Little Crane Montessori School 113 Cottage Place, Ridgewood, NJ 07450

"Little Crane is a fantastic school for all children. Ms. Chizuru and the teachers pour so much love and dedication into their jobs. They have provided safe, in-person learning throughout the pandemic. Our 4 year old has learned so much and is a kinder, more respectful child because of Little Crane."

"When we moved to Ridgewood from NYC, we were overwhelmed with the number of preschool/daycare options. We feel so lucky to have found Little Crane. Our daughter has thrived there. Not only does she have a blast everyday, but she is learning more than our first grader is in public school. And the best part is that I don't think she even knows she is learning! The creativity and kindness of the teachers there is palpable. They clearly love what they do and truly care for the kids. I couldn't recommend a better place, whether it be in NJ or NYC."

"After having our son attended two other preschools which ended with lots of tears, he finally settled in at Little Crane. He has since flourished into a confident, happy, little boy and is ready for Kindergarten. We cannot thank Ms. Chizuru and the teachers enough for nurturing our son with the Montessori approach. All the teachers there genuinely love what they do and our son came home every day singing a new song, sharing a new discovery, and budding new friendships. Even with the covid-19 pandemic, with little preparation time, our teachers pushed forward and continued to offer every day remote learning to our children. They were also able to extend additional smaller age group/ individualized learning opportunities on top of that for the last few months of school year. Thank you all teachers! We will miss you!"

"Our son attended Little Crane since age 2 1/2. We visited five local Montessori pre-schools and we chose Little Crane because in our opinion, it held truest to the Montessori philosophy. Some of the other schools required all kids to follow the school structure; and some subtly hinted that the degree of individualization when it came to learning would be limited. During our son's 2 and half years at Little Crane, we can confidently say that Principal Chizuru and her team were very flexible and accommodating. All our requests at our Parent Teacher conferences are immediately incorporated into our son's curriculum. For example, we asked Ms. Chizuru to help our son work on his narration and writing skills, as well as to foster his interest in math. Shortly thereafter, we noticed improvement in those areas. Ms. Chizuru is also acutely aware of our son’s interests and needs. When she realized our son had expansive knowledge in certain areas, she encouraged him to take it to the next level by asking him to create short essays, books, and artwork. Overall, we’re delighted that Little Crane has played such a significant role in our son’s academic and social growth. For that reason we highly recommend this school."

"I have had 3 children attend Little Crane Montessori and have nothing but great things to say about the school. The environment is very warm and friendly and the director is fantastic. My children have had the unique opportunity to be a part of a true classroom community and they continue to benefit from the experience as they have continued on to elementary school. They were more than prepared academically for kindergarten and are excelling both socially and with their school work. The preparation they received at Little Crane was invaluable."