issues, and am warmly received. We always drive by the LEAP School with fond feelings, great memories and feeling we are still part of the LEAP Community."

- Leslie Z.

- Beth and Steve H.

"Our family is now in our sixth school year at the LEAP School. We love LEAP because of its program, people, and individual attention. The program is broad and multi-faceted:  drama, science, yoga, and more. Our oldest child started kindergarten with a wonderful sense of self, which allowed her to quickly adapt to life beyond preschool.  The teachers and staff are warm, approachable, and accountable for our children’s’ learning and safety. One of our favorite things about LEAP is the personal email we receive every other week with updates on our child’s activities and development. Our children are always happy to get to school each morning, which is wonderful validation of our decision to send them to LEAP."

- Sean and Lisa O.

"After carefully considering many options for our daughter's preschool experience, we chose the LEAP School in Bedford. We were drawn to LEAP's commitment to provide a family centered education for our little one. And boy did they deliver:  we enjoyed constant communication with our daughter's teachers, we were welcomed in to her classroom at drop-off and pick-up times as well as during holiday parties and special events, and we were given multiple opportunities to get to know her classmates and their parents. Knowing that the teachers so totally understand our child, and what happens during the year...at school and at home gives me much comfort as her mom, and makes me so happy for her. Their goals and objectives for the water play are perfect, and so eloquently stated in our communication it makes me want to fill a giant bucket and have the whole family join in on some quality water play!

The close relationship between home and her first school helped our daughter to develop confidence in her abilities, and a deep and, we hope, abiding love for school and for learning. Thanks LEAP!"

- Liz C.

- Genevieve and John W.

        Our grandson James Peter has reveled in his school experiences at the LEAP School for the past two years, ready to launch into kindergarten in the fall, ably prepared by his loving and competent teachers for the learning and new experiences that lie ahead.   For James, LEAP has been an oasis of calm predictability and exciting challenges socially, academically, physically, and emotionally.  He loves the rhythm of the days, the chance to play freely, to talk about books, numbers, letters and words, to tell stories and to embrace the arts, and, most importantly, to laugh a lot.  He has become a yoga aficionado, often showing the adults in his life how to stretch or do the downward dog.  He loves that the teachers don’t disparage boy play—boys enacting superhero scenes and acts of valor outside or during free play time.  He loves the fact that there are costumes and legos and building materials.  He has learned as an only child through his LEAP education the give-and-take of sharing and not always getting what you want when you think you need it, but learning to figure out alternative choices.  He loves that his teachers are kind and funny and talk to him about how they figure things out for themselves when they have challenges and choices.  He loves that they talk about sports and the Boston sports teams with him.  We as grandparents and career educators not only love the beautiful, orderly, light,  physical spaces at the LEAP school in Bedford but the astute developmental fit between the children and their educational program.  LEAP does not push children into developmentally inappropriate activities but rather lets each child learn as much as he can through the rich curricular offerings he encounters.  When James applied to two Boston private schools this year for the next leg of his educational journey, both schools expressed admiration (and in one case astonishment) at how well versed he was in both pre-reading and math skills.  They also talked about his ease in talking to teachers and answering the questions of the admissions officer.  We know that LEAP is the central reason James is so at ease sharing what he knows and how much he enjoys school.  James’s two years at LEAP have been a gift for him and his family--one that we will never forget and are eternally grateful for how it will influence his educational journey forever.

-Lorraine W.