Kid Ventures Preschool — Attraction in Poway

Kid Ventures is now a preschool and one that we love. Here's my review of the pros, cons, and considerations.

CONTEXT: 1 child (over 2 years old); a member since Nov 2022. We've had experience with other daycares but found this one the right fit for our family and daughter.

WHY WE CHOSE KID VENTURES: SUMMARY: their caring teachers are child centric -- helping children manage their emotions & development. The environment was a better fit for our daughter as well.

CREATIVE FLAIR: our daughter is a creative and outgoing individual. She's the type that needs creative, theatrical, musical, and expressive place. Kid Ventures fits that with the numerous daily arts and crafts, imaginative play structures, and upbeat staff members.

AWESOME TEACHERS: the teachers care a lot. I've noticed that wherever my kids go, it's all about the teachers. If the teachers are kind, supportative, empowering, fun and attentative, then the kids embody that as well. KV preschool have amazing teachers that have continued to be there. That consistency and positive role modeling develops relationships that has helped my daughter thrive.

SMALL CLASS SIZE & TEACHER ATTENTION: The class size is small (less than 12?), so she gets lots of attention and care from her teachers. It also helps her build strong bonds with friends. The teachers seemed to really know my daughter, what she needs, and how to help her grow. .

EMPOWERMENT & EMOTIONAL GROWTH: Since the class sizes are smaller, the teachers seem to have more time to empower the kids, helping them learn skills, their emotions, and more. I've seen tremendous growth in my daughter's self-confidence, skills, and knowledge. I remember taking a tour and being impressed with the calm, informative way the teacher spoke to two kids ("Jane, do you see that expression on John's face? He doesn't appreciate how close you are to him. Give him space."). The teachers help kids recognize emotions, inappropriate behavior, and move toward safe, appropriate responses.

STRUCTURE & LEARNING: I'll admit I was a little nervous that this school would be "too creative", but they still have lots of structure and 'focus' time. When I drop her off at school, they have tables with specific activities to focus on and the kid can choose which table they want to play at (the puzzle table, playdough table, math table, art table, etc.). And everyday it's different. They also have structure thoughout the day. There's learning time, outdoor time, music time, unsctructured play time, etc. Overall, I have confidence that my child is learning and developing the things they should at this age.

CONS & CONSIDERATIONS: SUMMARY: There's more work for the parents and less hours of coverage, but if you can make it work it might be best for your kid.

VETTING: Kid ventures does a 1 hour trail run to make sure the kid is ready for daycare/preschool. Sometimes kids "aren't ready". I know this can frustrate parents and I think Kid Ventures is looking at ways improve this.

MORE WORK FOR PARENTS: you have to bring your child's bedding, snacks, and lunch. It can be a lot of work (even annoying at times). But for me, the silver lining is that I know what's going into my child's body and I approve of it. The bedding is just annoying (haha).

LESS HOURS & SCHEDULED DROPOFF/PICKUP: they are open from 9 am to 4:15 pm (7 hours). You can pay extra for a 8:30 am dropoff. As a working parent, this isn't ideal. ... BUT it's probably better for the kids. Parents are exhausted working more than 8 hours a day, so why is it good for kids to be at school 8 hours (or more)? Plus, it means more parent-child time at home. The drop off and pick up windows are short too (15 minutes). This is stressful for parents, but again, better for the kids. It actually helps the teachers be there to warmly welcome each individual child at drop off. AND, at pick-up, it makes sure no kid feels abandoned or "the last one" to be picked up by their parents.

If these 'cons' are manageable for your family, I'd higly recommend joining...

My daughter started daycare at just 20 months old, and at that time, she was very attached to me. Even separating for 10 minutes was a struggle. I explored several highly-rated daycare options before discovering Kid Ventures, but those experiences were tough for both of us. As a working mom, it broke my heart to leave my crying daughter every day.

Then, a friend recommended Kid Ventures, sharing her positive experience with the Liberty Station location. I decided to try the 4S Ranch location, and it changed everything for us.

Kid Ventures was initially built designed as a playroom and kids’ museum, filled with imaginative play areas and engaging activities. On our first day, I was pleasantly surprised to see my daughter exploring and playing happily instead of searching for me in tears, as she had in other places. We enrolled right away and met Ms. Angela, an incredible instructor who was kind and nurturing. She had a magical way of making the children laugh. Once, I received a note from Ms. Angela saying that my daughter had a nightmare during her nap. Ms. Angela lay down next to her to help her feel safe and sleep again. Kind gestures like this truly touched my heart. The daily photos she shared provided reassurance, showing that my daughter was in good hands, surrounded by friendly and happy faces. Both my daughter and I loved Ms. Angela, and I wished to stay in her class as long as possible.

Months later, my daughter moved up to Ms. Kayla’s class, and she was just as wonderful. Ms. Kayla created a positive, welcoming environment, and my daughter began talking excitedly about her school friends. Her social progress was remarkable, and we again wished to stay in Ms. Kayla’s class for as long as possible. Eventually, we transitioned to the upper classroom, where we met Ms. Cathy and Ms. Alex. Ms. Cathy was also truly amazing, fostering my daughter’s independence and readiness for kindergarten. She consistently praised her and encouraged good behavior. Ms. Alex was equally wonderful, always sweet and friendly to my daughter and eager to share my daughter’s accomplishments with me. The genuine love and care from all the teachers was evident.

I feel incredibly fortunate to have found such amazing preschool. The entire team, including Mr. Peter, cultivated a nurturing atmosphere. They were always eager to discuss my daughter’s IEP goals and how to best support her. Despite being timid and quiet, my daughter felt comfortable being silly and chatty around her Kid Ventures teachers and this tells a lot. After two and a half years there, she made incredible progress. I truly believe that if she had attended any other preschool, she wouldn’t be where she is today. (Another great benefit of Kid Ventures is the on-site speech therapy center. If a child needs speech therapy, it’s convenient because he/she can attend therapy sessions during school hours, which is a huge help)

I genuinely believe choosing Kid Ventures was the best decision I made for my daughter, and I couldn’t have asked for more. I wish they offered an extended elementary school program, as I would have loved to continue sending her there, knowing she was in safe and caring hands.

Unfortunately, I had to leave due to the hours. Despite my efforts to stay, my new job required me to work eight hours a day at the office, making it impossible to pick her up by 4:30 PM.

Now that my daughter is in TK, I feel even more strongly about how great Kid Ventures was for us. My daughter misses everyone there, and so do I. I will be forever grateful for the experience, and I wish Kid Ventures the very best...

We have attended few birthday parties, review is based on that.

Age of child: Toddler

Pros: its perfect place for Kids from 2-8 years old. Kids love this place and very organized. Play area and rooms and toys are fun. Decent Service

Cons: Weekends they close at 12 pm for their private parties. Party will be huge success, but it does not help public to come and enjoy the play area.

Play area, The Main part: Definitely a great indoor playground to bring the kids. There is a big open play area to run around. And then separate smaller play rooms - the "kitchen", "grocery store", "baby room". firetruck, castle, ship, small mountain climbing area, rope climbing, and more. Lots of dress-up stuff. I would say a 3 year old girl would be the happiest here, with the play kitchen, grocery, baby room, etc. My 19 month boy would have really been excited if he saw a train table, a bunch of cars and trucks and trains. There's really not a ton of boy stuff.

For Adults: is a coffee bar with food, what else we need more than a nice coffee. You can buy kids meals for about $6 and can also buy separate snacks for them.

Price: Single Day Pass Members: FREE First child (ages 1-12): $15/day Each additional sibling: $8/day Adults (over 12 yrs): $5/day Babies (under 1), Seniors (65+) & Active Duty Military Adults: FREE Military Child Discounts Available For groups of 10 or more, call for pricing Multi Day Pass Adventure Card Get 8 visits for $95 (up to $12 in savings per visit) One punch per visit (Location specific and non transferable. Immediate family members only. Punch includes one child and up to two adults) Admission is $13 for non-members. I think it's ok, not bad, not great. Monthly membership is $35/month x 12 months...