*Emma attends Santa Barbara Middle School and chose to work at My Special School during “Career Studies Week”. This is a letter I received from Emma after spending a full week with the kids and I.

Dear Alice,

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! Thank you so so much for letting me be a part of your Preschool and these kids’ lives! I loved them from the beginning and I am so looking forward to babysitting them in the future.

Your Preschool is amazing! I love the fact that you have animals for the kids to interact with and you teach them skills that they can use in their everyday lives no matter what age they are. You engage their brains and really make them think and solve problems on their own. When you were explaining the “behind the scenes/brains” it really got me thinking too. The way that you step back and let them figure things out on their own is amazing to watch.

Your inside knowledge on how their brains work and what ways each child will excel most is astonishing. When they each told me what they were working on it blew me away. It was amazing that with a little of your help they could realize what to improve on and how to do it. It changed my perspective on how their minds work and what they are thinking. I was amazed when Giulia told me my name and my age! Not only do they learn lifelong lessons but they learn at an early age that they don’t have to always rely on other people to get what they want.

You are truly amazing! I love you, your house (especially the smell), your animal companions, and being with all of you. No parent could ask for a better place to send their little loves to begin their learning experience. Your Preschool is a home away from home to them now and it will be for the rest of their lives (it definitely is for me).

I feel that I really learned how to run a Preschool, but I learned so much more! I love you, Sydney,Yenta, Leilani, Ty, the Dolphins and especially the kids! Again thank you so much for this wonderful experience!

Love always,

Emma Frances Semonsen~ 14 yrs.
November 2011

Dear Alice,

You are a good teacher and friend.  I am going to miss you a whole bunch!  I love you.

Katie Nulty – 5 yrs.
August 1991

For the world’s greatest Teacher,

Thank you Alice Tropper for such a great start in my life! I love you!

Cassidy Davis – 5yrs.
OCTOBER 1993

I liked My Special School because we got to go on a lot of field trips and I liked mystery Fridays.

My favorite part was the morning because you got to draw and play with Legos while you were waiting for everyone else.

Miss Alice is a nice, nice teacher and I liked when she read us books.

I learned about peace, love and how to tie my shoes.

FIA TORREY, 6 3/4 YRS.
FEBRUARY 2013

Kids should go to My Special School because it is lots of fun and you get to play a lot, learn a lot about school and animals, and most of all I liked the friends I made and the Graduation Sleepover.

Mckenzie “Tookie” Baker, 9 yrs.
January, 2013