Joyful Noise Christian School

Joyful Noise is run by religious fanatics who teach about God’s love (which would be OK, but…) from a basis of sin and evil. Despite talking about all of the students as «friends», they steadfastly refuse to give you a list of parent contact information making it a bit more challenging (but not impossible) to build relationships outside of school.
And, if you dare question Ms Deborah, you will be summarily dismissed via letter handed to you as you walk out the door. Here’s why this school isn’t for us, and why we were dismissed:
One day, my _​3yo_​cherub came home asking why «Jesus’ friends hung him up on the cross and killed him.» When I asked the teacher, director and asst director about it, they said they had no clue where it came from, but not them. The following week, my cherub started chanting «there is evil, there is evil» in her best heavy metal/​hair band voice (having never heard that kind of music). The third sign was when they ended the Christmas pagent with «Jesus was born so he could die for all of us sinners.» (Really? for a 2−5yo play?)
When Lent came around, I asked for her to please be excused from discussions of the death and resurrection of Christ. In response, via a letter (with my cherub’s name misspelled throughout but telling me how special my child is), that said that death is natural and I shouldn’t shy away from it (hard to with family member dying of cancer and aunts dog recently dying, BTW), and that, ultimately, the school declined my request saying all students participate in everything.
Eventually, we had a meeting. During that meeting, they showed me the book the teacher reads during lent (I have a picture of that page to this day). It reads, «It was a sad day. The bad men didn’t like Jesus. They put him on the cross. And he died.»
Even after showing me that text, they denied that it was possible that a 3 year old would make the connection to putting him on the cross/​him dying, and Jesus being killed. a long discussion ensued with me basically saying, but she did (since we don’t talk about Jesus at home). When I asked if they could just start with «jesus died», they told me No. It was true, and when was I going to start talking to my obviously intelligent 3 year old about bad people.
Two weeks later, I got a follow-​up letter saying that they believe her fascination with death has nothing to do with them and everything to do with me letting her watch Disney movies (ahem, I’ve never seen Jesus in a Disney story!)
Ultimately, we were let go because the school heard that I was still unhappy (the ONLY thing I had said was that she would not be enrolled in summer or fall … and when pushed … because we have different philosophies on what is 3yo appropriate). We were dismissed by means of an impersonal letter handed to me as we walked out the door vs. a face-​to-​face conversation — even though I had been there for 10 minutes watching my cherub play with friends. And it was effective immediately (meaning my cherub could not say goodbye to any friends). When I asked if I could leave our contact info, I was told that the asst director would have to check with the director, but probably not. #NotVeryChristian #Doesn’tShowCareORConcernForMyChild
FWIW, my cherub LOVED her twos teacher and the friends she made at school. And I know other parents are happy/don’t have their kids repeating the sin and evil and damnation quotes. So … if you don’t mind that, the school may be for you. But Lord help you if you have any questions or in any way disagree with the director. She’s too weak to talk to your face if she knows you’ll disagree. She handles everything through letters and the ever-​smiling (equally conflict averse) asst director Ms. Jessica.

Joyful Noise has the most amazing teachers and provides children with a loving environment to learn and thrive. I drop my grandsons off there in the morning and on the whole ride there they talk about how excited they are to see their teacher and friends. The teachers pour their hearts and souls into teaching the children everything they need to know to be well prepared for Kindergarten. My grandsons have been going there for a year and have already learned so much, such as count and recognize their numbers, recite and recognize the letters of the alphabet, and are now learning to write, not to mention pray and use good manners, which is very exciting! I would absolutely recommend Joyful Noise Christian Preschool to any parent or grandparent in San Jose looking for a great place to send their child or grandchild.

My two girls absolutely LOVED attending Joyful Noise this last year. The staff is extremely caring and kind. The teachers are fair and dedicated to the children. Ms. Jessica is such a wonderful director, her calm sweet demeanor is infectious to the staff and children. I appreciate ALL the love and care they poured into our daughters, they didn’t ever want to miss a day. Each class has a curriculum that is appropriate to the interests of the children. The daily schedule consisted of practice and exploration in writing, letter identification, reading, math, counting and sorting, and character development. The school daily implemented art, crafts, cooking, gardening and other wonderful electives, excellent field trips. even swimming lessons in the summer. I would recommend this school to my family and close friends! We will miss you so much Joyful Noise! This family will always have a special place in our hearts for this sweet school.

Joyful Noise is a very special place and my family will always remember the gift they were to us. They accepted my foster son with open arms at a time when he needed a loving caring structured environment that honored and supported his emotional needs. When we arrived he did not engage with other students, was academically behind his peers, and convinced he couldn’t sing. They partnered with me to support his academic, emotional and social needs. 15 months later my son sings in the car, shows complete readiness for kindergarten, is able to positively engage with his peers and is a happy little man.
Over the 15 months my foster son attended Joyful Noise social workers visited, asked for reports, and required feedback on his progress. Every staff member not just tolerated, but embraced these requests. There were some very difficult times for me as a parent and the staff graciously gave me support when I needed it and provided me daily feedback so I could support my son’s development.
There were days my son struggled with anxiety attacks and cried when I had to leave him. The best thing for me to do was to leave and allow the Joyful Noise staff support him. As a parent, this was beyond difficult and done with tears from me. THE ONLY REASON I WAS ABLE TO DO THIS WAS BECAUSE I KNEW THE LOVE HE WAS BEING GIVEN BY THE TEACHERS AND DIRECTOR AT THE SCHOOL! They even called me later to (before I had a chance) to let me know he was doing okay).
I cannot say enough about how amazing the school is, the program it provides is academically strong while the students grow socially/​emotionally.
Thank you Joyful Noise for all you did for us! Keep doing what you’re doing — YOU’RE AMAZING and I will be sad when we have to say good bye next week. You provided my son a safe loving school when he needed it most and me the support I needed as a parent of a foster son with unique needs in a system that provided us some challenges.

The only reason I gave this place 1 star is because we loved the teaching staff here.
Ms. Deborah, the director, is a religious zealot and attempted to ruin my life (as well my children’s) because we refused to conform to who she wanted me or my family to be. They teach intolerance, hate and judgement, guised as the word of God.
I would not recommend sending a child here unless you want them to grow up homophobic, hateful, mean and disillusioned.
It’s always a shame when religion is used as a weapon.

We send our child to Joyful Noise and are happy with the experience. The 2’s teacher is sweet and we like the way in which the Pre-​K teachers interact with the students.
The Director is a very nice woman but is usually leaves late afternoon so we rarely see her when we pick up. I do wish she was around more often to engage with parents at the end of the day b/​c there doesn’t seem to be a real connection amongst the families and believe the school Director is a big factor in helping create that environment.
The children learn Bible verses and simple prayers. They do a year end song (little ones) and play (Pre-​K). The kids no longer attend Chapel. And as an aside, the school rents rooms from the Methodist Church but has no affiliation with them.
We have been satisfied with our choice to send our child here. If you are looking for a dedicated and warm staff and a school that teaches Christian values but isn’t «over the top,» then Joyful Noise is a good option. If you are looking to become deeply involved with the school through parent participation and desire to become part of a close parent community, this would not be the right school for you.

Everything about this school is wonderful… The teachers are all very caring and make sure that your child is well taken care of. I feel more than confident throughout the day that my son is being well cared for. In addition to that he is being taught what he needs to succeed in kinder and in life! They have taught him Christian values that he will have for many years to come!!! Thanks to everyone there!!!