Our daughter attended Petite Explorer (Mission campus) from age 2.5 - 4.5, and we loved every minute of it. Some highlights from our daughter's experience: * The teachers foster an environment where the friends (aka students) can be themselves. Our daughter's confidence sky rocketed at PE. They encouraged her to sing loudly in the yard, validated her nervous feelings during Friday show and tells, and give her plenty of opportunities to practice leadership through walks to dance class, weather watching, and filling in the classroom calendar. * Our daughter learned a lot academically and social/emotionally. By her second year, she could recognize and write capital letters, count to 100, and tell you all about marine life in various ocean layers. Social/emotionally, PE taught her how to "check in" on friends, ask permission before hugging/touching, and resolve conflict. * The parents are cool. I cannot say enough good things about PE. We feel so lucky to be part of the warm, inviting community Andy and Vickie have created. I'm counting down the days until our son can start!

Our family has been part of Petite Explorer for the past two years, and we couldn't be happier with our experience! Andy and Vickie are such warm individuals whose energy permeates through the entire school. They have created such a warm and welcoming community here that extends beyond the walls of the school. We have gotten to know so many wonderful families and had so many fun park play dates! Seeing our son blossom over the last few years has been so amazing to watch. The teachers are kind, passionate and engaging. Really fantastic overall. He has developed so much socially and emotionally. It's been so wonderful seeing him go from being a super shy kid to playing with all the friends, loosening up in dance class and talking about his learnings from all the classroom projects. The project-based learning approach has really been instrumental in fostering our son's curiosity and creativity. We've seen him thrive in an environment where hands-on exploration is encouraged and celebrated. We would absolutely recommend PE to families looking for a preschool. Our son's growth and happiness are a testament to the exceptional care and education that PE has provided.

We've had our 2 year old daughter at Petite Explorers the last year and could not possibly say enough good things about the program Miss Vickie is running. When our daughter started, she had only ever been with a nanny and two other children at a small home daycare. She is physically cautious and slow to warm with other children. We worried about how she would do in a classroom of 10+ children. We have seen her grow IMMENSELY the last year. Petite Explorers has really excellent ratios (this was a big deciding factor when we interviewed at other preschools in the area). At one point, her room was 9 kids with a 1:3 ratio. They cap it low intentionally and it shows. On a daily basis, we get probably 5-10 photos and videos of her enjoying her day with her friends, and we know exactly when she fell asleep, woke up, and used the potty. Every day at pick up, the lead teacher in her classroom has a convo with us to tell us about her day. They are extremely attentive and communicative. We never have any questions or concerns about what's going on. I can't tell you as a first time parent what a relief it is to not have to give a single thought on a daily basis on whether your child is being well-cared for and enjoying life. Our daughter is a different person than she was when she started. She is full of joy and looks forward to going to school every single day, has excellent hygiene, manners, and social skills - I am constantly impressed with what new habits she picks up from school and takes home with her. She is not even 3 and comes home speaking full sentences telling us about her day at Petite. They have a very thoughtful balance of play-based care and structure that provides educational opportunities (like learning counting, the ABCs, and the weather). Their facilities are extremely clean and child friendly (small potties and sinks, etc.), spacious, and sunny. The play area is quite large considering it's in the middle of the city, and the campus is very safe and requires a personal code to enter through a really tall and secure fence, so I have never been worried about safety. Miss Vickie (owner and director) is sunshine on earth. She is a mother of two kids who are older now, so she's seen it all. She spends afternoons at the Mission location and mornings at the NOPA location, knows every single child and parent by name and remembers every single detail. She is so warm and you can just tell how deeply she cares about the program and building community. We are moving out of San Francisco later this summer and the hardest part about the move by a mile has been having to pull our daughter out of Petite Explorers. THANK YOU for the best year ever.

I don't usually write reviews, but if I could tell everyone how wonderful this preschool is, I would. Words can not express how thankful I am to have the PE family taking care of our kiddo. Ms. Vickie is amazing. Her love and care for children shines through the whole school. I was so nervous to put our little one in preschool as she's always had a FT nanny and been incredibly shy, and while we looked at other schools, we had our heart set on PE after meeting the staff and seeing the kids play. In saying that, we had no idea how great it would actually be. This school not only helps the kids learn, but there's so much love given to them while they're exploring. The teachers and staff here truly listen to what parents feel and say. Whether it be immediate responses on the app or just discussing with us daily what our kiddo is doing, how she's progressing, or hearing out our concerns about areas we want her to grow - they do it all. Our shy kiddo has learned to come out of her shell naturally (no one pushed her), and has really developed (mentally, emotionally, physically) through the gentle kind nature of the teachers, staff, and Ms. Vickie's philosophies. Again, they really go the extra mile here. From school projects to just really leaning into what each kid loves, the school make sure that the children feel at home. On top of that, our child has learned things I never would have thought to explain to her (like bug projects, parts of the body of a spider, the full process from caterpillar to butterfly, etc.) on top of making the standard learnings (ABCs, etc.) fun! We can not say better things about this school, the teachers, Ms. Vickie, the parents, or the kids. Thank you Petite Explorer for loving our kiddo (and all the wonderful kids) as much as we do as parents.

Our family has had children attending Petite Explorers for 3 years, our oldest has been attending for all three years and our youngest has been attending for 1 year. We are so incredibly grateful to have found Petite Explorers 3 years ago and our experience there has been truly spectacular in every way. First, the teachers are just outstanding. They are so patient, so kind, and, maybe most importantly, so passionate about helping the children grow and develop. We really understand the very versatile strengths of the teachers, since we have been through all of the different levels of the school with our oldest and our youngest child, who has been there for one year, is very different than our oldest. For our oldest, seeing his progression from 2 year-old in the Petite Room to a 5 year-old in the Explorer room has been amazing. The teachers at every level were so fantastic, and our child has learned so much in his time at PE. He has developed, social, emotional, and intellectual skills that are a testament to PE and really are a representation of the high quality of their programs. The project learning aspect is really great, our children often come home talking about the things they learn in their project work, and we are amazed at the effort and quality the teachers put into the projects. The transformation of our youngest child, who has only been at the school for 1 year, has been amazing! He came in with almost no exposure to other kids, due to the pandemic, and was difficult to deal with. His transformation over the past year into a caring, respectable human is just mind-boggling and PE deserves so much of the credit! He also is especially excited about letters, numbers and shapes, and they went out of their way to find toys and materials to help him learn at a fast pace! The logistics are also very easy to deal with. Drop offs and pick ups are very flexible. During the pandemic, PE opened up as soon as it reasonably could, and remained open the entire time since June 2020. Their effort to be safe and conservative with health, but also want to bring children back to the classroom (and keep them there) was truly awesome. It is so hard to manage a preschool in a pandemic and we felt that they did everything they could to keep the children in school and keep them having the kind of preschool experience that kids should have. Also, the other parents are a lot of fun to spend time with, the community is fantastic, and we have non-stop playdates and birthday parties! From Andy and Vicky down through all the teachers, this is really just a stellar preschool experience, I honestly can’t imagine a better one.

My son attended for two years and had a phenomenal time. The teacher to student ratio is incredible. The school focuses on what I think are the most important areas for development -- an awareness of emotions, interacting constructively with friends, learning by enabling curiosity and projects. The couple that runs the school is incredibly involved and hands on with the teachers and kids -- they know every kid's name. It's really a lovely community they've built.

My daughter attends Petite Explorer in NOPA and my family couldn't be happier. The teacher to student ratio is the best I've heard of and the teachers are so caring and thoughtful (teachers/staff are also really flexible with drop off and pick up, which I've found difficult to find in other schools). I like to think that is also part of why the students are so sweet to each other! My child had a difficult time initially transitioning to school (what COVID child has not had a hard time?) but the teachers were so patient and caring. She now enjoys school, likes her classmates, and loves her teachers. Despite the fact that there's other schools closer to my home, we drive 15-20 min each way because our daughter is so well taken care of. Thank you Petite Explorer!

Our family absolutely love Petite Explorer and highly recommend it to anybody looking for a preschool. The teachers are phenomenal - patient, loving, and communicative. The Brightwheel app keeps parents in the loop of classroom announcements and daily activity (plus pictures!). Andy and Vickie are wonderful and understanding. The entire staff went above and beyond during Covid to keep kids and teachers safe, while keeping the school open. We have absolutely loved our time at PE. It was one of the best decisions we made as parents!

We love PE, the teachers and the management. These past 18+ months of pandemic year have been so challenging for all of us and the teachers and management have really done their best to support and be there for the kids. Our daughter transferred to PE from a different preschool 3 years ago and although I was concerned about her adjustment she had no issues from day one. She is now in her final year, loves her teachers, and is happy to go to school. I just enrolled my younger son who will be turning 2. Miss Vickie the headteacher is lovely and caring and always helpful if we have questions or concerns. My daughter adores her. I love that they have plenty of outdoor time and that the school is project based and the kids choose what they want to learn about. The classrooms are so pleasant and full of light and I look forward to being able to visit inside again when regulations allow! Miss Maddie and Miss Shirley are the best, love you guys!!

Our daughter attended Petite Explorer from ages 3.5 to 5.5 and we could not have asked for a better experience for our child and for our family. We toured preschools for over two years, unsure what we wanted for our first child. We had finally put a deposit down on one school, then one day, a random encounter with a fellow parent led us to checking out Petite Explorer. From the moment we toured the school and met the owners Vickie and Andy, we knew that PE was the right choice for us. We abandoned our deposit and made the decision to enroll our daughter right then and there. The classrooms were so well-thought out, warm and welcoming, and the ample outdoor space was also really appealing. The vibe that we got from Vickie and Andy, and particularly how Vickie (also the head teacher) interacted with our daughter made us all feel immediately at home. We knew this was going to be the best place for us and we were right. Later on, what I learned and am so grateful for is Vickie's gift not only for connecting with children, but her talent and thoughtfulness in hiring and training excellent teachers that match her admirable level of warmth and caring. The teachers at PE are are all so skilled at what they do; it's obvious how much their work means to them. Seeing our daughter learn and grow under their wings has been one of the top highlights of the past two years. The other wonderful, unexpected benefit of PE has been the parent community. We have been so lucky to meet many wonderful families who have been able to share in the joys (and trials!) of raising small children with us and with whom we have been able to depend on and connect with in and outside of the PE doors. PE provided us with the village we didn't know we needed. The environment Vickie, Andy, and the teachers take so much care to provide, the love they show, and the remarkable patience (!) they have are all things we aspire to replicate at home. They have truly been our teachers as well. I can't thank PE enough for the huge impact they have had in our lives.

I can't say enough about how much our family loved Petite Explorer for our daughter. She started in the Petite Room at 2 years old and we watched her grow develop right before our eyes. The Pro's for us were: - large, clean classrooms with a HUGE, private outdoor play space (very unique for city location) - incredibly kind and caring teachers - the hours (8am - 6pm) were so accommodating to our work schedules - other families and kids in the program were all kind and eager to make play date arrangements outside of school - pick up / drop off parking was very easy (loading space out front) - ability to leave stroller/bike/etc in the safe, locked space out front - support in potty training (Our daughter had started potty training before her first day, but was still learning and Petite's teachers were really partners for my husband and I in fully potty training her.) - Stellar daily communication (Brightwheel app) To sum it up: There was never a day our daughter didn't want to go to school - she'd even bring it up on the weekends!

We feel incredibly lucky to have been part of the PE community. Our daughter was a student in the Explorer Room (4-5 year olds.) We were consistently impressed with Vickie, the school's director, and the teachers on her team. They communicated very effectively to parents daily via an app with photos and captions and a weekly newsletter. We felt confident that our child was well cared for, learning and having fun!

I will admit I was nervous about sending my daughter to preschool after doing a nanny share for 1.5 years, but I have to say it was the best decision ever. The teachers at PE are incredibly loving, they really understand the needs and preferences of all individual kids and they communicate very well. I also love all the creative projects they do and the fact that they play outdoors every day (weather permitting of course). I highly recommend PE, can't think of anything I didn't like about this place.

We love Petite Explorer! Our son went there for nearly two years and truly thrived. Vickie and the teachers taught him confidence, kindness, and many other important lessons, and the friends he made there are still some of his closest friends. Vickie and all of the teachers are caring and kind, and super thoughtful and intentional. Our son had a blast while he was there. He has grown up and out of the school but still often reflects on the things he learned while at PE. We're excited that our youngest son will also get to go to Petite Explorer and know that when he goes, he too will benefit from the safe, thoughtful, and fun environment that Vickie and all of the wonderful educators at Petite Explorers provide.

I can't say enough wonderful things about Petite Explorer. Vickie (the school's director) is amazing. All of the teachers are so caring and thoughtful. From day 1, I knew our kids were in the best of hands at PE. It's such an amazing feeling to know that your kids are safe, well cared for, having fun, AND learning. Our daughter was there for almost two years (from the time she was 3 until just after she turned 5), and our son was there for just under a year (started at 2.5). Both of our children loved attending PE so much, and they learned so much. Within a few months of starting at PE, our son went from speaking a few words to speaking full sentences. We only left because we moved down to SoCal, and we were all so sad to have to leave such an incredible school. I really can't say enough great things about Petite Explorer.

My son just started at Petite Explorer and he is doing SO well! We are really happy there so far. What sold me on it right off the bat is Vicky the Head Teacher. She is LOVELY! So nurturing, smiling, happy and positive. She is a former SFUSD Early Ed teacher with tons of experience. She started the school with her husband Andy, who runs the operational sides of the school. He is also great and super communicative. The other teachers so far have all been awesome too! Really happy, positive, strong and experienced. All the facilities and materials are brand new, really cute and state-of-the-art, lots to do/build/see/explore. There is a large outdoor space, some turf soft grass with playhouses etc, some concrete for riding tricycles. The school uses "Brightwheel" an app to send regular photo and video updates of everything your kiddo is doing throughout the day, including nap start and end times! Its really addictive, like your own little facebook page for your kiddo. My kid is thriving. I was really worried about him using the potty, eating his lunch or even taking a nap. He definitely has struggled in all three of those areas more than his sister did when she turned 3. None of those have been issues so far. He comes home every day super energized and excited about his day, singing all the songs he learned and telling me in his own way about what they did. Its like he's on fire for learning! The parents are a really nice, outgoing and social crew. They organize a monthly pizza meetup at Dolores Park and they all rallied to attend my sons birthday even though we had just started that same week! I was really touched. Its really convenient. Hours are great. Drop off/Pick up super easy.