The Masterminds Childcare Centre - Griesbach - Edmonton

rude on the phone. first impression goes along way.

I've been debating on what to write for a long time. My family didn't have the best experience at masterminds. My son is a very high energy 3 year old, with a speech delay, that I made very clear to them before we enrolled. They did not have the proper tools to deal with him and I had a complaint phone call about him every single day(which also didn't feel great). If your child isn't a perfect child, I don't suggest this day care. Also if it's your child's first time going into care, I also don't suggest this daycare. I'm only giving two stars because his general needs were met. But mentally and emotionally my sons needs were NOT able to be met here. And maybe it's because dayhome vs daycare is a better setting for a child like mine, I just wasn't aware that a daycare wouldn't be able to handle one active child. And maybe it's because they are a new center and still working out the kinks but everyday when I picked him up he was anxious...and by the last day.. He didn't even want to go. (Also we were part time and he only attended 5 or 6 times before I pulled him..)

Hands down the best daycare, and I am super picky after what I dealt with having my older child in not such great centres. A huge emphasis on learning through play and my daughter comes home with new words all the time. She’s become a little chatterbox attending this centre and I LOVE it! The staff are welcoming and engaging and always have fun and interesting learning opportunities for her. I love getting the daily reports and artwork she does that comes home. I am so happy with this centre, been there 8+ months with absolutely no plans to leave (until we have to).

I don’t have words to say how lucky I feel to found this place for my son. He is my first son he is two and half his never been in a daycare before so when I started look out for a daycare for my son I was pretty nervous and scared about that! It was very rough for my son to be separated from me and he cried a lot but the staff was so helpful and reassuring and now he looks forward to going to daycare. So see my son so happy and always see the picture and report they sent to me every day make me feel comfortable and filled my heart with happiness. I will recommend this daycare for sure.

If you want a daycare where the care givers sit on their phone while the kids watch TV, this is the daycare for you. The first time my wife picked up our daughter she walked in grabbed our daughter and left, without the care giver even looking up from her phone. They had never met my wife before. Wish this red flag caused me to pull my daughter out then and there. There are so many great daycares and dayhomes in the area, pick one of those instead of this place.

This is a fantastic place with plenty of space for the kids to play both indoors and outdoors in a variety of different settings. Friendly and professional staff who take the time to greet each child every morning and say goodbye at pickup and always seem to be engaging with the kids. Provided daily summary I would recommend anyone in need of daycare for their child to look into Friendly Forest Child Care

Where to start... More than once, I dropped my daughter off only to discover they did not have enough staff to meet the required ratios for the kids they had on site. Yet never once was I asked to stay until another staff could get there. The staff member responsible for my daughter's age group actually rolled her eyes one day and tried to convince another care provider to take my daughter to a different room because she didn't want to have her there that day. When I told the manager the problem she insinuated such a claim was considered abusive treatment to staff, and that if I told the staff or manager that I was unhappy with their attitude, behavior and care of my child I'd be asked to leave the centre permanently. When I asked to have specific details about an incident they couldn't provide them, and when I asked them to review the video (on their own, I did not ask to see it) they told me they had turned their cameras off even tho they are included as operating full time for safety and liability per the contract parents sign. On a separate day, dad went for drop off time and went in to the indoor space unchecked, changed our daughter in to outdoor clothes and then walked in to the gated outdoor space, again unchecked, and no one acknowledged him or our child until more than 2 minutes after they'd entered the space, when they finally saw my daughter run across the yard to get a toy. In total dad was at the facility for over 10 minutes before any staff member was aware. When this was mentioned to the staff and later to the manager it was brushed aside with a comment of, oh they were focused on the kids why would they he worried about you being there.......... Our child also has a severe speech delay and some sensory processing issues. When discussed with the original manager, she was proactive and supportive. When I followed up with the interim manager, she was dismissive and condescending, saying they didn't have time to deal with kids needing extra support and refused to access programs like GRIT, ASAP and enhanced ratio supports. Soooo if I could give fewer stars than one, be assured I would.

This is great daycare, thanks to Lucy one of the amazing teacher in the toddlers room. She is so supportive and understanding. When my child comes to daycare in the morning he is very sad but this lady goes out of her way to cheer him up and he settles down and stops crying. She helps my son settle down by giving him activities such as puzzles and cars to play with! She also ensures everything through out day is amazing by sending pictures on HIMama App and writing things in detail! Hats of to this daycare for having such an amazing worker to run the daycare. Thank you Lucy for all your help for my son.