Desert Winds Elementary School

Desert Winds is a great school. The teachers are wonderful! The preschool program and Kindergarten are great. My kids are very happy here.
—Submitted by a parent

This school has incredible teachers that really listen and take time for all children and their parents! DW is an A+ School of Excellence! They also have free before and after school academic based child care! A great family environment!
—Submitted by a parent

This school is a hidden treasure. The school is rated an A+ School of Excellence by the Arizona Education Foundation, there is free before and after school programs, a full piano lab and lots of technology throughout the campus. Every classroom has a smart board. The teachers and staff are great, they have been an amazing support for my family.
—Submitted by a parent

Desert Winds has been a great school for my family. A few years ago my nephew came to live with us and was having difficulty in school. He was a 3rd grader reading at a kindergarten level. The teachers and staff at Desert Winds brought my nephew to grade level reading within the first 3 months that he was there. The staff is amazing and the teacher are very involved. I now have a 2nd grader there and I could not choose a better school for her education!
—Submitted by a parent

Our daughter Frances Payne and our son Brandon Payne came to Desert Winds last year. When they first started attending Desert Winds their grades we're suffering. In the first month of school my children's grades improved tremendously. My daughter had difficulty in reading and math, in the short time that of her attendance at Desert Winds shes was reading better, and was able to add, subtract,multiply. She also struggled with her weekly spelling test,now she master's each test with flying colors. . With my son Brandon he struggled in all areas math, science,social studies and language arts. With the help of the dedicated teachers at Desert Winds for the first time he was passing all of his classes. The dedication and all of the support from teachers is incredible because of their efforts they improved my daughters and sons academics. The continued efforts of the dedicated teachers at Desert Winds are a important asset to my children and all of the other children at Desert Winds.They are essential to the success of our children's education. To lose the school and all of the dedicated teachers will be a great loss to the community.
—Submitted by a parent

Nice teachers, nice school. Very friendly staff and teachers, the kids seem to be happy and communication is good.
—Submitted by a parent

I have been to this school for two years and the teachers are really involved. you can talk to any teacher about troubles with anything, they are truly there for student. I learned things here that we haven't covered in even high school yet.

The principle, teachers, and staff are all wonderful and caring and provide what's needed for all children to enhance each child's development in order to help each child become a successful learner.
—Submitted by a parent

My sons have been going to this school for six years now. I have had a wonderful experience with dedicated teachers that were always willing to work closely with me to help them excel and overcome any obstacles. The curriculum is adequate to meet the needs of all the students in the class. Parent involvement is very high. The teachers were always appreciative of the time I volunteered in my sons' classes. The office/nursing staff was friendly and competent. The drop off/pick up situation is not very organized or supervised and many times event notices were given with very little notice. There are after school activities available as well as on-site child care for working parents. My overall experience with this school was great!
—Submitted by a parent

I'm not impressed by this school. The communication from teachers/principal to us horrible. Also, teachers do play up to their favorites. There is way too much bullying on the playground, my 1st grade son complains just about everyday about older kids picking on him and his friends and there is not enough adult supervision for them to go for help. This problem is only getting worse. Also, this school has the worst system for picking up and dropping off kids. Be prepared to make picking up kids at least a half hour ordeal. What extracurricular activites? I'm currently looking to enroll my child at a different school.
—Submitted by a parent

Teachers are great at this school and they comunicate well with parents about how the kids are doing.
—Submitted by a parent

MY children have been going to Desert Winds since the started school. My oldest is 11 and my toungest 7. I am very pleased with the friendlynous of the school staff and the teacher involvment. Desert Winds makes extracurricular activities easy for everybody.
—Submitted by a parent

Very little notice for activities. Communication could be better. Staff is nice enough.
—Submitted by a parent

My children went to this school for kindergarten through 4th grade and enjoyed every moment. The staff was very helpful and great.
—Submitted by a parent

I have three children who attend this school, the oldest for 2nd-5th grade. My two youngest have only been there for K and 1st grade. I am not at all impressed by the teachers or the principal of this school. K and 1st grade teachers show alot of favortisim. They are more concerned about money and fundrasiers then about giving the kids a good education. We will be pulling out all of our children this year to send them to a charter school.
—Submitted by a parent

This is one of the worst schools in the area. Teachers don't care and pick favorites. Leadership is lacking. Kids run the playground and bullying is a problem.
—Submitted by a parent

Principal not available nearly as much as needed. Classes are way overcrowded. Noisy kids make learning impossible for the ones that want to learn. Teachers are disciplined for trying to do the Principal's Job. We recently moved here from another School District. I am a Mom and I and extremely displeased with our new school.
—Submitted by a parent

I went to this school from k-6. I love it all, the teachers were great and I loved the principal. and I miss it Mrs keller and Mr marquez are the best