WHAT OUR PARENTS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT US:
(taken directly from Yelp/Google/Facebook online reviews)
“We absolutely loved having our child enrolled at Bright Beginnings!! Martese, Dr. Bob, and all of the teachers made us feel like our child was their highest priority the entire day. Everyday at drop-off he was so happy to go and never hesitated, which made me feel like he always felt safe and happy. We have had other experiences with other daycares in Logan Square/Avondale so we know how exceptional BBELC is in comparison. In the Kiasa (younger) classroom, I loved how the teachers responded to where our child was at in his development, and helped to match our style of how we were raising him. In the older classrooms, our child absolutely flourished. The curriculum and activities helped our son develop into an empathic, curious, energetic little person and we are so grateful. I think Bright Beginnings does a great job at hiring, training, and retaining the best teachers, and it shows. We also loved the frequent updates through the Brightwheel app, which often made us smile. I could not recommend Bright Beginnings enough to any parent in the area, especially if they have an older child they're needing care for. Yes, the care only goes until 3, but it's well worth the time spent there to be able to be a part of the center and for them to be an invaluable part of children's lives.” -Elizabeth
“I had to find child care for my first child during the middle of a pandemic and have been so grateful that I had Bright Beginnings in my neighborhood. The owners and director helped me navigate that transition even in the midst of the new precautions due to the pandemic and through weaning, nap issues, etc. The thing that makes me love this place is how communicative and responsive they have been, and more importantly how much my daughter smiles and wants to go in when she gets there. She's always excited to see her teachers, and has learned how to do so many things from the teachers, including how to ask for more in ASL and that she finished. A big thank you to all the staff members!” -Katy
“My son has been enrolled at Bright Beginnings since he turned 2 in August, and we've been so happy with the level of care he has received at the school. The class sizes are very small (much smaller than many other daycares we've seen), and the teachers, owners, and director are hands on and seem to cherish each child as the individuals they are. I really appreciate their kind communication, and how gentle and respectful they are of the kids. My son loves attending school, and whenever I come to pick him up, I can hear him cheerfully coming down the hall, greeting all his friends and teachers. When I first toured the school, I found it valuable that one of the owners (Dr. Bob) is a licensed psychologist, with a deep understanding of the young mind and how it works. Martese (the second owner) and Ms. Ashley (the director) are very kind, and I look forward to our interactions (albeit brief) when I pick up and drop off my son. I also like how their teachers rotate between the classrooms, so the children don't become overly attached to just one teacher. That said, of the three or four teachers my son sees regularly, he loves them all. My only complaint (which isn't *really* a complaint) is that their programming ends at age 3, which means we'll be looking for a new school for when my son turns 3 in the summer.” -Sarah
“We started Bright Beginnings at 3.5 months old and have had such a great experience, even with how odd things are during Covid. We're first time parents and had so many questions, Dr Bob, Stephanie (the Director), and everyone has been so helpful and kind. Very safe Covid protocols, and we feel secure that our baby is getting attention and care once his day starts. He's still young but we also appreciated the Montessori strategies applied from the babies through the toddlers. The price is also very competitive for other daycares in the area. They use the Brightwheel app to keep you updated on all diapers, bottles, health checks and naps. We'd highly recommend Bright Beginnings to any parent!” -Katie
“Our daughter attended Bright Beginnings from infancy to toddlerhood, and we are forever grateful for the wonderful care and atmosphere of positivity the school's teachers helped raise her in! The teachers are fantastic, helping the kids thrive and providing frequent updates via the Brightwheel app (including sweet photos and videos that brighten our day). They are led by an awesome Director named Stephanie. The owners Bob and Martese are also great, and as a bonus Bob is also a child psychologist who frequently offered free q&a's and workshops on how to best support our kids and navigate different stages. Our whole family highly recommends Bright Beginnings.” -Halley
“We were very happy the entire time my son was at Bright Beginnings. He started when he turned 1 and stayed for over 2 years. Every staff member including the teachers, owners, and the director is positive, professional, and truly loves children. They are extremely responsive to any questions/concerns and genuinely care about your child's well-being. They always planned great activities for the children with lots of songs and art projects. I always felt that my son was safe and well cared for, and he truly enjoyed going to school. He is more of a shy kid and takes time to open up to new people and he still did well when he transitioned into a new room with new teachers. They were very responsive during the entire COVID lockdown and did Zoom calls and kept a Facebook group for all the parents. Highly recommend them!” -Kara
“We were so happy that Bright Beginnings had an opening for our child in the Wobbler room in July! The facility is new and the space is very open, clean and welcoming. We love Ms. LaDoris and the Allomothers! They keep us updated on our son's day through the Brightwheel app. I love getting photos of him eating and playing and it's also very convenient for us to communicate through the app - whether it is them letting us know if he is low on diapers or if I need to let them know we will be dropping our child off a little later. The staff is always very responsive and accommodating. They also come up with the most creative art projects that allow the kids to get messy and explore different textures! They are very patient and genuinely care about your child's development. We couldn't ask for better care and highly recommend Bright Beginnings!!” -Trina
“My son has been going here since he was 3 months old. We have been happy with every second of his care. He loves going to daycare every day and never wants to come home. He has learned so much over the past two years that I'm floored everyday with the new knowledge he has. All of the staff members are like family to us. I would absolutely recommend this facility to anyone.” -Jaquie
“Great daycare that really cares about our child's development. We are always getting pictures of her activities. They are also very responsive on the app that is used to communicate with parents. My experience has been that concerns are taken very seriously. Cleanliness is also taken very seriously. The Allomothers (teachers) really feel like they are part of the family.” -S.R.
“Our daughter has been at the center since she was 18mo. She is now 3 and has learned so much at BBELC. The center's owners and director have helped us parents with parental advice, discipline, coping skills and general life skills (potty training, manners, language/communication etc.) for our daughter. Our daughter loves going to BBELC and we generally refer to her friends and their families as our "second family" as this is a somewhat smaller center that really feels like a close knit community. They often do parties for the parents and kids to mingle and get to know one another. One of the things that really attracted us was their use of Brightwheel - an app that allows us to see photos and even videos of our daughter daily along with food and potty updates. Secondly we were attracted to the Montessori curriculum and monthly themes (art, music, black history, transportation). I cannot say enough positive things about BBELC - the teachers are all great and the director is knowledgeable, caring and simply amazing to the kids. Your child will learn and grow so much at BBELC. As new parents with no "village," the staff at the center has been our village.” -Brittany
“We have been so happy with our experience at Bright Beginnings! Our daughter was one of the "founding members", starting in the infant room in mid January when she was about 3 months old, and recently graduating to the wobbler room at 10 months. The staff is so caring and genuinely interested in our family and our daughter's life outside of school. They are also SO creative with their activities. For example, the month of August was travel month, where every day they "visited" a different country by trying that local food, listening to local music, reading books about that country, hearing different languages spoken, and doing country/culture specific crafts. In terms of communication, they are also top notch. They keep us updated throughout the day with photos, funny messages, and logs of her eating/sleeping/diapers, and they also send out monthly newsletters to keep us updated on events at initiatives at the center.” -Laura
“We are first time parents...we joined the waitlist approximately 1 year in advance of when we needed a spot, and ended up getting spot right around the timeframe estimated (the other waitlists we were on all fell apart!). We have been in the infant room for several months now and so far are very happy. We especially love the updates and photos via the Brightwheel app! It's so nice to see real time how much fun our babe is having while were busy at work. When we pick up we always get updates about how our babe did that day, what activities they did, etc. Everyone is extremely friendly and we feel very at ease about leaving her there. The facility is clean, new, and purpose built (unlike some other places we toured). So far so good and highly recommended!” -Parent
“We recently left this daycare after relocating out of state, and it was one of the saddest parts about leaving Chicago for us. I'm not sure I'll ever find another childcare center that I love as much as Bright Beginnings. Our older daughter was the first toddler enrolled in Teacher Jin's class back in January 2017. I was very apprehensive, as we had a pretty bad experience at our previous daycare, which was an in-home daycare. Our daughter cried every day at drop off and screamed intermittently throughout the day at the last place. Once starting with Teacher Jin and the other Allomothers at Bright Beginnings, she was truly HAPPY to go to school! Teacher Jin is patient, creative, and truly cared about our daughter and our whole family. She has excellent communication and worked with us to make sure we had consistent behavior at home and at school. I always trusted her advice and I knew that our daughter was in great hands with her. Once other students slowly joined, they quickly bonded, and became a tight knit group of little toddlers thanks to the Allomothers leadership! Our younger daughter joined the wobbler room in March 2017 and we had just as excellent of an experience with Ms LaDoris and the other Allomothers in the wobbler room. They were always doing fun activities, eating yummy organic food, and exploring things I'd never think to do at home. My wobbler made her first friends in that class and we'll always think of them all fondly! The owners, Bob and Martese, are fantastic. They're friendly and helpful, and the kids love to see them when they're around. The kids get outdoors almost every day, and are always tired out in time for nap time. My toddler would never nap at home, but Teacher Jin is a nap magician and got her to nap almost every single day during the 10 months she was there. Ms LaDoris also worked hard to get my wobbler to nap at school (she was a good napper at home but really struggled in the daycare environment at first). LaDoris never gives up! This is getting long but I could ramble about them all day. I really, really love this place.” -Heather
“We absolutely love Bright Beginnings! Our daughter is 18 months old and has been there for a little over 3 months. She was in an in home daycare that was pretty mediocre, especially compared to our experience here. The teachers and staff are all fantastic. Every day the kids are working on art projects, singing songs, and working on motor skills - they are so creative with them! One of the best parts about this place is they have an app that they updated every time she eats, has a diaper change, or goes down for a nap. They add photos and note the activities the kids are doing all day. It is really great to be able to pick up my phone and check in on how her day is going. When we first began there was a day or two that she cried at drop off, the staff sent us a reassuring message as soon as she had calmed down. We came from a daycare where they never told us what she was doing throughout the day and we rarely got photos of her on their Facebook page, it is so nice that each child gets their own individual activity journal with the app. Our daughter is active and curious and they really encourage that. She absolutely loves it there too. She is excited when we leave the house in the morning and when we get there she literally runs into the room. Her last daycare she cried nearly every day we dropped her off. You can just tell she really enjoys being there. As a parent it is hard enough to leave your little one all day, it makes it so much easier when you know they are happy and you can see what they are doing all day.” -Michelle
“Have loved being part of the Bright Beginnings family. Our boy/girl twins are 18 months old and we have been there about 3 months for 3 days a week. The twins (and parents) could not be happier. Our kids love going to "school". The activities range from music, dance, art, and developmental skills etc. The teachers and staff are so loving, knowledgeable and encouraging. I feel as if the kids are learning so much more through interaction with their teachers and friends than they were at home with me. My husband and I instantly felt comfortable leaving our kids in their care. The dedicated app lets us check in on them throughout the day and is a great way to make communication easier between family and the staff. The teachers and staff also helped us transition as this was our kids' first daycare experience. They were kind and understanding and helped Mom and Dad with this transition too. We are so happy and grateful that our kids can spend three of their days at Bright Beginnings (and can't wait to someday do 5). As a full time student we didn't know if our budget would allow for daycare for our twins but the competitive pricing (especially for the incredible quality of care) and being right down the street from our home made it an awesome fit. We all look forward to continuing to grow and learn with Bright Beginnings!” -Kelsey
“My little joined at 4 months. It’s been over 2 years and we’re constantly impressed. The age groups of rooms are pretty narrow so your walking infant isn’t surrounded by kids learning to roll over, and your chatty two year old is conversing with others past the teething phase. My little can count in English and Spanish, but also tells me fantastic stories about playing coffee shop and shows me yoga moves. Maybe I’m just jealous that she gets to spend all days with friends in a safe space during the pandemic while I stare at Zoom, but it’s been a blessing.” —- -Ric
