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Open Houses & Toddler Play Dates!
what families say about smpns...
what families say about smpns...
"Allowing them to be freely who they were gave them the confidence they needed for the next steps in their education and in life.”
"Allowing them to be freely who they were gave them the confidence they needed for the next steps in their education and in life.”
-Renee
“I really credit SMPNS for his smooth transition to elementary school.”
“SMPNS felt like a safe, nurturing space for him—and for me.”
“He went from the kid who cried at drop-off to the confident helper who led the younger children.”
Read more about this family's journey below
“SMPNS is truly a gem. You won’t regret joining this wonderful community.”
— Carmela
“It had a vibe and really touched me....A one-of-a-kind experience because of the co-oping aspect… you were learning from the amazing teachers.”
— Gabriela
“Trust that through play your child will grow in all ways!”
— Paul
“Each time I co-op’d I learned something about raising children… Also, I made life-long friends!”
— Dana
“It just felt right from the first visit. Everyone was so kind and welcoming.”
— SMPNS Parent
“I don’t have enough words to adequately describe the value of our experience…
“I don’t have enough words to adequately describe the value of our experience…
from supportive and loving teachers, to experiential learning, to seeing my child’s creativity blossom. We loved the ‘vintage’ feel of exploratory play and endless creativity in an era where screens are everywhere and academics are getting pushed down younger and younger.
— Carmela
one Family's Journey from drop off to elementary
one Family's Journey from drop off to elementary
My older son, who is currently in second grade at College Park Elementary School, attended SMPNS from age 3 until age 5. When he started at age 3, he was a very slow-to-warm kid. He cried for weeks at drop-off—but the teachers gave him lots of individual attention and partnered with me to build his confidence and leadership skills.
Over time, he experienced the benefits of a mixed-age classroom: he went from being the new kid who needed extra support, to being “one of the pack,” and finally—when he was finishing his time at SMPNS—to being the experienced helper who showed younger kids how to take turns, clean up after snack, and sing all the songs at story time.
Developmentally, SMPNS felt like a safe, nurturing space for him and for me. Because it’s a co-op, I got a real window into his learning style and overall development. I could be in the classroom to see what was working, share insights with teachers, and they could tailor their approach to my child. Teachers noticed and encouraged his natural aptitude for basketball and baseball (thank you, Teacher Mie!), fostered his love of trains (thank you, Teacher Megan!), and encouraged him to try new things—like bananas with Cheerios and milk, and gently releasing found spiders back outdoors (thank you, Teacher Chris!).
Once my son entered the public school system in kindergarten, it was a huge shift for me as a parent—school felt like a black box in comparison to SMPNS. With 32 kids in his class, communication was understandably limited, and it wasn’t until November conferences (three full months into the school year) that I got meaningful feedback about how my child was doing. What I heard was reassuring: he was focused, participating, getting along with everyone—and thriving.
College Park is a Mandarin immersion program, and my son started with basically no Mandarin. So imagine my relief to learn he was picking up a second language on top of the standard kindergarten curriculum and doing great. I really credit SMPNS for his smooth transition to elementary school.
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