Child's Play Wonderschool

Community Subscriber

Oakland, CA

Facility Type[?]:
Home Daycare
DSS Facility License #
013423537 [view license]
Owner:
Kaamil Bey Isles
(510) 290-8344
kaamil [at] childsplayschool.com
Location:
Oakland
Piedmont Pines
Maximum Capacity:
14
Language(s) Spoken:
English
Ages Served:
12 months - 60 months
Hours
8:00am - 5:30pm
Additional Services & Features:
Part-time available,
Year-round,
Sibling discount,
Lunch provided,
Snacks provided,
Organic options,
Vegetarian options,
Special diet support,
Diapers provided
Editors' Notes:
About the Program:

Child's Play is an all-inclusive play-based program for infants, toddlers and preschoolers located in Piedmont Pines.   

At Child's Play, we believe that children grown, learn, and thrive by exploring the world around them.  It is our goal to provide an environment that engages children with developmentally-appropriate activities and materials.  In our program, children feel empowered to follow their own interests in a safe space. 

Parent Reviews

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When we decided to look for a daycare for our daughter so that she would be able to socialize and be in the presence of other children her age, it was a struggle. Having her away from us was hard to imagine and we visited several places before meeting Kaamil and Child’s Play. After our tour, we were convinced that Child’s Play was the right place for her.


The space was warm and inviting and the teachers made all of the difference! Communication was clear through the app, with daily updates and photos/videos so it always felt like we were aware of what she was up to throughout the day. Marcela, Camila, Blanca and Fifi cared so deeply for her and allowed her to grow at her own pace. 


We were with Child’s Play for a little less than a year because our daughter just recently started at a new Montessori school, but her daycare experience here set her up for the easiest transition we can hope for. For any parents in the area, I highly recommend Child’s Play!

We cannot say enough wonderful things about Child's Play (our daughter attended March-Aug 2021). We were transitioning our daughter from a nanny share to her first daycare experience and were so lucky to have found Kaamil, Kiki, and Camila at Child's Play. From day one they made our daughter feel loved and welcome - and made sure we as parents felt supported in the transition. 

When our daughter started she was pretty shy and reserved but we watched her grow and flourish during her time there into a confident, happy toddler who now loves to play with other kids. She constantly talks about her teachers - always wants to go to school in the mornings and is reluctant to leave at the end of the day.

We are so impressed by how attentive the teachers are to small details about our daughter's personality - noting things she struggles with, how she is growing, and celebrating her accomplishments with us. We also love how informed we feel with updates and communications through the Brightwheel app - as well as pictures and videos of our daughter throughout the day. 

In the chaos of the pandemic, Child's Play became a safe, loving community for our daughter and for us - we only wish we had found it sooner! 

Our son entered Child’s Play right after turning 2. This was his first time interacting with lots of other kids and teachers and he was fairly quiet to begin with. Over the next few months, he blossomed into a bubbly and chatty kid, full of enthusiasm for his friends and teachers. 


The timely and detailed communication from the staff on our son’s meals, naps, and potties really put us at ease during the day. The adorable pictures that we would get all the time made us feel we were right there with him painting pictures, reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar, or doing baby yoga. We never had to worry about lunches thanks to Child’s Play’s home cooked meals. On top of all that, the Child’s Play team helped get him potty trained. 


He still asks after his friends and teachers from Child’s Play all the time and it’s clear he remembers his time there fondly.

I cannot say enough great things about Child’s Play and Kaamil’s team of spectacular teachers. My son started at their school when he was just a wee babe of 10 months (May 2020) and attend until we move away from the area in March 2021. My husband and I were blown away everyday by how much he learned from school. Our parenting at home is simply reinforcing all the amazing things he learned at school. He has learned patience, how to share, how to tidy and clean, how to dine amongst others, and some of his first words were the names of the friends he made at school, including his favorite teachers. The teachers are amazing and so involved in ensuring the kids are safe, engaged, and have fun. They have weekly staff meetings to set out lesson plans, meals for the week (lunch and snacks galore, awesome), and coordinate care so there are no gaps or miscommunication. The daycare home is also so beautiful and inviting. There are toys and activities for every developmental stage—soft climbing blocks for babes learning to move, toys for imaginary play (son’s top 10 include the cleaning supplies, which is a win for everyone in our house), balls, scooters, a tiny and adorable climbing gym, sensory tables—and most important, wonderful teachers who encourage the kids to get messy and experience everything. During the crazy pandemic, they took extra measures to ensure a clean, well-ventilated space (lots of outdoor play!) and the teachers did everything they could to stay as healthy as possible.

Kaamil and all of the teachers are incredibly responsive and engaged—they were usually sending newsletters or communications before I even thought to ask any questions. Kaamil has set out to make her daycare to feel inclusive and comprehensive, which I believe she has successfully done. My family has toured a good number of daycares now, and when it comes to an all-inclusive (meals! snacks! diapers!), home daycare, Kaamil’s Child’s Play has been the absolute best. It’s the organization and professional feel of a daycare center mixed with the coziness of home daycare—really, I’ve LOOKED, and you will not find a better place for your child.

We've been thrilled with our experience as part of the Child's Play community! Our daughter started there when she was 12 months old and we have loved seeing her blossom under the loving supervision of her caregivers. She is so happy to arrive each day and for us, we love the flexibility of the all-inclusive model (hello, no more bringing diapers and packing lunches!), and the proactive communication and updates from the teachers. There has been so little turnover among the staff and we know they are experts in child development and play-based learning, which shows in our kiddo's language, motor, and social-emotional skills. We are so glad we found Child's Play and can't recommend it enough! 

We are so grateful to have found Child's Play and their supportive teachers! Our daughter attended from 2.5-3.5 yo, and Child's Play was such a safe space for her to emerge from pandemic isolation and grow comfortable in a group playing and learning environment. The teachers are wonderful - inspiring her creativity, encouraging her social development and independence, guiding our decisions for her future, and surrounding her with fun. We loved the photos and videos they would send during the day, and we all miss the home cooked lunches dearly. She still talks about everyone there and we've made some great, lasting friends within the family-community. We appreciate all of the work and effort they did keeping everyone happy, healthy, and engaged!

All three of my children have attended Child's Play and we could not be happier with the care they received! My daughter Camille attended from May-June 2022, during the first months of the pandemic, my middle son Nolan from April 2020- April 2021 and now my youngest Caden from November 2021 to present. I knew immediately after touring at Child’s Play that this daycare was above and beyond other daycares I had visited. Kaamil, the owner, is exactly what you want in a daycare owner, professional, responsive, and passionate about early childhood education, yet also incredibly warm and caring.

Nolan loved going to Child’s Play from his very first day. The teachers are wonderful and Nolan immediately bonded with Kiki. Everyday when I would ask him ‘How was school? Who did you play with?’ he would always tell me that he played with Kiki. Nolan met his “best friend” at Child’s Play and was quite sad when he moved away. The staff noticed that Nolan was struggling with the loss of his friend and printed out a picture of the two of them together to help him remember their fun times together. We still have this picture on our fridge.

The Piedmont Pines facility is beautiful and thoughtfully planned out to provide a safe and stimulating environment for babies and toddlers. One of my favorite things about Child’s Play is how amazing they are with communication. Everyday I would receive updates with pictures and videos of Nolan, as well as information on how much he ate at meal times, when he went to the bathroom, and if he had an accident. It was incredibly fun to get these photos while at work and also helpful to know about accidents while we were potty training.

Our start happened to coincide with the beginning of the pandemic. It was an incredibly challenging time to navigate as parents and I’m sure as a daycare, but Child’s Play did so amazingly well. There are many safeguards they have put in place to help keep the kids and staff members safe. Never once did I feel uncomfortable sending him to daycare. One thing for which I will be eternally grateful to Kaamil and the Child’s Play staff is how they were able to provide reliable care for Nolan, particularly at the start of the pandemic. My husband and I both work in a hospital and as essential workers it was imperative that we continue to have consistent childcare. When the pandemic first started, Kaamil stood up for our family while at the same time addressing concerns from other families who were uncomfortable having a child of healthcare workers at the daycare. Her support meant everything to me and basically allowed us to continue to provide care to our patients during this crisis.

I cannot recommend Child’s Play highly enough. I feel grateful for the time our three children spent there, growing, learning, playing and just having a safe space to be a normal toddler during these extraordinary times.

I sent my preschooler to Child's Play October 2020 (right as the spring and summer of the pandemic was turning into fall) through February 2022. As someone inside this community, our family's experience of Child's Play, its teachers, and especially Kaamil, has been one of integrity, organization, excellent communication, high standards, deep care for the children and their safety, strategic, skillful, tight holding of Covid guidelines (with additional safety measures in place to ensure the health and wellness of all involved).

 Our daughter has blossomed in this environment. She went from spending most of her days in quiet observation, barely speaking, to full and joyful participation in all of the thoughtful aspects of the program each day. These included community circle time songs, book reading, playing with other children, and now that Covid and full vaccination is in full effect, special enrichment programming like yoga. I was given accurate reports each day about this developmental progress through direct contact with the teachers (following Covid guidelines of course), and through the Brightwheel App currently in use for communication. Full marks, 5 stars, a great program!