Does anyone have any recommendations on preschools in the areas listed above that include before and after care?
I am not sure of where its located but had two friends from the area that sent their children to Bobby Noonan (sp?) and could not praise it highly enough. These parents are educated and one is a high school teacher. They were thrilled with how the school addresses discipline (using a stop light) and that all four kids (2ea) had a natural desire to learn and explore.
I've heard from some friends that Little Lamb has a nice curriculum. I believe it's in the Morgan park area. They have before and after care also.
Good luck finding much - there are tons of families with firemen and police, and since their schedules are all wacky it seems like every family trades off before and after care of the children so there isn't much of a market for that sort of thing in this area. (Which sucks, because I fall in the same category as you!)
Penny Lane School in Oak Lawn on Southwest Highway has good reviews. It is a traditional daycare but does have a preschool curriculum. There is also a Kindercare in Palos Heights on Roberts Road. Pretty much any of the Catholic schools will have preschool, but you'd be hard-pressed to find much in the way of before/after as most of them are entry no earlier than 8:00 and must leave by 3:00 - 3:30.
Good luck!
My daughters have attended All Day Montessori - www.alldaymontessori.org since they were 2. The school is located at 99th and Wood (right by the metra station in Beverly) It is a great program and the regular hours are 8 to 4:30 and they have extended hours from 7a.m. to 6 p.m. They also have a summer program that runs 6 weeks which has the same hours as above. The program is geared for working parents and provides catered lunches and snacks. The school takes children from 2 to 6 years old. It follows the Montessori philosophy which is explained on their Website.
We have been very happy with the program.
