Performing Arts Kinder School (PAKS)

We love PAKS! My daughter joined the TK/K program in January and is graduating in May. She had outgrown her play-based preschool and we wanted to help her get ready for elementary school. These past five months I've seen huge growth in her confidence, physical abilities, and reading/math skills. She comes home every day and shares a new song, dance move, spelling or number rhyme, art project. She has learned tools to communicate with her friends and has developed her skills in empathy, collaboration, and problem solving. She has even performed in plays! I'm forever a Kids N Dance community member and will be returning for camps when we are done with this program. PAKS has truly prepared her for her next step and we are so grateful to Marielle and all the teachers for providing a safe and delightful place for our kids to learn every day.

My 5 year old daughter attended the first year of PAKS and it was AMAZING. Truly. The OUSD TK program was a little overwhelming for her, so we had to switch early in the school year. PAKS was an incredible find: small student-teacher ratio, lots of physical play, engaging (and age appropriate) learning content, and the dancing and theater! PAKS has it all. Director Marielle is a gem - she really spent time talking to us and helping us think through a good fit (even if that wouldn't have been PAKS); Teacher Beverly and other teachers have been fantastic. We will be sending our middle daughter there next year, and look forward to a great year!

We are one of the lucky families who is part of the inaugural year of PAKS at KidsN'Dance. It's been an amazing fit for my daughter, and the experience has been a great one for us. Our daughter was still 4 when she started, so she was TK age, but very ready to learn and do more than her play-based preschool was offering, but we weren't ready for the large class sizes at public school. She has truly thrived here with the differentiated Kindergarten curriculum that includes reading, writing, math, science, art. The first few months she came home multiple days a week with a book she'd "written" and illustrated (it was so cute). And now at the end of the year she's actually writing the words. Every week they have 2 dance classes (ballet, hip-hop), a circus-arts class, musical theater, visual arts, and plenty of time to climb and play in the "gym room," which is a favorite! They've put on several plays or "showcases" (Frozen, Moana, Little Mermaid, Annie) and the kids are really learning a lot and having fun. There's a play structure in the small outside area, and the kids are driven to Jordan park to play 3 days a week. There are also big spaces inside to move around on the days they don't go to the park. The social-emotional learning has been spectacular. These kids are learning and practicing skills that put my marriage to shame. Writing this all, I'm realizing how much they've been able to do in a year.

They really seem to adjust for each kid's learning levels, as much as possible, though it's a small school with limited resources, so it might not be a great fit for a child with highly specialized needs. My kid loves to learn, so I suppose that makes it easier to review a school well, because my daughter loves to go to school, and always comes home with new things she's excited about. We've truly loved her teacher: she's been so good about communicating with parents, and the kids love her. Marielle - the director of PAKS - has been very professional, as well, and has a great excitement for - and love of - the kids. Her ability to work with different parents' needs throughout COVID has been admirable. The kids have been masked all year, and in K95s since Omicron. No parents allowed in the building except for the performances (which were such a treat!).

I'd definitely recommend PAKS to friends, particularly if you have a child with a slightly artsy bend...or an interest in performing. Or someone who needs to move and climb. I will say it was a bit girl-heavy (all girls until one boy joined in January), so hopefully that evens out in coming years. The parking can get a little crowded at key pickup times, so just be aware of that, as well. I'm so grateful my child has had these opportunities, though I fear we've set the bar a little high at so young an age. She teared up when I told her they wouldn't be performing plays in her new school. So of course we'll be returning to Kids N Dance for the classes.