The Early Childhood Center @ Forest Glen

My son was in 2019graduated in 2021 Fg is the best, they teach very well and they have a lot of patience and the teacher is very good for me no regret at all.

The Early Childhood Center at Forest Glen (FG) provides a supportive, loving environment in which children can learn and grow. Both of my children attended FG for two years. Every morning at drop-off both of my children was greeted by a cheerful, encouraging paraprofessional who knew their name learned, helped them gently separate on tearful days, or marveled at their independence when they couldn''t wait to get out of the car. The Principal, Mrs. Linda Colucci stands outside directing the drop-off traffic, rain or shine, in the freezing cold, and in a Cat in the Hat costume during Dr. Seuss week. She knows the name of every child and jumps in to help students out of car seats when needed. and asks parents about former students / older siblings by name. My children were not taught to read at FG. Nor were they taught basic math skills. They went on nature walks, learned about the monarch butterfly''s life cycle by watching the caterpillar in their classroom change, and made applesauce and painted pumpkins in the Fall. My children made green choices and sometimes they made red choices and they were spoken to gently and sometimes firmly. But they were always spoken to with kindness by every single adult they encountered. My children learned how to write their names and how to count to 20. They were each taught how to be a friend and why sharing is important. One of my children had an IEP. One did not. During every interaction, I had with the Child Study Team, whether over email, on the phone, or in-person I was treated as a partner and never as an adversary. My child''s strengths were always part of every discussion of his progress toward IEP goals. Creative expression was part of every school day, and my children came home with tiny drops of dried paint on their arms, fingers stained with errant marker, and dried playdough caked in the soles of their shoes. They made towers and cities at the block corner and made awful-sounding sandwiches and terrible soup in the kitchen center. They planted seeds and watched them grow into sunflowers. They painted snow with spray bottles full of food coloring and they came home content and full to the brim and excited to see me blurting out a half-remembered story where every classmate gets called ''my friend. Because at FG, every student is a friend. Every student starts that way that at FG, as a friend and that''s how they leave FG at the end of every day. Children that come to school on a bus are bus friends. The ones who don''t are car friends. Car friends line up in the lobby at the end of the day and every student is brought to the car waiting for them with their hand always inside the hand of a paraprofessional, or teacher who always says goodbye or see you tomorrow before letting go of a child''s hand. The Principal, Mrs. Colucci is outside directing the pick-up traffic, stopping cars with her hands and ushering them along with home with a swoosh of her arms, even when it''s windy, or sunny or hot, even in the snow and always in her pajamas on Pajama Day.

You should stay far away from this school environment as they only care about a paper trail and looking good for ranks but not actually providing a good education. They do not care about their students despite the claim that they do. The child study team does not look at the needs of the child however what the budget and money will allow. They do not work in a collaborative or proactive manner however reactive. I am very dissatisfied with my experience with my child in this school. Linda Colucci the principal is over paid with a 162K salary who does nothing but create a hostile environment for parents since she is not well versed in special education despite her receiving a demotion from the Director of Special Services. The ABA classroom continues to use hands on methods despite claiming to be trained. They are absolutely not qualified to watch your children. You are better off getting out of district placement or moving to a better district. Other districts like Nutley work with families not against them like this place.