Happy Hollow Children's Center

This program is the best program we have found for our children over the past six years! It is amazing in its structure, organization, curriculum, staff, and environment. Even though one of our children has already graduated from their preschool and kindergarten program we keep coming back for summer camp which can't get any better for children. The website does not do it the justice it needs as a magical place for little learners. We are happy to have found this place and know the memories and mentoring provided to our children will last a lifetime. This is what is it all about folks! Check it out and find out for yourselves like we did and you will be thanking me for writing this review! more

My grandchildren attend this fabulous school and although I do not usually take the time to write reviews but I think people should know how great this place is for young children. The teachers are incredible. They always give me the best information about my little ones from funny stories to things they are working on to challenges they might have experienced. The program is so well run with so much respect for everyone who steps into it each day that I needed to make sure other people and parents out there knew about the impact it has had on my family. Job well done Happy Hollow. more

Owner increased tuition after 3 months of being thereveru disappointed in the ownership and management and lack of communication and vagueness but quality of care seema good so far more

We cannot overstate the impact Happy Hollow has had on our lives and our child's growth and development as a person and a student. Everything about this school makes it the best choice we have ever made for our family--from the teachers, to the events, to the communication, to the kindness within the learning community itself. Everything about it is a standard that will be hard to replace as we relocate. We will miss everyone and every part of this wonderful learning environment! more

this is the place for our kids....just moved here from eastcoast and after thorough research on the web and then seeing this place for the first time my wife and i are all smiles....what a great place....our son and daughter love it....great stories about their school everyday....great happy environment....kids, staff, and the owners are very kind and caring towards everyone in general...especially to the kids.....hooray for happy hollow.... more

Ok, after reading some of these reviews, I can't help but laugh. I am sorry but what daycare is 100% perfect, wait let's get real, what Job is 100% perfect? My son has been attending this school for a few months now, ( whom has never attended a day care in his life) and absolutely loves it here. His teacher is friendly and personable and my son talks about her constantly! Laura (the owner) has been nothing but professional, kind, outgoing, and fantastic! The criticism on their eco friendly practices is quite amusing as well..I toured over a dozen child care centers before choosing Happy Hollow, and not one brought up the words eco friendly. I challenge you to find a daycare whom is 100% eco friendly, at least they are creating awareness, and moving in the right direction..eco friendly doesn't happen over night. So to the parents out there, my two cents is.. my child is happy, his parents are happy, and Happy Hollow has yet to prove us wrong! more

Our daughter has been attending this school for over 2.5 yrs ('07-'10). We adore it. The owners/directors are extremely knowledgeable, responsive to parents needs and very kind and generous people. The teachers truly love and care for the children in a way that gave us confidence that we had chosen the right program. They are fair-minded and very calm in their approach to disciplining students that may be acting out or behaving badly. We had our daughter in a very expensive daycare program, Knowledge Beginnings in Tigard, which she started when she was 3 mos old. Which was nice. But it was a franchise and ended up feeling a little too clinical for our tastes. So, when I changed jobs, we started to look around at all of our options. No school could compare to the outdoor space and home-like environment Happy Hollow provides. There are huge trees that provide a natural canopy from all that OR rain. The building, itself, is a large, converted modern home. We started soon after the ownership had changed hands and there was a period of flux and adjustment with some of the staff - which is referenced in some of the less positive reviews on this site. But, even during this period, the Laura and Mario were very sensitive to the needs of the parents, provided assurances and always made it clear that they put the children first. We moved out to Portland 6 yrs ago and don't have any family out here. Happy Hollow was very flexible and really provided so much support for us during some logistically difficult times. There's a professional chef on staff that provides DELICIOUS and nutritious meals for the children. They have a large garden area, which the children plant and tend throughout the year. They compost. They recycle. They use green cleaning agents. They have a kiln (which we happily donated!) and the kids make really creative art projects. They take full advantage of Kennedy Park next door for picnics and other events. They take some really cool field trips to some great local spots. You can choose to have your child enroll in Gymstars and/or Soccer Shots, and, in the Summer, swim lessons at the Beaverton Pool Most importantly, our daughter had FUN and made really wonderful friends. In addition to learning her letters, numbers, shapes and colors, she learned how to respect her classmates, how to share and take turns and, in the process, has really developed into the most articulate, sweetest (but strong-willed) little girl. Another point that should be made is that the other parents are really great. Playdates and birthday parties were all very easy for us. We're sad that we're moving back East. It was a true privilege to be part of such a nurturing community and we will always be grateful for the experience! Pros: Outdoor Play Areas Cons: Teachers are Treated Well, But Aren't Paid Enough more

We want to thank Happy Hollow for giving us back our happy grandson. When he first started daycare, he was placed in a very large modern facility. This place was rated very highly, but had very large classes, and a lot of staff turnover, so there wasn?t a lot of personal attention, and not much structure. This turned our happy-go-lucky grandson into a sad, angry boy. more

I have a daughter who goes here and we are very happy. Not only do we think this school under charges for its tuition, but they are making improvements to the school all the time! I have to say I do not know where the non-eco friendly comments come from as the school uses all eco friendly products, each classroom recycles, there is organic food on the menu and an organic garden. I am not sure there is alot more to do! more

Happy Hollow does ok, but they could really stand to improve. They charge more than any other preschool I know of, and yet I always feel like the teachers are more interested in socializing with one another than with paying attention to the needs of the children. This is not true across the board (with all teachers), but it is something I've observed countless times with several of them. One of the things that drove me to select Happy Hollow in the first place was the eco-friendly touting they are given. I don't understand the basis of this. It must be a holdover from the way the previous owners did business. I think current owners Mario and Laura do a very nice job, but they don't have any environmental focus that I've noticed. They are nice people, but they need a little restructuring of their rates (DOWN) and they need teachers who aren't interested in kids to GO. more

My son has been at Happy Hollow for the last 7 months and has literally blossomed. He enjoys going to school each day to be with his friends and teachers. Each day he comes home bubbling with news about the special projects and experiences he has had at school. Pros: excellent staff & learning environment, creativity more

Our son has been here for two years and he will be graduating from the pre-school program. We as parents decided to place him in the school's kindergarten program to continue his happy hollow experience. Its been the best of times since he started here and he has evolved into a confident happy child. Pros: great facility overall Cons: only one location more

This place is wonderful for children. They are happy, always busy, and a very supportive staff to make it all happen. My wife is now at peace that we found a perfect fit for our children. The minute we walked inside the gates of happy hollow and saw all the children having a great time we liked it. After talking to the director who happens to be the owner, we love it. After talking to some of the staff, we're ecstatic about this place. The place is full to capacity which confirms our joy for happy hollow. more

I have a son in kindergarten and a daughter in the preschool classroom at Happy Hollow. We have been very happy with the curriculum, the teachers--who have all been the same the past two years--and the environment. We recommend this school to families looking for a great, exciting learning environment with wonderful teachers for their children's early years! more

After searching long and hard, we found Happy Hollow was everything they said they would be--child centered, creative, structured around social responsibility and awareness, positive, and with a focus on not only the whole child but our family as well. We love the gatherings around food in the kitchen, the music all day, the creative art/literacy and science curriculum and the good feelings we get coming to school everyday. We have favorite teachers (their names are a constant source of story telling by our little guy) but think everyone is professional yet kind and compassionate. We think its great what they do and why! Pros: Great space and use of environment more

jencc your review best describes this wonderful school. This will be our second year at HH and we are very happy to be here. We have a son and a daughter at different levels and both are getting the appropriate early childhood education. The staff is great, the place is definitely Happy Hollow, the administration is excellent, and most importantly the children are all having fun. Pros: a successful small business Cons: dumbfounded negative comments more

My family loves this school. It has become part of our ""village"" raising our kids. I have gotten to know many of the teachers well, and talk to them each day. They have genuine affection for each child in their care, and can tell you all the funny things that happened during the day and progress that has been made. Their time there is valuable to me, because I know they are growing and learning in a positive environment. Pros: warm, creative environment, great teachers, administration, and families Cons: wish it were closer to my home more

One of our daughters just graduated from Happy Hollow's kinder program and our second daughter is a Pros: Existing for kids Cons: 0 more

Our son graduated from Happy Hollow's kindergarten program yesterday and we are thankful he had the chance to be at this school. He attended this school for two years and we give credit to everyone working at this place(and yes, specially the new owners) for operating such a wonderful place for children. My husband and I want to extend our full gratitude to Happy Hollow Children's Center. Thank you teacher Emily for doing an excellent job. Pros: administration, staff, setting, and much more Cons: dillusional comments more

Can't please them all. This children center is one of a kind. A great environment for kids to grow and learn. Pros: What can I say that hasn't been already mentioned Cons: polywog, cynthiajackson, bird, luzmere, geemom, teleflora more