CSUN Child & Family Studies Center

I cannot say enough good things about the CSUN Child & Family Studies Center. What a fantastic preschool! The teachers are all experts in their fields, the staff and administration are superb, everyone is always on top of the latest in childhood studies research. And the price cannot be beat, as it’s subsidized by the University. Highly recommended!

Yay! We love it here. I’ve been here for 3 years now, seeing both my kids pass through the program. At comparable preschools we would pay more and have a lower ratio of staff to kids, but this school benefits from drawing on the CSUN students who are learning how to teach, so there are often 7 teachers or teachers-​in-​training in the room, for anywhere from 15 – 19 students. The staff quality is also quite high, as they are all getting their degrees in child development or a similar field. I love being able to observe my children through the two-​way mirrors without interrupting the flow of their day. I do wish the school had a program that was a little longer than the 2 ½ hour half-​day, something between half-​day and full-​day, but you can’t have everything. Teacher Christa is a fantastic Operations Manager and is so approachable and caring. I have always felt comfortable discussing anything with her.

Excellent school! My daughter is in the full time program. She started at age 3 and now she is 4. There are 2 master teachers in her class everyday, and a lot of TA helping in the class (TA = CSUN grad students) so very good adults/​kids ratio. The teachers were very helpful in helping my daughter’s transition and separation when she first started. They have good cirruculum and it is posted weekly for parents to see.
In the classroom the shelves are labelled with picture where things should be and children are responsible to put things away. After my daughter attended Lab school she started to help me put away laundry at home by looking at the picture labels I put on the dressers.
There are grad students observing the kids classroom (behind a big mirror in a observation room) so I am able to hear from the individual who observes my daughter at teacher/​parent conference. This information is very helpful in keeping track of my daughter’s growth.
One thing for parents to consider is their calendar. It follows the CSUN school calendar some way. It is not like other day care of preschool that is all year round. After the Summer session they closed for 2 weeks. And a week of Spring break, and a week of break during CSUN commencement, and 2 weeks of break when Fall semester is over. So for working parents you have to make plans for alternate day care. Lab School does not provide lunch so parents will be sending lunches to school, and you cannot buy lunch for the kids even you are willing to pay for it.
My daughter loves going to the lab school and it is well worth extra accomodations and planning to send her there.

Lab School is a SF Valley hidden gem! Wonderful & caring teachers, there because they choose to be and they believe in inclusive education. Great student-​teacher ratio, out of the box thinking, very progressive methods of education and socialization.
My son is in his 2^nd and last year of preschool here and we will miss these phenomenal teachers that care so much about their students. We have been in full-​day and half-​day PM classes, and both have been so great for our son and our family! Our family highly recommends Lab School!

My son attended CSUN lab school for Kindergarten — he is now in 4^th grade.
They offer pre-​school and Kindergarten
It really is fantastic; tons of help in the classroom, world class teachers using cutting edge teaching practices due to it’s connection to the teacher education program at CSUN.
It’s downright impressive. You can be sure your child is getting the best early education available in SoCal. Serious.

This is an amazing preschool! For me, one of the most important criteria for any school is the teacher-​to-​student ratio, especially for young children. Even though the published (and state mandated) teacher-​to-​student ratio is 8:1, there are usually 3 or 4 four adults to every child. The class has a lead teacher and several paid assistants, but student volunteers from the university usually help in the class too.
Since it is a teaching school, I love that I can be a fly on the wall in their observation room. It is such a joy to watch your child play and be independent with the support of caring teachers. They incorporate learning and socialization in the play, and I’m confident my child will be ready for Kindergarten. Once a semester, you even have a parent-​teacher conference to discuss your child’s specific development – which they document. I know I can go to the teachers with questions or concerns at any time though. It is clear to me that these caretakers understand my child’s needs, and give him individualized attention.
It is also very reasonably priced. My child is in the Morning Half-​Day class, five days a week, and we pay $ 420 a month. This is not only a school with warm, well-​qualified teachers – it’s a true educational community. We regularly have play dates after school and on the weekends with the other families. The CSUN Lab Preschool has exceeded my expectations.