Childtime

During my research, there were other preschools that I preferred over Childtime, but they did not have full-​time availability for my 3-​year-​old son. The options that remained weren’t extraordinary, nor was there anything completely negative. I narrowed it down to Childtime because of the physical appearance of the facility (clean, not worn down) and convenience (close to home). And Ms. Stephanie seemed nice enough.
I had just taken my son out of an at-​home daycare, where my son and I had a great relationship with the caretaker. She was almost as good as having a family member watch my son and that was reassuring. But it was time for my son to go to preschool and I was nervous about taking him out of such a secure place, for the both of us. However, I embraced this transition and was looking forward to his very first day.
That very first day started it all. I walked in with all smiles, excited for this next phase for my son and I. However, Ms. Stephanie just buzzed us in, head down, shuffling papers and didn’t even make eye contact when she mechanically responded, «hello.» I went over to the computers to clock my son in and was confused by what she had wrote on our paperwork. When I asked her to clarify, she just pointed from behind the desk and answered in a condescending tone. As I kindly asked a reminder as to which classroom my son would be attending; again, she responded in an impatient, condescending tone. I was taken back by how rude, the director was. I thought her 20 years of experience would have taught her how some interpersonal skills. How important the first day of preschool was for a parent. How important it meant that my child was going to be spending 10 hours a day for five days a week there. How important I needed to trust them and know that he was going to be cared for. I brushed it off, thinking maybe she was having a bad day or I was hypersensitive because it was my son’s first day of preschool.
I let my son stay at that center for about 2 months. In those 2 months, Ms. Stephanie proved to a drone, constantly typing away or shuffling papers. Never warm and never made an effort to have my son or myself feel connected. I feel like she’s jaded and is just riding it out until retirement. A worker ant for the corporation that is Childtime, just collecting checks until her time is up. And that’s scary, the director sets the tone for her staff.
My son did manage to make somewhat of a connection with his teacher Ms. Catalina. Who is sweet and patient (the only positive experience we had there). Ms. Kimberly, the other teacher, is nice enough, but I’m afraid lacks some judgment. I watched her let the kids (including my son) sit on top of a drum and let it roll side to side, playing a game, where she would just stop the drum before the kids fell off. Mind you, they were playing this game on pavement… with sharp, random rocks on it. I thought, not all of these kids have the coordination to balance themselves on that drum. And if they fall and hit their head on the pavement, that might not be good. Of course, my son went, fell off and landed on a rock. Ended up bleeding. When he got up, she barely paid him any attention and brushed him off. He went off to the side by himself, holding his bleeding arm. She finally went up to him and brought him in to clean up, but demeaned the pain he felt. I also witnessed a few times kids shoving and hitting each other, while the teachers didn’t notice because they were too busy filling out paperwork (they fill out a lot of paperwork… must be because it’s a corporation). Eventually, I got a notice from the school about how hitting was becoming an issue in their class (no shit, glad you finally figured it out). On his second week of school, my son came home with a random bruise on his back and what looked like a pinch mark on his chest. He also brought home bad behavior, saying «shut-​up.» He cried every morning, like I was sending him to the torture chamber. And towards the end, when I picked him up he was often sitting to the side by himself, as if he was just waiting for me to get him.
Childtime made me feel like they didn’t care and he wasn’t safe.
We are now in a new preschool and it’s amazing how different he is.

After noticing that the same director is still there, I feel it is important to bring this to everyone’s attention. When I was employed at Childtime I observed a teacher on several different occasions pick up a non verbal 3 year old by the collar of his shirt, choking him. I reported this to both the director and child services. After nothing was done by the director I went to corporate at which time nothing was done. I was removed and placed into another classroom because the director didn’t want me telling the family and tried to hide what had happened. I have worked in childcare for over 20 years and have never seen so many things covered up behind closed doors as I did while employed at Childtime. I wish I could give them zero stars but it’s not possible on this site.

Our family has been a client of Childtime since our daughter was 4 months old (she is now 2.5). Childtime
has offered our daughter a wonderful, warm, caring, progressive, learning based program. The teachers are wonderful, working with us through every stage to help our daughter continue to grow and learn. The program is developed to provide curriculum at every age and stage, developing fine motor skills on up to colors, numbers, letters, counting and beyond. Lots of arts and crafts and play time. They also offer extra classes such as music class, Spanish class, soccer and dance. The management staff is always great, available anytime we have questions or concerns. They have great systems in place to keep us informed and part of their day and continue to have events throughout the year that incorporate the parents. Truly a great learning experience that makes a working parent feel good about having to go back to work — knowing their child is in a great environment, flourishing, growing and learning!

Director is very rude and has no problem making you feel uncomfortable. Its an unfortunate situation that such a beautiful place is run by such a grumpy woman. Beware of Stephanie.

Looking for childcare can be a challenging task for any parent. We had high hopes for the center entering into what they said and saw at our tour. My step son attended from the time he was 3 – 5. Each year moving to a new room with new teachers. Shortly after there were many teacher turnovers, the director Stephanie is not at all friendly she wouldn’t say a word when we walked by. Not very good customer service. Being a childcare professional myself I never would have put him there but of course it wasn’t my decision, however his care wasn’t to our expectation. He said that he was embarrassed by teachers for not listening. Remind you he was 3. I could go on and on about different things but long story short was very dissatisfied and wished we wouldn’t have put him in this center.;0

Now that we have been at this school for over two years, I am still amazed at how much my daughter has thrived here. Every day (Saturdays and Sundays included), she asks if she gets to go to school. Each teacher she has had as she has progressed through the classes has been a pleasure to work with. I am looking forward to what the next year brings us. — Oh and as a bonus, they have a full time summer program, which I have found out that most preschool do not have.

After much research in child care facilities for our baby, we decided on ChildTime based on convinence/​location, price and care. The baby room employs Ms. Maria who has been in the school for many years and was great to our baby from the beginning and always gave us suggestions if we asked. The next room was employed by many different teachers throughout our stay. This room was subpar as I think our child outgrew it sooner than we expected, along with all the other kids as well. The «Two’s» room was decorated nice by the teachers and photos of the kids are placed all around the room. The teacher is «hard of hearing» (at least that’s what the Asst. Director told us). I think she spends more time decorating the classroom than teaching and changing diapers. About 2 – 3 times per week I’d pick up my child at 5pm and they had a poopy diaper. (No joke) As I changed them, the teacher would just hand me a diaper and wipes. Isn’t this what I pay the large tuition for?
The reason for the 2 out of 5 stars is based on the facility and its’ Headquarters in a whole. The Director splits her time supervising La Petite in Concord and ChildTime, but once she started this split time, we saw her about once per week in Martinez. The Assistant Director is lacking experience in her position which really hurts the facitlity since this is a large school with many kids and parents in and out. Answers to questions were either very vague or over broad. Many times the Asst. Director would see us checking in and race down the hallway to beat us to the room to either make up the ratio, make sure something is taken care of in front of us or other odd things she does. you’ll know what I mean when you meet her.
The teacher turnover rate is very frequent at this Martinez location, with the exception of Ms. Maria.
I’d send my baby there again, but once walking, I’d prefer to move to a different school. I pretty much only recommend the baby room.

My husband and I came for a «walk-​through» appointment and I was very upset and disturbed at the things I saw when they were supposed to be on their best behavior i.e. let’s get more business.
The initial person was very nice and friendly and led us to the baby room, we had to put hospital booties over our shoes which I thought showed a concerted effort for the children to have a clean environment.
That was where the positivity ended.
When we entered the room there was a baby about 5 months old laying on the ground sobbing his little heart out and the man who was in charge of the room was sitting on the ground off to the side doing nothing.
As soon as we walked in he got up and picked the boy and did a half-​ass job trying to console him.
Another little boy was crawling around with a huge green booger mustache that was dripping into his mouth.
Me personally if my son is screaming his head off I want to know that whomever is in charge of his care is concerned about this and attempting to meet his needs. Additionally, if the little boy is crawling around with a booger mustache and no one has attempted to wipe it off I am concerned how long they are sitting in dirty diapers.
The icing on the cake for me was that the man in charge was not a teacher. He was the freaking bus driver. The regular teacher was on break.
EXCUSE ME?!
Is this man qualified to be watching 6 babies by himself?
Did not look to me like he cared at all.
I would never ever consider leaving my son in the care of this facility.

I gave them one more star than I was going to due to the security they have set up. When you compare them to other day care facilities and not just judge their internal issues, they do stand out. If you are in the area and are looking for a good place go here. If you are not in the nearby area, than look around for one closer to you with a reasonable recommendation

Stephanie, Monika, both Samanthas, Luu, and all of the other wonderful teachers and administrators were consistently professional, helpful, and courteous to my husband and me, as well as overwhelmingly kind and nurturing to our son. We appreciated the genuinely warm, friendly atmosphere that the staff created for all of us. The Martinez facility is beautiful and well-​maintained, and we were very happy with the curriculum. It was gratifying to see our son thrive and grow under the staff’s care. We had to move around quite a bit this last year while we waited to occupy our permanent residence, and Childtime provided a much-​needed anchor for our child during that chaotic period, for which we are deeply grateful.

Im actually a former student of the school. Ive been there for 5 years, 1^st grade to 5^th. I must say, it was a awesome school experience. Im saddened that the school is closed and is replaced with a new charter school.
I just wanted to say that to me, it was a great school. Teachers were kind, other students were amazing, and the education was okay. I do admit, it wasn’t the best you could actually get, but it was okay. I remember taking advanced math classes though.
The school taught very informational things about our world though. They taught us how to take care of mother nature and how to make it better. They even made us do projects that helped the nature around us thrive and encourage students to take care of mother nature!
I will forever be thankful to that school and everyone one who was in it. Its sad to see such wonderful times and memories go.

My daughter graduated K last year at Childtime. She is now in 1^st grade in Moraga and is THRIVING! The private K program at Childtime really set my daughter up for 1^st grade success in a school district that ranks as one of the best. I will forever be thankful to the staff.

Take it from me the teacher turnover is ridiclous and the director there is RUDE!!! There are alot of great childcare places out there you just have to look. I personally would like my child to have a consisent teacher not just one that is there for less than 5 months or so.

My daughter has been going to Childtime for over 2 years. She started at 4 months and is 2.5 now. Childtime has what we wanted as parents. A flexible schedule. I work part-​time. I don’t have to pay for a full week I pay for a partial week. That was a big thing for me. Their hours are 6:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Not everyone out there can get off at 4:00 or 5:00 PM. This was really important for us too. My child didn’t need to be potty trained. The list goes on.
Then there is the safety plan. Does your daycare have monthly fire drills? Do you know how to contact your facility or how they will contact you in the case of an emergency? I do with Childtime Martinez.
Does the facility have turnover? Yes. They have lost a couple of really great teachers in the last year. But this is the nature of childcare. Personally, I can’t afford a nanny and I want my child to learn to interact with others. That is going to include change. Have I had my conflicts? Sure, but they have been minor and as long as I am communicating daily/​weekly with the teachers and director, I do usually get things resolved to my satisfaction.
Is it expensive? More than some small home care facilities, but we were looking for something that was more structured, in that it was a business and had some processes in place. Many daycare centers are just one offs and don’t go through the inspection process to the level this site does. Also comparatively speaking I found the price VERY COMPETITIVE.
Putting my child in daycare is brutal. I wish I didn’t have to. But at Childtime I know she is safe, she has friends, there are teachers she really likes, and if I am involved I will get what I need and my child will too.

My husband and I couldn’t be happier with the folks at Childtime! We think the staff is exceptional and our son has been going to the infant room for four months and we have noticed he is developing into a bright and happy boy. He plays with his friends, he loves his teachers… it’s a very nurturing, loving enviornment.
Compared to other places we had gone to before finding Childtime, Childtime gives us a sense of peace. We know he is safe and that he is in good hands all day. The infant room has plenty of space for the infants, there are no safety hazards, there are lots of toys and books (and they read to him), and there is also a lot of natural light in the room all day. Not to mention, it’s ALWAYS clean and there is a «no shoes» policy when you go into the room, which I love!
I think what’s most impressive is that even though he was only 6 months when he started going there, every month they have the infants create their own art. Fingerpainting has become one of his favorite things to do and while I can’t be with my son during the day, nothing makes me feel better than picking him up and seeing his cute murals of paint that I can take home.
Everyday I take home a sheet of paper that the teachers fill out for my son. It tells me all the things I miss throughout the day; when he ate, what he ate, how much he ate, his diaper changes, his nap schedule, things he learned that day, things he did and enjoyed. I think this place really goes above and beyond.
This place is great and I highly recommend it for your child. From what I can see of the children in the other classrooms (the older children), they are always looking happy and they, too, appear to have creative outlets and be learning a lot.

Childtime has so much to offer the little ones, an excellent structured preschool program, hot meals, potty training, variety of crafts, and the teachers interact at the child’s level with them. On the awesome play yard their is usually a story time corner and another teacher playing a game or doing bubbles. As a Nurse I like that they have kid friendly hand washing stations. It does run on the pricey side but for a child’s learning years they are a good foundation to have. And Bonus, they have a private Kindergarten and before and after school care with transportation to local schools.

I had my son here for about 4 months and if you ask me it was 4 months too long. I fell in love with the place when I first checked it out. It looked clean and the people were friendly. On the first day I realized it wasn’t what it appeared to be. The Director is rude and unfriendly and has no business working at a place with children. She didn’t even say hello or greet me the first 3 months my son was there when I would walk in in the morning. One morning I overheard her on the phone talking to an employee who was calling in sick. She said to them that a bunch of other employees had already called in sick and he/​she needed to come in regardless. Great I thought. So if my kid gets sick from your teacher, I still have to pay for the week and stay at home with him. Nice. They are so disorganized there. The teachers do not communicate with the directors and vice versa. I got so much conflicting information it was ridiculous. One of the teachers told me «The directors don’t know anything.» Wow… professional… Then when you bring issues or concerns to the director’s attention they blow you off. All in all I did not feel they were capable of keeping my child safe in many ways. Parents out there, don’t waste your time on this place if you want to make sure your kids are in good hands.

I have been taking my daughter there for two years and my son started a few months ago. I love the teachers and have always felt comfortable about bringing my children to Childtime.
they always have made my child feel welcome and loved. I have never doubted them. they always are very open and give me every detail of their day.

Your children deserve better.
I put my toddler son in their care for just a total of 6 days before we pulled him out. The «teachers» seemed just too burnt out or jaded to give the children any real warmth. When I’d drop my son off, if he started crying (which was every single time we even approached the building after his first day there), the teacher would simply take him from my arms facing outward without saying anything to him. When I hung around one morning to watch a teacher read a story to the toddlers, she blurted out «The End», tossed the book into a basket and literally rolled her eyes at the end of the story.
Furthermore, the two teachers who were most often there in my son’s room were rather out of shape. When I stayed to observe the kids during outdoor play, if a child fell down, the teachers would simply yell out «you’re ok» from wherever they were sitting without getting up to check on them closely. I think their physical conditions made them a little lazy in the care they gave the kids. I was also told that if it’s over 95 degrees outside, they keep the children indoors. Really? This is Contra Costa County. There are more than just a handful of hot days throughout the year. They should put some shade up so the children are allowed the opportunity to play outside EVERY day .
After 5:30 pm, they move the toddlers into the infants room, I guess to save on the costs of paying their caregivers. However, the infant caregivers maybe aren’t the best choice for looking after toddlers. When my friend went to pick up her own child in the infant room, she reported to me that she found my son crying with no staffer trying to comfort him. She said she felt she had to stay with him herself until I arrived. When I complained about this incident, the center director dismissed my complaint by saying my son was so upset he didn’t want to be comforted (so therefore it was ok for the caregiver in the room to give up on him and just let him keep crying?)
The food they feed the children each day is probably standard processed fare, which is unfortunate. I actually did see the milk they offer, and it’s the «shelf-​stable» kind, meaning that it is stored in boxes not refrigerators.
The center has a fancy security system in place, where each parent gets a security code to enter the building. Still, I’m pretty certain I could have walked out of there with someone else’s kid if I wanted to. The caregivers are just so lax about keeping an eye on the kids and perhaps depend too heavily on the system they have in place. One night, I was able to walk into the toddler room, collect my son’s things, leave with my son, and neither the caregiver nor anyone at the front desk took notice of me the whole time, in fact there was no one at the front desk that night. If it were my center, I would have someone stationed at the exit to keep an eye on every child being removed from the center.
We have since brought our son back to his former part-​time daycare and the difference is like night and day. He loves the caregivers there, and they genuinely seem to like him. The teachers seem truly engaged in their play with the kids. Honestly, I’ll always feel a little guilty about the time I left my son in the care of this Childtime center.

I feel so comfortable taking my daughter here on an everyday basis. The staff is fabulous and the management goes above and beyond to make this place feel like home. Would absolutely recommend Child Time to any of my friends looking for exceptional child care.