Academia de mi Abuela

Community Subscriber

Oakland, CA

No longer in business
Facility Type[?]:
Preschool,
Childcare Center
DSS Facility License #
013420975 [view license]
Website:
http://www.amachildcarecenter.org/
Owner:
Cynthia Mendez Reimann
510 409-9771
reimanncynthia [at] gmail.com
Location:
Oakland
94611
Montclair
Maximum Capacity:
53
Language(s) Spoken:
English,
Spanish
Ages Served:
18 months - 72 months
Additional Services & Features:
Part-time available,
Year-round,
Sibling discount,
Subsidized program,
Potty training support
Editors' Notes:
  • Licensing records show this preschool was closed in May 2024.
  • Prior to 2013, Academia de Mi Abuela was known as Pumpkin Patch Learning Academy, a home-based daycare.
5 parent questions ▼
4 parent reviews ▼
Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Parent Q&A

Select any title to view the full question and replies.

  • Academia de Mi Abuela recent experience?

    –
    Jul 20, 2022

    We're considering AMA for our 18 month old and would love to hear from families with recent experience at the school. Pros/cons and anything helpful you can share for a prospective family. Thank you!

    Jul 20, 2022

    No responses received.

  • Academia Mi Abuela experiences

    –
    Apr 16, 2022

    Hello community, We've been looking at Spanish immersion preschools for our 3 year old for some time now and are considering Academia Mi Abuela. Many of the reviews on Berkeley Parent Network are older. Does anyone have any current experience they could share with us? We would appreciate it.  Specifically: How is safety considering how close they are to Mountain Blvd? Development per age group? We noticed they have a mix of smaller and older toddlers in one class.How much Spanish did your child learn? Our kid understands a lot of the language because I have been speaking to him in Spanish since he was born, but he doesn't speak it as much. I am originally from Mexico and would love for him to learn the language and culture. Thank you!

    Apr 16, 2022

    My daughter attends the elementary school directly upstairs from Mi Abuela (Pear Tree) so I can speak to your concerns about safety on Mountain Blvd., because I definitely had them too. One nice thing I've noticed about Mi Abuela is that there are always a few teachers standing directly in front of and behind the outside gate helping kids transition in and out safely, and keeping handle on traffic pulling in and out of the driveway. Their management of the front gate is stellar and they are always so warm and friendly with the kids and parents. It's great to see! The tiny share parking lot is a challenge, it fills up quickly and you have to spend a lot of time waiting to get in and out. The parents using the driveway are always very careful, so I've never had any issues walking my kids through the parking lot. 

      I don't park in the lot because it's usually full, I park on Mountain Blvd. across the street from the school. It's kind of a hassle. So many people speed down that street and the sidewalks on that side we park on are so narrow we have to walk single file. We have to cross the street at the intersection of Mountain and Snake Road, and some drivers making that left turn off Snake are paying zero attention to the crosswalk, so I have to be on guard at all times. We've had some people not stop until I started waving my hands, it's terrible. We're managing, but I do wish traffic safety in that neighborhood was better, I won't sugarcoat it.  

    Apr 20, 2022

  • Updated Info on Academia de Mi Abuela

    –
    Apr 16, 2019

    Hello, we are considering Academia de Mi Abuela. The spanish immersion aspect of the program looks great! I did read about a few citation issues. Does anyone have any recent experiences to share? 

    Apr 16, 2019

    Hi there,

    I just recently left Academia de Mi Abuela. I have both compliments and criticism. My daughter is 4. In August she will be 5 and will be entering kindergarten.

    The positives I can attest to would be Maestra Leo, she's phenomenal. She is the AM teacher for Casa Lima, my daughter's class. My daughter was loved and her Spanish HAS improved immensely. I'm so proud of her and grateful for the Spanish-immersion part of the program. The culture of the school is diverse and loving and ultimately the teachers do love on the kids. They have cool field trips like going to a play in Spanish, and they celebrate all sorts of diverse holidays. They have a cool system that updates you daily through an app and they can send pictures and updates of what happens with your child, activities they participate in, what they eat, etc. ITS A GREAT communication tool!

    We started at AMA last summer in July. I'm a single parent household. I receive tuition assistance through Bananas Bunch Organization. Low-income families or really, any families, are offered the opportunity to barter services or time to this school in co-payment of tuition. So I helped with stuff like painting, cleaning up and organizing on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to help cover co-payment.

    When we started in July, the tuition was $1600 and the head of school, Cynthia, gave us her word that we could keep that tuition amount, knowing it was already above what I could afford, which is why I bartered hours and services. The new tuition rate is around $1800 per month. In March, Cynthia scheduled a time to meet with me, AND CANCELLED that week, and every week after, at the last minute. Then literally the last Friday of March, she saw me about to walk out with my daughter and pulled me into her office to try and finesse me into signing a new contract. I said I wanted to read over it and she was insistent on me signing without reading it. I told her I would need to take it with me and read it. She was reluctant to let me do so, but I did anyways. I read it later when I had time that evening and saw that she wanted to increase tuition starting THAT MONDAY. Handing me a new contract on a Friday and expecting me to be prepared for an increase by Monday.

    I told her that was unfair and I could not sign that contract. She said that they love having my daughter but if I wanted her to return and continue at AMA I would need to sign the contract and bring it to her on Monday. Luckily, my daughter was already leaving to visit family in Seattle for that week. Otherwise I would have been SOL. It was a stressful process to find child care in the middle of the year last minute for my daughter, since she will be in kinder in a few months. I wouldn't trust their administration or the way they operate as a business.

    Also, my daughters class (Casa Lima) is almost like they're in a basement, rather than an actual school.  Also general hygiene stuff can be sluffed on at times. They don't ever clean the kids' nose who have boogers or wash their hands, or at least encourage the kids to wash their own hands and face. The parking is horrible and very limited. They don't do a lot of "pre school". I would say it's 80% child care and 20% pre school.

    I'm sure if you're paying out of pocket and they fix some of these things you may be okay with it.

    Apr 17, 2019

  • Considering Academia de Mi Abuela

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    Nov 8, 2018

    Does anyone know if this school has a new director or turnover? I was going to contact this school for a tour. In many ways it's perfect: location is close to my home, my daughter has had a Spanish speaking nanny, the philosophy looks great. 

    Then I looked at the Department of Social Services website and it has 9 Class A citations and 13 Class B citations. Some look concerning (no staff supervision during nap time, teacher's without proper qualifications, mice. This is more citations than I've seen looking at 10 other schools combined.  

    Nov 8, 2018

    We sent both our kids there and were at the school during the citations. We had an incredibly positive experience and found the teachers to be very loving and caring for our children.  I wanted my kids to be in a safe environment and continue to speak Spanish outside the home and ama met both of these requirements. The mice thing did worry me but we are now at another private bilingual school and it too had two mice incidents there ( I think in amas case a disgruntled employee may have reported the mice ?). So I think I blew the mice thing out of proportion. I wish we could have stayed at the school longer - my kids Spanish skills were so much better at ama vs their current fancier private school. I would highly recommend the school.

    Nov 27, 2018

  • Academia de mi Abuela

    –
    Oct 29, 2017

    Hello, 

    Our daughter will soon start preschool and we have been searching around for a Spanish immersion school. Does anyone have any current reviews on Academia De Mi Abuela? We are interested in taking a tour since the location is ideal to home and they are also year round and seem to not have many closure days. We are two full time working parents and need a full day M-F schedule. I mainly wanted to know of any current experiences with child teacher interaction? How much kinder ready preparedness do the kiddos leave with? Are the classrooms stocked with materials? Our last daughter was at a school where she learned all sight words by the time she left but unfortunately the teacher has retired. Do kids learn academics only in Spanish? I know they also have some licensing violations, have they improved since then? I would appreciate any advice either good or bad. Thanks!! 

    Oct 29, 2017

    No responses received.

Parent Reviews

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My(4.5yo) has been going to Academia de mi Abuela for a year. I had been trying to teach her spanish although its not our primary language at home and she was resistant. The school is truly Spanish immersion. My daughter's speaking and comprehension has skyrocketed since attending Academia de mi Abuela. Now she regularly asks me if we can switch to Spanish when we are spending time together and counts in spanish to go to sleep. I love hearing the songs she comes home singing, and her little brother does too.

The teachers are kind and caring and do a great job helping the children learn to be friends. We're very excited for the new facilities as they move down the street this year.  

Apr 4, 2024
RE:
Spanish speaking daycare with openings? (May 10, 2023)

Academia de mi Abuela in Montclair has openings. They are open 7:30am-5:30pm. I have had 2 kids through the program and we have been happy with their care. 

May 17, 2023
Recommended:
Academia de mi Abuela
RE:
Oakland daycares that accept 1-year-olds? (Sep 12, 2022)

Our daughter went to Academia de mi Abuela (Spanish Immersion school) at 18 mo. I’m pretty sure they accept little ones at 12 mo. She had a wonderful time there, the school does a great job communicating and all the Maestras are very nice. 

Sep 14, 2022
Recommended:
Academia de mi Abuela

Our daughter entered AMA when she was 2 years old and over the course of two years, we saw her blossom into a confident and bilingual child who developed a love for school. Academically, she learned how to write her name, recognize letters of the alphabet, develop fine motor skills, recognize shapes and colors and develop good concepts of print. Socially, she learned how to share, take turns, ask for help, and be a good friend. Our son has also been attending AMA for the past year and he has grown to be a more assertive and playful young boy. The teachers at AMA are all very caring and go out of their way to ensure that each child is happy and successful. We also love that AMA focuses much of the programming on culture and the arts with an emphasis on social justice. Some of the things offered are added bonuses that make AMA a valuable place for children's development such as soccer, ballet folklorico, capoeira, mural painting, and yoga. Overall, we could not be happier at AMA because we have seen our children grow to love school, develop their vocabularies in Spanish, and have been able to see them showcase their learning through public dance and singing performances. We highly recommend AMA to any family interested in a preschool that is like no other.

Sep 5, 2015

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Jan 2015

Does anyone have recent experience with Academia de Mi Abuelita in Montclair? We are considering it for our three year old. We think he may be too young for the pre-K at Escuela Bilingue Internacional but he's ready for some kind of group setting. I am native Spanish speaker and my husband is Anglophone. Our son is most fluent in Spanish. Suggestions or comments appreciated! Berkeley mamay

Sorry for the late reply. I thought I had responded before but I think I didn't overcome some technical difficulties. My daughter attended Academia...for approximately 6 months. I urge you to check with the State licensing board, which has listed the substantiated complaints against this facility, including our own: https://secure.dss.ca.gov/CareFacilitySearch/FacDetail/013420975. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact me. Andrea

Jan 2014

Acadamia de Mi Abuela in Montclair is a great option for those seeking a Spanish immersion preschool. Their teachers are warm, kind and engaging. Dance and music are a focus and they bring in talented people from the community to offer classes in Latin percussion and dance as well as soccer - the kids enjoy showing off their skills in each of these areas for parents at seasonal community events hosted by the school. The student body is very diverse and reflective of Oakland and its many types of families. Tricia

Dec 2013

AMA is wonderful! My two year old started at AMA in July of 2013. We were a little apprehensive about her starting at a new center, concerned that it would be a difficult transition. It took her several months for her to adapt to her previous child care center and she never really was happy to be there. The warmth of the teachers at AMA made my daughter feel comfortable immediately. Within a week, she was excited to ''go to school'' everyday and at pick up she didn't want to leave. We love that AMA is a Spanish immersion center as we would like our daughter to be fully bilingual. Her father speaks to her in Spanish at home, and it is great to have a center that reinforces her language development. The curriculum is fantastic and rich with cultural lessons as well as plenty of learning through music, art, science, and play. We love that the day is well structured and balanced with activities that foster social development, academic learning, and physical fitness. My daughter loves doing yoga and learning dances. She also enjoys the weekly soccer lessons. We also appreciate that the teachers communicate our daughter's progress through daily logs and parent conferences. AMA is a very well-rounded child care center, and we are thrilled to be a part of the AMA family!
KV

April 2013

My daughters have gone to Pumpkin Patch Leaning Academy (now Academia de mi Abuela) since they were 2 and my youngest is now graduating from there. Over the past 3 years that we've attended, the Director, Cynthia, has grown her school from a small in-home program to now a large 3-classroom school. Early on there were some issues with staff turn-over, but now she has settled on a truly stellar group of loving, attentive teachers. They are young, energetic, and implement Cynthia's creative and challenging curriculum very well. The art projects are amazing--I like that they don't ''correct'' the childrens' work (for example, one project came home with a completely sideways rainbow, and I love it!). Cynthia's two greatest assets are her teachers and her curriculum. Despite being an English-speaking home, both of my daughters now understand basic Spanish, can speak rudimentary sentences in Spanish and are ready for Spanish immersion kindergarten. They learned the basics to be ready for kindergarten and made some great friends along the way. PPLA Parent

Feb 2013

I am a mother with two daughters who currently attend Academic de Mi Abuela (AMA) which was previously known as Pumpkin Patch Learning Academy (PPLA). My girls are 4 years old and 1 1/2 years old and they have been at AMA for almost 1 year now and we have had an incredible experience overall. Cynthia Reimann (the school director) is the absolute best. She has created (with help from her incredible teaching staff) an unbelievable atmosphere at her Spanish immersion preschool program. Cynthia has a lot of experience teaching both preschool and elementary Spanish immersion classes and she has the ability to make all of her students feel as though they are her absolute favorite child in the world. My daughters love all of the fun field trips that the school takes throughout the year (Oakland Zoo, Lawrence Hall of Science, etc). You know your child is in good hands when you receive text messages from Cynthia with a picture of your child during the field trip with a huge grin on their face! I feel like AMA/PPLA is a perfect combination of hands-on learning/exploration/free play with just enough structure and academics to help the children build kindergarten readiness skills. I highly recommend this program to parents who are looking for a warm, caring, trusting, and enriching preschool environment. Joey

April 2012

We are looking to enroll our little one in a Spanish-immersion preschool next year and are looking for recent reviews on Pumpkin Patch Learning Academy (PPLA) in Oakland. We think we have a good idea about the other Spanish-immersion schools in the area (e.g., KISS, Monte Tavor), but would like to hear about experiences with PPLA. Thanks! Planning ahead

Hi There, I can't offer much experience on this preschool. I live one block away and am very interested in more reviews as well. For some reason it seems that it's hard to get any reviews/experience for schools in this area! I'll be curious to hear what others say, though, sadly, I haven't seen any responses yet. I'm planning to visit the school as well. My daughter is 2 and we're looking for a new school when she turns 3. Since she's in a home-based preschool now, I was thinking a more school-like setting would be a good next step, but I really think the Spanish is important, sooo we are considering Pumpkin Patch as well. we've also heard a lot about Monte Tavor and other schools in Berkeley, etc, but many seem so hard to get in to. I can say that the place seem safe and quiet at least from living nearby! Well, good luck. Sorry can't help more! lacking info in ivy hill!

I know this was a question from a rather old newsletter, but I wanted to reply. I have a friend who worked at PPLA and she has only good things to say about the place. When i asked her for info about it, this is what she wrote me in a personal email: ''What is important mostly to PPLA is a proficiency in English/Spanish communication and understanding, both verbally and literally, with lots of energy put towards developing self-help skills, and of course, social-emotional growth as well. I'll give a list of some aspects of the school: 90% Spanish instruction/communication throughout the day; frequent attention to writing and drawing and tuning motor skills with writing and crafting tools; Lots of education through song and dance, mostly in Spanish. (Cynthia (the owner) is a dancer, so she likes to incorporate lots of dance forms, and a good mix of Latino song, in learning; Yoga; Lots of room for imaginative and theatrical play throughout the day; lots of outdoor play, and getting dirty, munching on chard and celery and broccoli; I love the emphasis on habitual expression through the act of painting (in some form. Painting every day, sometimes twice.) The lunch is usually pretty impressive, really healthful, and the kids love it.'' Needless to say, after a glowing review like that from a trusted friend who has been on the ''inside'' of the school for an extended period of time, I am definitely considering sending my son there! Future PPLA family???

Oct 2010

For anyone looking for a spanish immersion preschool, PPLA is amazing! My son just began attending this fall and is already proud of his spanish vocabulary aquisitions! Cynthia, the director is a former bilingual elementary teacher and is amazing! This hidden gem doesn't have a lot of publicity yet so I just wanted to let parents know that if they are seeking an immersion program they should give PPLA a look! Alexandria

Oct 2010

The Pumpkin Patch Learning Academy is a great home-based daycare and preschool East of Lake Merritt. We have been there for 6 months now and my son has done really well. He has made some wonderful friends. It is one of the few Spanish Immersion programs in Oakland. The director really wants active participation from the parents, which was a big draw for me. I also love the art projects that they do, and they have recently added organic garden beds and renovated the outdoor area. The kids are very busy and have fun every day! Drawbacks would be the winter and spring breaks of 2 weeks each, plus lots of holidays - so sometimes I have to get alternate care. -Elise