GOOD CHEAP Daycare in Crown Heights

anonymous

I moved here 3 months ago, I have a 2yr old and looking around i saw so many daycares i thought it'd be easy to find one i liked. not true, i'm still looking an getting desperate. do you have any recomendations?

THANK YOU! josefina

whyfi

A lady that lives next door to me takes care of a lot of kids, but I couldn't tell you if it's a daycare in the strictest sense... in any case, she's very nice and she seems to do really well with the children when we see them out front. On most nice days you could probably walk by and strike up a conversation with her - she's on Prospect just west of Classon, north side of the street.

bklynbonnie

Subject: daycare options

It's not easy to find good daycare in the area. We trek to Eladia's Kids on Flatbush and St. Mark's (either subway or walk). Great daycare but NOT cheap and not close enough for our tastes. If it makes you feel better, it's hard to find OPEN slots in a good daycare no matter where you live in Brooklyn.

blksafyre

I think you can go to the city's site www.nyc.gov. I think that you click on the Dept. of Health link, then you can scroll through and find licensed providers of all types in any zipcode.

stacey

Right on the border of Prospect Heights and Ft. Greene (I think on Vanderbilt and Greene) is the Medgar Evers Child Care Center which I heard has a great program and they charge on a sliding scale basis. You should also check with some of the local churches, they might be able to refer you somewhere. Lots of times they have their own but don't advertise.

Good Luck.

anonymous

Subject: Re: daycare options

bklynbonnie wrote: It's not easy to find good daycare in the area. We trek to Eladia's Kids on Flatbush and St. Mark's (either subway or walk). Great daycare but NOT cheap and not close enough for our tastes. If it makes you feel better, it's hard to find OPEN slots in a good daycare no matter where you live in Brooklyn.

Eladia's kids is a nightmare! From the dirt on the floor to the destroyed, and filthy old toys she expects the parents who pay $1500, to allow their children to be around I am shocked this place has not been shut down. Oh-but it almost was. I wouldn't let my dog stay here. The children look bored and the teachers look disgruntled. And though she has a great staff and amazing kids, Eladia doesn't seem to know how to keep things running in a professional manner.

st. chas. pl.

It's not quite in the neighborhood but I have been really impressed by Lefferts Gardens Montessori. Here's a link to their not so informative website but at least it has contact info:

http://www.leffertsgardenschool.com/door/

They have two small-ish sites which take kids from 2-6 y.o. The classrooms are warm and large with nice small areas for the kids to work with different things, like there's a reading loft and a snack nook where kids can help themselves to fruit etc, a nook with math manipulatives etc... Both times we've visited all the children have been incredibly nice to each other and our son. They're engaged in their work (it's actually surprisingly quiet there cause they're all so busy exploring!) The teachers seem warm and accessible. I'm a teacher myself and I've been really impressed by everything I've seen there. As a bonus the school is also quite affordable, relative to other offerings in the area..

The only downside I've found so far is that it's difficult to get Tony, the administrator, on the phone. If you want to go for a tour I recommend calling in the mornings and asking to speak to Windy who is a very experienced Montessori teacher who works there in the mornings only (training and supervising the newer teachers). She can give you a tour and if you're interested in more info you can talk to Tony but you'll have to be patient and persistent.

solamami

I have a 2-yr-old also, who's been in family daycare (which really is the most affordable kind of daycare) for most of her life and loves it--so much so that when I moved out of Carroll Gardens last year, I refused to pull her out (I'd rather we schlep on the B65). However, I found my babysitter through the Daycare Council of New York, which does give you referrals of licensed daycare facilities in whatever zip code you provide.

www.dccnyinc.org

GL!

heidikins

St. Chas. Pl. wrote: It's not quite in the neighborhood but I have been really impressed by Lefferts Gardens Montessori. Here's a link to their not so informative website but at least it has contact info:

http://www.leffertsgardenschool.com/door/

They have two small-ish sites which take kids from 2-6 y.o. The classrooms are warm and large with nice small areas for the kids to work with different things, like there's a reading loft and a snack nook where kids can help themselves to fruit etc, a nook with math manipulatives etc... Both times we've visited all the children have been incredibly nice to each other and our son. They're engaged in their work (it's actually surprisingly quiet there cause they're all so busy exploring!) The teachers seem warm and accessible. I'm a teacher myself and I've been really impressed by everything I've seen there. As a bonus the school is also quite affordable, relative to other offerings in the area..

The only downside I've found so far is that it's difficult to get Tony, the administrator, on the phone. If you want to go for a tour I recommend calling in the mornings and asking to speak to Windy who is a very experienced Montessori teacher who works there in the mornings only (training and supervising the newer teachers). She can give you a tour and if you're interested in more info you can talk to Tony but you'll have to be patient and persistent.

I visited this school, too, and was impressed. I stayed for circle time and the kids sang to me--very cute. My neighbor sends her child here and drives to/from.

It's hard to find a good, affordable place around here. Most places I have been looking at are in Park Slope and Fort Greene--not close and not necessarily cheap, but very good programs. Check out parkslopeparents.org for reviews and other ideas.

We just decided to join a co-op in Clinton Hill--nice community and more affordable (they had a massive waitlist, so not sure if they'd take any others).

anonymous

I would also look into Magic Kingdom Nursery School if you are in Crown Heights proper. Its on Kingston Ave and Eastern Parkway. They have been around for over 26 years, great mature teachers, the kids always seem very happy and they really teach the kids. The start them with spanish in Pre K I think and they are reading at 3 years old.