Sunset Canyon School

My son transferred from another school in the district this school year for third grade and this is the first time he's really excited about school. He loves his teacher and even told me he will miss her at the end of the school year. He really enjoys the different specials offered and that each one has it's own classroom. Which I really think is nice too. At the first teacher conference I even got to meet a couple of the special teachers which I have never done before. I always requested for them to come at previous school, but they never showed. So I was very impressed. My daughter started kindergarten this year and am very happy with all she has learned in just the short time. Every day she comes home and tells me new things. She already has the yearning to travel and visit all the places she has learned about. Paris and England the least of them. We were going to transfer them to charter next year but have decided to keep them here. Sunset Canyon is an exceptional school.
—Submitted by a parent

My son has trouble in his reading level etc. The teachers and staff work with him and increased his reading grade level 3 grades in this one year alone. He is almost caught up to his level of where he should be. He is likeing to read, more much more then before. They also work with his emotional developement. The complete staff and principal really seem to care with some solid real compassion for him and other children of their school. I am very happy I chose this school for my son, I think you should choose this school too.
—Submitted by a parent

I have twins in Mrs. Dexter s preschool program and I couldn t be more pleased with the amazing things she does with her class. She is very patient, kind and has a love for teaching preschoolers with disabilities. She is a natural. Her staff is just as caring and kind. They will all go above and beyond your expectations. It can be a little scary as your preschooler heads off to school but this preschool team will make it the smoothest transitions you could ever imagine. They will be with you every step of the way.
—Submitted by a parent

My daughter started kindergarten at this school and I can't tell you how impressed I was with her teacher, Mr. Beatty. She excelled academically and he really taught the foundations you need to start first grade. She is now in first grade and her teacher, Mrs. Forthun is absolutely wonderful! My daughter is doing extremely well again this year and the new principal is very hands on and involved in the school. I love the 'Make Your Day' program because I believe it teaches your child to accept responsibility for their behavior. Overall, I think this school is great and my daughter really enjoys going here.
—Submitted by a parent

My son is in kindergarten, and the teacher he had was wonderful! My son sometimes gets off track & is a little hyperactive, but he did very well with the curriculum and was able to stay on task. Very structured curriculum, I like that very much.
—Submitted by a parent

WOW! We have been amazed with the relatively new reading specialist at this school. She is brilliant with her work and we have no doubt that she is an expert when it comes to reading assessment and instruction. She works with so many different grade levels and various needs and she sure knows what the kids need. Her knowledge and ability to apply it has been so impressive; she effectively teaches phonics, comprehension, and even uses all sorts of graphic organizers to work on writing with the students. She is a great addition to this school and one who brings professionalism, expertise, and a heart for youth to make this school even better than ever!
—Submitted by a parent

Sunset Canyon is one of the best schools for special education. The team is very well organizied, knowledgable, understanding, and compassionate about what they do. I would highly recomment the Special Education program!!! Mr. Voll is one of the best principals we have had so far. He is understanding and willing to go above an beyond to support his teachers and guide the students. Make your Day is a great Behavior Strategy and is effective.
—Submitted by a parent

I switched my daughter to this school at the beginning of the school year from a charter school. The differences are like night and day. The resources at Sunset Canyon are light years ahead of the charter school. I love that my daughter can go to the fully staffed and stocked library and check out books daily. I love that Sunset Canyon has a fully staffed and equipped computer lab that my daughter can work in. Mr. Voll, the principal, and my daughter's third grade teacher, Mrs. Keegan both ROCK!!!!! They are awesome. They both make themselves available for communication whenever I need it. My daughter is doing very well academically and socially and I attribute that to the approach of the school. Sunset Canyon emphasizes the involvement of the school, teacher and parents for the success of the students and it is working! Thank-you Sunset Canyon!
—Submitted by a parent

I have three children that attend/ed Sunset Canyon and I love the education that my children are receiving. I feel the Core Knowledge curriculum is wonderful and my kids come home telling me all about their day and what they learned. The teachers I have had interaction with have been great and I feel like they enjoy their school and administration. I do feel that the duty aides do need some guidance in caring for the children and the front staff could use some people skills in dealing with the parents. Overall a great school and I enjoy and am proud of being a Sunset Canyon parent
—Submitted by a parent

My son's attended the preschool program here and their teacher's were excellent. The whole staff showed care and acceptance for their best interest.
—Submitted by a parent

Daughter came to this school from another school where she had problems with bullies and grades slipping. she has since brought up her grades, her self confidence has grown and she loves going to school again! As parents we are very happy with her progress and look forward to her next few years at Sunset Canyon. Thank you for caring!
—Submitted by Marleah & Dan, a parent

My children have attended Sunset Canyon for 5 years. I have never had any problems. Teachers and staff are very friendly and helpful. My kids love the school. There has been a problem keeping Art teachers that I hope will be resolved.
—Submitted by linda, a parent

I think that this is a great school. It really surprised me to see some of the bad ratings posted on this website. This is my daughters third year at Sunset Canyon & I am overall very happy with this school. The beginning of this year was kind of tough because of her teacher (it is her first year teaching) & I think everyone was a little overwhelmed. I do highly recommend this school to anyone who is looking in my neighborhood because we live out of district and this is one of the best schools in our area. From a grateful mom with a well educated child. Thank you Sunset Canyon.
—Submitted by Sarah, a parent

This school is such a joke. My daughter-who was recognized in her former school as an honors student-has been failing and the teachers and staff have done nothing to help her. I recently could not pick up my child from school for a doctor's appointment to get her medication due to testing. In my opinion, they endangered my daughter that day. Do not send your child here- you will regret it.
—Submitted by a parent

I would not recommend this school to anyone who cares about their child education or self esteem. I have been yelled at and talked down to by my daughters teacher on two occasions and could not believe this teacher was allowed to even teach with an attitude like hers.
—Submitted by a parent

I have never endured such unprofessional and rudeness from a school before. As far as my sons education I had to transfer him out of there. Please parents read the comments when researching schools our children deserve better then we had and this is nowhere close to what I had in mind for my son........A concerned parent
—Submitted by a parent

So far this school has proven to provide great education for my two children(this is our third year). My kids enjoy going to school. The staff is approachable and friendly. I do wish they had more after school programs. But the main focus is education and I respect that. We could use more PTO members but that's not the schools responsibility, more of the parents. The school encourages parent involvement.
—Submitted by a parent

I was very disapointed at the quality of this school. I attended PTO meetings for the first half of the year inwhich the principal only came to two and very few teachers showed up at the meetings. I found their citizenship program lacking perspective given the age of children and the type of punishment they chose to use. There were no after school programs such as dance, gynastics, chess ect.. as offered by many other schools. When attempting to meet with the principal about my concerns as a parent, the principal did not make himself available. My child will not attend this school next year.
—Submitted by a parent

My children transferred to this school because of a move. They were at a very high performance charter school before coming here. It has been tough. The principal is very strict. They have a 'step' program for discipline. It is also excessively strict. The kindergarten and fourth grade education seem to be a quality programs as far as academics go. I will not have my children return to this school in the fall.
—Submitted by a parent

I recently moved to Az and put my kids in Sunset canyon because of what i had heard from neighbors. While one child is doing wonderful, the other is struggling. The school is trying to help but i believe that more can be done. I love most of the teachers that my kids have had but there are a few that need a little help in the compassion area as well as people skills. I would highly recommend the school to new neighbors. I hope that they keep up their efforts in getting parents involved and helping all students that need the extra help.
—Submitted by a parent