Lakeshore Children’s Center

I will preface my review by saying that not all schools are for all kids, and that this place has some genuinely kind staff, but that my child and my family suffered here with the lack of structure and engagement. Some kids may do fine in a place like this, and the price is great, but I have learned that I got what I paid for and I am willing to pay more for a better experience for my son.
My three year old son had a terrible experience at LCC! Within just two weeks we saw his behavior completely decline into multiple daily tantrums, hitting, crying and making up excuses not to go to school every day. The kids spend the first two hours of the day romping in a big, uncontained room without activities or structure. My son felt unsafe in the space. My son never came home reporting about the interesting things he did or the things he learned, he only complained. Now, my son had had previous positive experiences at school, so this was not just him making things up.
My concerns were that the teachers never communicated with me about his day or his struggles or what they were doing to support him. The facility was unsafe and it was easy to push the side gate open and the front gate was often opened by the toddlers, so was also unsafe. They only wash the blankets for nap time once a month and all the cots are stacked on top of each other, so it was a breeding ground for all sorts of things! In one month my son got a terrible case of pink eye and a cold and he is usually really healthy. They give the children cookies regularly for snack and there are birthdays almost weekly where kids eat cupcakes and other sweets, so my son was particularly a mess on those days, as he doesn’t do well with sugar. The engagement is limited, the explorations of life and learning are limited and the staff, while kind, are not doing much to foster an environment of curiosity and the development of the social and emotional well being of the children. Now he is 100% himself again and the behaviors have subsided, he just needed to get out of the school. I have more complaints, but I will leave it at this. I hope this is helpful to some prospective parents.

Our son has been at LCC for 1 ½ years now, and my younger son will join him there in a few weeks. We really love the school, and here’s my top 5 on why it’s a great place:
(1) It’s play-​based. Even when they are learning, the kids are having fun and are allowed to be kids. They provide opportunities to learn in different ways — whether it is listening to story-​telling in circle time, learning letters by doing artwork, puzzles, building with blocks, cooking, taking turns on the playground, always helping to clean up, etc. Plus, being a «peace academy,» LCC teaches kids to respect themselves and to respect others.
(2) The teachers are AMAZING. Many have been there for over 20 years, and they are wonderful with the kids. It takes a special person to teach preschool, and LCC has been able to attract the best of them — and keep them — over the years.
(3) It’s accommodating to working families. School is open from 7am to 6pm (with a nominal monthly charge for the early/​late hours). So many other preschools that we looked at didn’t open til 8am, and that does not work for me and my husband. They are also open most days of the year.
(4) Continuity of care. Your child can start here at age 2 ½ and continue going through elementary school through the School Age Program. LCC has a van they use to drop off and pick up kids from neighboring elementary schools. This is especially convenient when you have younger siblings who go to LCC for preschool.
(5) It’s a family. Lots of families who live in the neighborhood, and are involved at the school.
There are a lot of other perks (affordable, diverse, parent’s night out!) that I won’t elaborate on. If you are looking for fancy, «new,» Montessori, or high-​tech, this place is probably not for you. But if you want a safe, happy environment where your child can learn and play, you should check it out.

My granddaughter attended LCC last year, moving to SoCal at the end of January of this year. During the summer, she visited me for a few weeks, and she happily went back without missing a beat! She formed quite a few special relationships there with teachers and classmates.
I am a volunteer story reader for the Oakland Public Library, and I’ve continued reading at LCC at least once a month because those children are one of my favorite audience! They are attentive, engaged, and well-​behaved, which I attribute to the caring staff there.

We live in the neighborhood and it’s so convenient but they used to require that kids are fully potty trained before they could sing up. They changed that recently so we moved out 2 year old from his day care in Berkeley and we are very happy.
(We loved the place in Berkeley too but there were so many rules, and closed days, and regulations and exceptions. The teachers are great but they don’t seem happy as I think they have higher ups breathing down their necks micro managing)
Not so LCC. It’s very loose. The kids just play. The teachers are loud and silly and the kids love them. The place is a little funky for sure but it still feels safe and our son loves it. Better still there’s just one price for one long day. 7:30 am-5:30pm. You can drop in as you please. They are hardly ever closed, they feed them breakfast and the fee is super «affordable» compared to what we were paying.
(I can never reconcile the logic of a day care center that closes for up to 5 weeks a year and charges parents for this. just irks the hell out of me! LCC DO NOT do this! Yay! They are a community based service as all day care centers should be!)
So we love it. Some folks want to know every little detail about every little thing their kid does (our last place had a pee and poo sheet! Seriously! Do you really need to know when your kid takes a dump every day?) but this is my 3^rd kid so I’m not so stressed about this any more.
Just want to pick him up alive and happy each day. So far so good.

My daughter has been going to LCC for about 4 months now and I really couldn’t be happier. LCC is such a warm and caring place, my daughter just loves it. The teachers have all been there for years and years (most of them over 20yrs) and there is a real since of family. The staff provides lots of awesome activities for the kids like bringing in a mobile zoo, bounce house, parties and lots and lots of crafts for the kids to make. My daughter spelled her name the other day and I was completely blown away.
Once a month they have «Parents Night Out» so for a small fee you can drop your child off and have a date night with your significant other (so awesome) while knowing your child is safe with people you are comfortable with. There is a camping trip in August for LCC families which we are all looking forward to.
Their rates are very, very reasonable and I really couldn’t be happier with our choice of LCC.
P. S. To that one person who wrote a negative review (without even having your child enrolled there) I think your completely full of it. I mean you can’t start out a review by saying «First, let me say that I hate to give negative reviews unless absolutely necessary.» but yet you only have one review on Unilocal and it’s negative!!! I call Shenanigans on Michelle R. review!

We’ve been LCC parents for over a year now. Our little boy (in Kleines but moving to Kinder) loves the place, the teachers, and the environment. Not only are they play-​based, and spend a fair amount of time outside, when it rains (which it did a lot this year) they have a massive room called Barnett Hall to bring the children just behind the school – all interconnected so the children are 100% protected.
This would be a five star review except for one thing: they don’t tend to give you much communication about how your child’s day went. I’d prefer to get a one-​page check-​off sheet on whether he ate, slept, behaved, listened, seemed happy, seemed off, seemed sick, etc.
While the teachers are always very happy to tell you how they did (if you get their early enough to talk with one who has been there all day) this sheet would make it much easier. It is clear that all the teachers I’ve come across truly care for the kids, give a lot of attention, and clearly are involved. I’d just like to get some of that detail.
Also, it would be great if occasionally they could take the kids on excursions but that may be asking too much!
Overall I highly recommend LCC. Trustworthy, Safe, Fun, and Social – all the things kids need to be successful.

This is a totally mixed review. We’re here during OUSD’s one-​week spring break camp only.
For my kid, it’s fantastic — great kids, great teachers, field trips to Chuck E. Cheese’s and the bowling alley. He loves it.
For me, it’s a hassle. They double-​billed me … and then they verbally told me over the phone that they were open on certain dates but later said, «oops we forgot, one of the days is a holiday!» leaving me to scrounge for childcare.
So my husband and I are sort of torn. But I’m giving it four stars because of Junior.

I wanted to put in a good word for LCC.
I live in the neighborhood and have sent all my kids through LCC and and have loved it. More importantly my kids did too. They all three have come away from their time at LCC well adjusted and very prepared for kindergarten. The curriculum is play based, which I like best for preschoolers, but really the atmosphere and curriculum of the school is driven by the GREAT teachers and staff. The teachers have all been there for many years and are gifted and talented people. My kids were embraced from the moment they arrived at LCC by nothing but love and acceptance and that has paid tremendous benefits. Every day, my son arrives at school to hugs and shouts of joy and then we have to practically drag him away at the end of the day because he is having such a good time. All my kids formed lasting friendships though the school and we parents felt a part of the community as well. Another thing I have really loved about the school, is that both the staff and student body reflect the very diverse culture we have here in Oakland. I read the negative review posted with some surprise and can only assume that the reviewer is either wrong or missed a big piece of the picture of the school. I don’t expect that LCC would suit all families or all kids, but I would recommend it to anyone without hesitation.

First, let me say that I hate to give negative reviews unless it’s absolutely necessary.
In this case, especially as it involves kids, I feel it’s necessary. I am not a current parent there, but had my kid on their waiting list for a while. I decided to do an unscheduled visit. I had visited LCC twice before, and previously loved the place, and was excited that my child would be attending there at some point. (Read: Very Excited, so I have no reason to speak negatively if not for the truth).
I observed circle time during my last visit. I was informed that the kids had been sitting there for about an hour, and you could tell they were a bit restless. (Not ideal, but I could let that slide). What I couldn’t deal with was the teacher. I observed her use her finger to poke 3 kids on their heads, separately, while telling them they were not being good. I also observed her use her foot to shove a little boy’s feet to the side. He was sitting on the floor, and she was standing. She was telling him that he was not being good. This to me is demeaning, and completely unacceptable. (Mind you, these kids were restless from sitting for an hour in circle time, they were not unruly by any means).
When she finally dismissed the kids to go to the yard, she did so by calling their name one at a time, in kind of an intimidating fashion by pausing between names, calling out the ones who were being totally still. She said to about three of the kids «You’re last. You’re not being good.» Honestly, I felt a bit deflated by the time the last kid was excused.
A couple of other issues with this teacher is that her tone was harsh at times. She wasn’t the cheerful type that you’d hope to have around your kid all day. Not once did she say «please» or «thank you» when talking to the kids. Kids learn respect by being respected. She was definitely not a good example of this.
The crazy thing is that I was standing there in plain sight while observing her. So if she was doing this with me standing there, I couldn’t help but wonder what does she do or say when no one is watching.
I sent an e-​mail to the school asking that I be withdrawn from the waiting list and explained my observation. I don’t know how the other teachers are, but from what I observed, this is not a positive, confidence-​building environment. The response I got back from the school was that they were indeed sorry for my observation and would address it with the teacher, that she had been there for 30 years, and that none of the parents had ever complained.
In addition to her, there are a couple of safety issues that I feel are of concern with the school as well. I won’t go into detail as this is the internet and I don’t want to expose the kids in any way. But, I feel it’s too easy to gain access to the children, and they should consider addressing that issue.
Again, I was there to observe and make a final decision about having my child attend the school. I have no reason to say anything falsely negative about this place. My child was on the list and due to start soon. I wanted her to be there, for it to be a match. Unfortunately, it’s not.

This is a great place for children. My son goes here and he loves it. The teachers have a great deal of experience, are friendly, and care about the children. Play is structured but there is a lot of opportunity for fun and learning. In addition to the large sand-​filled playground outside, during rainy days the kids play in a huge hall with lots of natural light. The place is a bit funky but safe, comfortable, and well run. It is a neighborhood preschool with lots of siblings, entire families, going through the school, kind of a hidden gem.