Retoños del Futuro Wonderschool

Our Teachers

Hello! I am Miriam Gonzalez, the director of Retoños del Futuro . It has been a dream of mine since I started college to design and run my own child care program where children can play and learn. I have 10 years of experience working with young children. Most recently, I was an assistant teacher at Pequeñas Semillas Wonderschool with director Maria Denova for two years.

I was a nanny for 8 years, and my experiences helped me learn what parents are looking for in a caregiver and educator. I love working with the parents of my students as a team, as we collaborate to help the child reach their full potential. I encourage and welcome feedback and input from the parents in my program.

My mother will be working alongside me as my assistant teacher, and I look forward to welcoming your child into our program and our family.

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Testimonials

Our son joined Retoños del Futuro as Miriam’s first student only a month after he started walking. We were struck by her warmth and professionalism when we first met her and we each took a chance on one another. Our family couldn’t have been happier with the results.

Our son was greeted every morning at drop off with warmth and hugs. He enjoyed home-cooked meals and wonderful friends. When his sister joined a couple years later at 5 months, Miriam and Tere took such good care of her as well. We’ve seen the program grow over the years with many infants coming through and graduating to preschool and many sets of siblings as well. The limited size of the daycare means that the kids get plenty of one-on-one attention and no one feels left out. Our son also learned how to be gentle to all of his smaller friends and especially the babies. Even though we lived a few miles away, it was worth it for us to continue to bring our kids there because we knew that they would get the best care.

As for the day to day, the kids enjoy a lot of time to play with one another, learn Spanish, do many art projects (we have boxes of their work product!), and explore books and other enrichment. When the weather is good, the kids go on fun neighborhood walks and play with the nearby grassy meadow. I was always amazed with how well our kids stayed with the group on the walks. We really enjoyed seeing the daily updates on Instagram stories to see what the kids were up to that day.

Our son stayed with Miriam through age 5 due to some delays in toileting and they were so patient with him as they helped him practice and gain confidence. In the 4 years that our two kids were with “Mimi” and Tere, they grew to love them like family. I would recommend Retoños del Futuro to anyone who is looking for a nurturing environment for their infant or toddler.

~Brett and Huilin~

Our daughter had never been to daycare when we started dropping her off with Miriam. As first-time parents, we were understandable anxious. Would she get along with the other kids? Would she enjoy this new environment? And, most importantly, would they treat her well? By the end of that first week we had our answer, when our daughter began clapping as we’d arrive at daycare and then give Miriam a wide-armed hug as soon as she came to the door. Our daughter wasn’t alone either. In watching the other parents drop-off and pick-up their children, we noticed quickly that all of the kids simply adored Miriam. 

Our daughter had never been to daycare when we started dropping her off with Miriam. As first-time parents, we were understandable anxious. Would she get along with the other kids? Would she enjoy this new environment? And, most importantly, would they treat her well? By the end of that first week we had our answer, when our daughter began clapping as we’d arrive at daycare and then give Miriam a wide-armed hug as soon as she came to the door. Our daughter wasn’t alone either. In watching the other parents drop-off and pick-up their children, we noticed quickly that all of the kids simply adored Miriam. Our daughter had never been to daycare when we started dropping her off with Miriam. As first-time parents, we were understandable anxious. Would she get along with the other kids? Would she enjoy this new environment? And, most importantly, would they treat her well? By the end of that first week we had our answer, when our daughter began clapping as we’d arrive at daycare and then give Miriam a wide-armed hug as soon as she came to the door. Our daughter wasn’t alone either. In watching the other parents drop-off and pick-up their children, we noticed quickly that all of the kids simply adored Miriam. 

All told, our daughter spent about 18 months with Miriam. Over that time, we began to understand why Miriam is such a natural with kids. She’s calm. She’s kind. She’s a wonderful listener. She’s quick to smile and laugh. And she’s very consistent. From day one, our daughter knew what was expected of her. Miriam embraces each child’s individuality while at the same time teaching them respect for each other, for their teachers and for the space. At the same time, the days are filled with activities: music, reading, dancing, arts, walks around the neighborhood and so much more. And much of it in Spanish, which was such an added bonus for us. We loved the daily updates that Miriam and the staff emailed each day — and also appreciated the photos and artwork they’d share with us at the end of the week. Miriam cultivated the type of positive, bilingual, healthy community where we want our daughter to be spending her time.  

Ultimately, it comes down to trust. And there’s no one we trust more with our daughter than Miriam. We valued the conversations we had with her during drop-offs and pick-ups, and we could always count on her for honest feedback about how our daughter was behaving (or misbehaving) or things she’d noticed, or development strategies that might be helpful for us. Day-to-day, working with Miriam just felt very easy and collaborative. We feel so fortunate to have found her and could not recommend her any more enthusiastically. ”

Alexandra Pacheco Garcia & Jeff Plunkett

“Miriam first came into our lives when our daughter, Jolene, was nine months old. Jolene had been attending a Wonderschool for about a month when Miriam first appeared at the school. As most parents know, dropping your child off with a new person is a nerve racking experience. However, any anxieties we may have had were quickly tossed aside as Miriam greeted us with a warm smile and more importantly, she greeted our child as if she were an aunt meeting her niece for the very first time. Everything Miriam did, from her loving care to her amazing patience, made us feel secure that we were leaving our daughter in the best environment possible.

Jolene would stay at that particular school for two years. And in those years, we watched her learn and blossom under Miriam’s care and tutelage. And not only that, Miriam would bring in her own daughter’s clothes and toys that she had outgrown and gift them to Jolene. Honestly, we’re not even sure we’ve bought Jolene clothes to this very day because even after Jolene left Wonderschool, Miriam would continue to drop off clothes and toys for us. In other words, she wouldn’t just go the extra mile, she’d go miles. And that is why we have, and will continue, to recommend Miriam to any and all parents.”

-Eric and Valerie Lord (and of course Jolene too)

It’s our pleasure to offer our unreserved recommendation for Miriam Martinez. Our family has known Miriam since November 2015, when she started as our nanny for our two young children. In the two years and four months that we employed her, she consistently demonstrated a sincere commitment to providing the best care for our kids, professionalism and sound judgment.

When she first started, our children were 2 and 5 years old, and she came each day with enthusiasm to get to know them as individuals. Not only did she play with them and help them explore their interests, she also took the time to listen, to ask age-appropriate probing questions, and to encourage them to express themselves. She was instrumental in helping our older child learn to read and often provided academically-enriching and fun activities for both kids. She recognizes that each child is different and tailors her interactions accordingly. Miriam was able to strike a balance between demonstrating patience towards our children (even when they were having challenging moments!) and teaching them appropriate behavior. She kept us well-informed about how our children were doing, letting us know if there were special triumphs to celebrate or challenges that we should address. We valued having a partner with whom we could problem-solve together and whose input we respected and trusted.

Our household, like many others, is a busy one, so having someone who we could rely on was critical. Miriam always arrived on time and let us know in advance when there would be changes to her schedule. She’s very organized and responsible, and we were confident our kids were in great hands when we were not around. She takes her responsibilities very seriously and approaches her work with diligence and a positive attitude.

We feel really fortunate that Miriam could be a part of our children’s lives and continues to be a good friend. We know she is exceptionally qualified to run her own daycare given her experience in multiple settings and the genuine love and care that she brings to every interaction with children.

Best regards,

Nancy and Josh Que

Philosophy

We would love to invite you to be a founding family at Retoños del Futuro!

At Retoños del Futuro, we want our students to feel like they are part of our family, as we are a daughter and mother working together as a teaching team. In our Spanish language-immersion program, our students will learn how to express themselves and learn a new language through music and movement.

As a play-based program, we believe that our students best absorb the concepts that we introduce to them through visual, hands-on projects. We review the new words and ideas we learn on a daily basis through interactive activities, such as nature walks outside and making meals together.

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Location

Retoños del Futuro is located in a bright, cozy apartment in North Hollywood - we’re a quick two-minute drive from the 134 Freeway, and a five-minute drive from the North Hollywood Metro Station. We’re near Disney headquarters, Warner Brothers, ABC, and Universal Studios.

Our students will enjoy their daily outdoor time through nature walks on a walking path near our home. We also have an open, outdoor space inside our apartment building where we will play with water and sand.

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About our program

At Retoños del Futuro, the activities we do incorporate learning numbers, words, and colors with art, movement, and the outdoors. We build upon the knowledge and ideas children absorb from their environment, and challenge them to ask questions and develop a deeper understanding of the world around them.

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Admissions

Join the Retoños del Futuro community in four easy steps:

1. Explore our website

We’ve provided information about our philosophies and offerings to help you decide if our program may be right for your family.

2. Tour our program

Come see what makes Retoños del Futuro unique. Please schedule a tour or attend an Open House event.

3. Submit an Enrollment Application

If you would like to enroll, please submit an application. Please note that we require tours for all prospective families. Please do not submit an application if you have not visited the program.

4. Enroll

After reviewing your application, we’ll send an enrollment invitation. Upon accepting your invitation you’ll pay your enrollment fee, fill out enrollment documents and review our Parent Handbook.

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