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What preschool do you think is great in Honolulu? Why?
laumi96816 July 28, 2009
KCAA Mother Rice on Beretania Street in Honolulu. This school has been around forever. We have run into people--grandparents even--who went there as children. The school is run in a very secure manner, providing a safe environment for children. The teachers and aides are very good with the kids and create a nurturing environment for learning, expressing creativity and just having fun. Mother Rice is part of the KCAA system of schools. KCAA really emphasizes system-wide training and high standards for their teachers and there seems to be an emphasis of training and promoting talent from within. The individual schools support each other by allowing cross-training of staff at the various locations. Despite ongoing changes in the school (e.g. retirement of the center's director) transitions were smooth and we were kept informed at all times.
The facility itself is very nice--large and open yet organized by individual classes. Our daughter got to play and socialize with children from other classes in her age group. Parents can participate in a number of ways--attending parent open houses, going on fieldtrips with their child's class, participate/volunteer in the parents' group with the Center Director.
For working parents, children can be dropped off early in the morning and picked up late in the afternoon--no additional charge. Tuition includes breakfast and lunch and is provided by the Lunch Bunch which has its kitchen on the same property. KCAA is subsidized in part by the federal and state government and offers financial aid for families in need. For us this was a big plus because our child got to mix with children from families of all walks of life.
Our family had a very positive experience at Mother Rice. We met many old and new friends there. Even after our child moved on to elementary school, the teachers and administrative staff welcome her back every time she visits.
I would urge anyone to check out KCAA schools, especially Mother Rice. (We also looked at and liked KCAA Kuapa Preschool in Hawaii Kai but Mother Rice was more convenient for us.)30034
