Vinewood Preschool

Amazing teachers who teach the kids with lots of love and care. My son started his very first experience of school here and we can't thank teacher Doreen enough for what she did for my kid. It's our first child so we all were super nervous. But then every day spent in the school was a beautiful memory to my son, and he was so excited waking up every morning to go to school. I can tell how he changed from a shy boy to an open and active but gentle person. The teachers here are the best role models for the kids.

Absolutely love vinewood preschool. Both my boys go here. The teachers actually know my kids with their likes and dislikes. My kids are happy and thriving while looking forward to learning.

My son, niece and nephew all came here for preschool. I absolutely loved all of the teachers and curriculum. Staff are extremely caring, approachable and personable. My son loved coming to school every morning.

Vinewood Preschool is one of the best preschool programs in the area. It is one of the few that has some California credentialed teachers and it shows in the amount of effort they put into the curriculum. Vinewood is not simply daycare, but a place where the children learn valuable lessons and are prepared to enter the Kindergarten classroom. Both of our children went there and I was thoroughly impressed with the balance of structure and letting the children have fun. They cultivate the young minds to find fun while at school, but carefully groom the children to also follow rules. Mine always looked forward to their time at school. My wife, an elementary teacher who is very critical, always had praise for the preschool.I'm not sure about the other comment on here from Christina. I don't know how she could miss all the artwork and goodies the children brought home everyday. I cannot remember a day my kids did not come home gleaming ear to ear about some thing they made that day. Then again, she did say that her child had behavior problems and maybe he could not do the art projects. Overall, this does not reflect poorly on the school. I know that all children are a little different in their development and some are just not ready. Our boy benefitted from an extra year prior to Kindergarten. I would suggest Vinewood preschool to anyone looking for a Christian Preschool. They are kind and have a great program there. You should not take my word for it though. We went and checked the place out before we enrolled our children and I would suggest anyone else do the same. Be forewarned though--go a year or two early to check it out. They are so good and have such a great reputation that they are many times booked solid years in advance.

I sent my son to Vinewood for just the first half of the school year. He had gone to Kindermusik at Vinewood Church and one of the perks to attending that preschool is the students still attend Kindermusik as part of the curriculum. He loved Ms. Wendie and Kindermusik very much and I liked that music and movement was part of the program. Other positives were that Vinewood is in a nice part of Lodi, the teachers were all very nice, and the curriculum is Christian based. The children go to chapel twice a month. After attending Vinewood for a few months I began to notice that this was not a good fit for my son. There was very little structure, a lack of expectations, and poor enforcement of rules. All the classes are together for the first hour or so of the day. That is 40 3-year-olds in one room. There are plenty of teachers to make the ratio 1 to 10, however it was over stimulating for my son. Instead of doing any activities that there were to do, he would just play and act out. From what I saw, the teachers focus more on the students who choose to work at a center and less on the kids playing and it created a very wild atmosphere. I was constantly told that my son was not doing well and was having behavioral problems and he was...along with most of the other kids. I went to school with my son a couple times to find that when kids acted out they were seldom, if ever, taken to the side and spoken to about rules and the way we should behave in the classroom or outside. I never saw kids sent home for being ill and almost everyone was ill. My son was rarely well for the time he was at Vinewood. When asking about expectations, rules, and structure I heard, "They're 3!" over and over again as if a 3 year old was just not at a stage in their development to impose such ideals. I felt like there was a very minimalist attitude towards just about everything.Over all, I felt like my son was not learning. He learned more at home. Play is a big part in any preschool and should be, but I wanted him to learn how to follow directions from someone besides me, play respectfully with other children, and function in a classroom environment. I didn't feel like he learned any of this. When I asked him about his day he couldn't tell me anything. He would say, "I don't know" or "I didn't do anything." At first, I thought he just wasn't telling me the truth but then I realized he was right. He wasn't doing anything. In the 6 months he was there I got maybe 3 little art projects to take home. I was told he was not ready for preschool and teachers even implied that he may need help of some sort, and so I pulled him out. Two weeks later I had him enrolled in a different preschool with structure, expectations, and clearly communicated and enforced rules and he is doing so awesome! There is a smaller group of kids (16) and he loves, loves, loves school. His cubby is full everyday of art and learning projects that he's done. I get mostly great reports on his behavior. The only time I've heard something negative is when he's upset because he doesn't want to stop working on an activity that he thinks is fun and that's it! Vinewood was just not the place for him.

My daughter just finished her 2nd year at Vinewood Preschool and I cannot say enough wonderful things about the school, staff and families that attend this gem of a preschool! My daughter couldn't wait for school days and would run in and give every staff member a hug, then run off and play with her friends. The teachers and staff are amazing; so patient, loving and creative! We have a massive box filled with art and work that was brought home daily. The amount of growth, both in maturity and intellectually, amazes me. She was just a baby when she started and is now READY for kindergarten. We loved the chapel time Pastor Dwight held once a month and often came early on those days just to attend chapel with our daughter. Not only did the staff love seeing my daughter but embraced my younger son when we dropped sissy off and picked her up. He can't wait to go to preschool! Many tears were shed when I realized we wouldn't be walking through the doors of Vinewood next year but we will be back for my little guy to attend the following year! Best preschool in town!

Attending Vinewood Preschool was our family's first experience doing school outside of home, so I had all kinds of mama nerves about handing my firstborn off to other adults, but she had the best year. Everyday when I picked her up and dropped her off, the teachers always had smiles on their faces. We were lucky to have Teacher Debi who was the most caring and competent teacher I've seen. My daughter got to know all the teachers and they were all warm and professional across the board.I also learned that the teachers met weekly to pray over the children and then prayed too with the children daily and always lifted up the absent or tardy children in prayer. It was such a warm, positive environment which was exactly what my daughter needed to learn and thrive. I also loved that there was plenty of time for active and pretend play and also lots and lots of crafts. It's my opinion that young children learn best through play. My daughter will have many years to come that she'll be glued to a desk. She did do an academic Friday though as part of the Pre-K program to work on kindergarten readiness. I am positive that she is prepared for kindergarten this fall.Vinewood Preschool was the perfect balance between academics, play and spiritual teaching. I only wish we could send all of our children there, but we unfortunately moved out of the area. If you are looking for a part-time preschool in the area, don't hesitate to choose Vinewood.

There aren't enough words to describe the love we have for Vinewood Preschool. Our daughter just finished up her first year at Vinewood. She is begging to go back, although we are still in the middle of summer break. She attended the Tuesday/Thursday program last year and is thrilled that she will be able to attend school three days a week in the Monday/Wednesday/Friday program this coming year.The staff is incredible. Each member of the staff knows and loves our daughter. It is a heartwarming thing to see your child greeted with open arms by every single member of the staff every morning. They have taken the time to get to know her, to recognize her interests, and to care for her each and every day she attends school. There was not one day that passed that she didn't come home with an art project. They were constantly coming up with new and exciting art and craft projects, which is right up my daughter's alley. She was continually talking about the crafts they made, the interactive activities they were doing, and the lessons they were studying. She learned new songs, new stories, made new friends, and learned so much about herself in one short year at Vinewood. In the last year, she has blossomed into a confident young lady. I attribute that confidence to her experiences at Vinewood.I feel absolutely confident in recommending Vinewood to those that are looking for a place for their preschool-aged children to begin their schooling experiences.