Goddard School

I looked at the reviews listed here and it is clear someone had a problem at one time and has decided to write multiple poor reviews. Three of the reviews are dated the same day (5/7/09)...odds are extremely low that there are actually 3 people writing poor reviews the exact same day. I believe this is just someone who has decided to write multiple poor reviews in an attempt to "bad mouth" what is an excellent school....and despite this person's child having graduated, seems to want to continue to write poor reviews (see 6/25/09...not a review, just a response to someone giving a candid and good review). I know a lot of people in the school...and none of these poor reviews are names of real people....so this may even be a competitor looking to smear the school.

Here is my input. I have two children enrolled in the school. I have been in the school since it opened. Between my two children, I have now experienced every age group (program) within the school and I now know a lot of the faculty, the owner, the directors, etc pretty well. I help out on the PTO when I can, although I am normally working so I can't help as much as I would like. Prior to Goddard, I toured a half dozen other facilities and previously was enrolled in 2 daycare centers in the area.

(1) Facility: School is beautiful, clean and neat. I have seen the owner mopping floors in the middle of the day. I see one of the 5/7/09 complaints is that the classrooms in the middle of the day are messy. I hope so....otherwise the students aren't doing anything. I pick up at the end of the day and there is a cleaning crew there every night. I drop off early in the morning and the place is spotless. The floors gleam! There are plenty of resources and materials and the owner continues to invest in the school (he just expanded the preschool playground after only 2 years of operation.....it is AWESOME!)

(2) Curriculum: Really outstanding. My eldest is already reading over 1 grade level higher than age. Already reading at end of Kindergarten year and is only in Pre-K. I had a short conference with teacher and she believes that she'll be reading at 1st grade level before end of this school year. Her vocabulary is amazing. She excels in math and loves the science projects. I'm pleased at how much she is learning in Spanish....she has really taken off this year. She was always energetic....but she loves the school's gym classes and I we do YOGA together 3 times a week at home because she has learned a number of positions while attending school. I love that we can do something like this together now....although her attention span is only about 10 minutes. I attended the school's Curriculum Overview night for Pre-K parents and I was very impressed with the degree of work being done. It clearly shows in how much my children are learning.

(3) PTO: The 6/25/09 review seemed to want to "trash" the PTO more than the school. This is unfair to both the school (who has no association with the PTO) and I think the PTO. The PTO is entirely voluntary.....and I know that a number of parents put in a lot of time in the PTO's activities/planning. While I can only volunteer periodically, I think it is extremely unfair for someone to criticize the hard work that the parent volunteers put into helping the school. The PTO's primary focus is to help to better the school environment, to try and do some small things for the teachers who work so hard with our children. It is true that it isn't really set up to manage parent complaints....but that is not its charter. However, I know from experience and from other parents in the school.....if you have an issue or question, you go see the Director or the Owner. I suspect that if the 6/25/09 reviewer was truly a parent in the school and had an issue, they didn't address it with the owner or directors which is the right approach.

(4) Administration: The Owners and Directors are at the school EVERY DAY and are very kind and caring people. There are LOTS of families in the school who have come from other places....one thing I hear them all say....the owner here runs a "tight ship". The quality standards are very high. I have never had a problem approaching the owner or Directors and I always get a response. The owner knows EVERY child's name....I'm still impressed to see him say good night to the students as they leave....and, like my children, he is either accepting big hugs from the students, or giving them a quick ride before they get into the car. I have absolutely no complaints with the school's administration.

This is a great school. One thing I have in common with the 6/25/09 reviewer....I highly recommend that you speak with ANYONE in the school....you'll get a very favorable response! I am going to mention this site to other parents and ask them to provide their own feedback because this is truly an OUTSTANDING school.

Posted 11/03/09 | Report Abuse

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it is wonderful. my kids love it and the teacher get down to the kids level.... room is always clean. kids always having fun. my child never wants to go home!! love it!!!

Posted 08/27/09 | Report Abuse

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I read the review from Lisa F. I am sure Lisa is one of the staff member. All the four points she described in detail are true on paper. The owner and staff promise all these at the time of open house and before you enroll your child to the school. As soon as your child starts school in a couple of month you start experiencing reality. But it is too late by that time. You are in the middle of the year, you child is used to with the teacher, friends and the environment and it is very difficult to find admission to other good school. So you are almost committed for a year. That serves the purpose of the school, money making.Parent Teacher Organization PTO is a big joke here. It does not address the concerns of parents and just busy with fund raising. Even if you email the PTO Char many times you won't get answer. If you get answer then you must be special.I FIND Lisa F.'s review completely misleading. Ask your friends whom you trust and have experience with this school before wasting your money. Just want you give you heads up.

Posted 06/25/09 | Report Abuse

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My child has been in the school for close to 2 years (since it opened). It is a WONDERFUL facility. I read the 3 previous reviews all posted the exact same day (5/7/09) and it doesn't even remotely sound like the same school my daughter attends. Here is what my experience has been. (1) This is VERY clearly a private preschool. This school has a GREAT curriculum, degreed teachers, a full time Director of Education who has a Masters degree in Education and two assistant directors who are also degreed and very capable people. My daughter is in the Pre-K program now and is reading at the 1st grade level. Truly, truly EXCELLENT academic environment. (2) The school looks and feels like elementary school. My child is sooo ready for Kindergarten that I have absolutely NO concern about how she is going to perform. That is the purpose of preschool.....to get ready for elementary school and Goddard did that for us! (3) The school is spotless. It is beautiful. The floors gleam, bathrooms are clean, etc.. Yes, at the end of the day there may be paint on the floor from an art project....but this is a school where things are done in a "hands on" manner....it is what they told me when I enrolled....learning through structure play projects. But, EVERY DAY when I come into the school, the place is spotless again. (4) The owners are really nice, caring people. I toured lots of places before choosing Goddard. All the places promised lots of things. I can honestly tell you that this school delivered on EVERYTHING they promised.....AND MORE. I never expected my daughter to be operating at this advanced an academic level at this time. Simply THRILLED!

Posted 06/18/09 | Report Abuse

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Due to high Student Teacher ratio teachers just can't control kids. In every class atleast two-three kids are fighting or playing while circle time is going on. My son become more aggressive after joining that school. After 5 months I withdrew him and he is better now.

Posted 05/07/09 | Report Abuse

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My son is on the school and I never found most of the things what I saw on the open house Day and what the school owner promised on that day. I withdrew my son from the Goddard school, Gaithersburg. That is my decision of the year.

Posted 05/07/09 | Report Abuse

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I heard about Goddard School from one of my friend, and I was impressed. I enrolled my daughter in the Goddard school in Gaithersburg. Now I regret. It is not a school, but it is an expensive daycare. In more than a year I could not find a single characteristic if a private school. Here are the issues I found:1) The owner is a smart guy, speaks well and impresses well, but does not have background of child education. He was an IT professional turned schoold owner. Before admission he promisses too much, which he does not mean. Once you enroll your child it is difficult to move to other school because of many issues such difficulty finding admission to ther good school in the middle of the year, we don't want more transitions for our child etc.2) Student-teacher ratio is so high compare to ther private schools (1 teacher-14 students). So teacher can't take care of students properly. I observed most of the time that kids don't wash their hands after using restroom, teachers know this but ignore because busy with other kids. 3) Cleanliness of the school: If you visit the school or class in the middle of the day it is always dirty, sometimes awfully dirty.My daughter is still with this school. But after this summer (2009) she is done. Thank god.

Posted 05/07/09 | Report Abuse

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