Anneliese Schools

Laguna Beach, United States

4.4

Closed now

10 reviews

Does not accept credit cards

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Telephone:
+1 949-494-7388
Website:
www.annelieseschools.com
Address:
758 Manzanita Dr, Laguna Beach, CA, 92651
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
2.7 miOCTA
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
No

Today

Today 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Laguna Beach) 01:33 Thursday, 17 July 2025

Business hours

Monday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Wednesday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Thursday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Friday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

We provide a unique educational experience, one that speaks not only to your child’s intellect, but to their humanity, conscience and creativity as well.

The Anneliese Child is self-​motivated and curious, with an appreciation for other cultures and languages. Children who graduate from Anneliese Schools have a strong sense of self and are often leaders who express social responsibility, as well as global and environmental awareness. They are deep thinkers and artistically sensitive, creative problem solvers who express empathy toward others.

We offer three unique campuses in Laguna Beach. Overlooking the Pacific Ocean, The Aliso School offers a nurturing environment for Nursery School through Kindergarten. Nestled in the heart of Laguna Beach, The Manzanita School provides an intimate garden home-​like setting for Kindergarten through 3rd grade. Located on Laguna Canyon near I-​73, The Willowbrook School provides a larger stimulating and artful campus for nursery to 6th grade.

History

Established in 1968.

Today, Anneliese Schools continue to set the standard in Orange County for private «whole child» education. With a unique curriculum that cultivates all nine intelligences, as well as inspiring environments and seasoned educators to help young hearts and minds come alive, Anneliese Schools lead the way in helping children realize their full potential as human beings.

Our philosophy is articulately expressed and profoundly experienced in the architecture and physical layout of our schools. Each classroom, every choice of furniture, our outdoor play and garden spaces – even details like Persian carpets, vases, flowers and supplies – reflect a conscious theory of the developing child.

We believe that our schools are a visual testimony to the humanity and sensitivity of children. They are places where the imagination is quickened and the spirit of creativity and artistry is celebrated. Every day and in every environment, we seek to exemplify beauty and inspire children to appreciate it.

Meet the Business Owner

Anneliese S.

Business Owner

Anneliese Schimmelpfennig, was raised in post-​war Bavarian Germany by a loving family of modest means. She was an intelligent and strong-​willed child who rebelled against the dictatorial structure of her school at an early age. In her heart and spirit, she nurtured a life-​long love of learning and a dream: to found a very special school in America one day. For many years, she diligently gained her basic education as intern teacher at an orphanage, a pediatric assistant at the University Clinic of Munich, and as a private governess. She studied pedagogy at the teacher’s college of The University of Munich. In 1968, Anneliese’s lifelong dream of founding her own school was realized in the idyllic town of Laguna Beach.

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10 reviews of Anneliese Schools

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Place rating: 5
West Vancouver, Canada
We feel truly privileged to have been a part of the Annaliese community. From the first time we walked in the door, we were captivated by the magic of this school which has real heart & soul. Our four year old thrived in this enriching environment and developed a real passion for languages (in only two months he was happily singing songs at home in Japanese, French, & Spanish), cooking, yoga, and drawing. We also loved the fact the school provided him with healthy, organic home-​cooked snacks and lunch. We would highly recommend Annaliese and it was one of our highlights of living in Laguna Beach.
Place rating: 5
Newport Beach, CA
Laguna’s public schools are excellent – some of the best in the county – so for us to give 5 stars to a private school is saying something. My child attended both the Aliso and Manzanita campuses plus a fews weeks over the summer at the Willowbrook campus but spent the most time at Manzanita so this is about our experience there over the past few years. The campus is beautiful and filled with light, artwork, living things and a sense of possibility. In this garden-​like setting, the school focuses on creating citizens of the world. That means an immersion into languages, music, art, cooking, field trips and other special events designed to nurture interests and develop great kids. At the same time, they’re learning the basics for their grade level so they can go onto the next. The food is fantastic and I credit this school with giving my child an adventurous attitude towards new foods. They offer a variety of fresh, healthy food every school day. The arts program is wonderful too, run by a seasoned educator who knows her stuff. All in all, a great experience for our child.
Place rating: 5
Laguna Niguel, CA
My son has been at Anneliese for almost 2 years now at the Aliso campus. He started at age 2 in the nursery and from the very first day, we knew it was a great fit. The teachers are nuturing and the environment is great for learning. Our son has started to speak phrases and words in Spanish, Japanese, French and German. He counts to 20 (also in the various languages), knows his ABCs and is starting to recognize words. Lunches and snack are included with tuition and it’s better than most restaurants. We’ve also enjoyed the community of parents that we’ve met and just took advantage of the «sleepover» at the main campus. We’re looking forward to many more years at Anneliese.
Place rating: 4
Albany, NY
Our granddaughter has been a student at Willowbrook for a few years now. She is almost four. I have little except my own observations to add… She is cheerful when picked up. Most days she looks forward to school, sometimes not.
Her verbal skills continue to surprise, her social skills seem age appropriate, she loves to read and be read to. She speaks positively of her teachers and schoolmates. She has made friendships that continue outside the classroom. She is comfortable with animals, loves to garden, and seems to have an inquisitive nature,…We all live together so Grandma is an active participant in her life, she says not perfect, but very suitable, good enough for me.
Place rating: 5
Irvine, CA
We started our child mid-​year in K-​1 at the Willowbrook campus and were really pleased with the loving attention shown to a child who had been through a great deal of transition, relocating to the west coast, a new home, loss of old friends, sibling and family relatives left behind in distant locations. This school turned out to be a perfect welcoming and nurturing environment that we were lucky enough to come across. It has been great fun for our child, experiencing the multi-​cultural, multi-​lingual learning environment and the gentle and fair discipline that allows for learning in a pleasant environment. He sings and speaks in German, French and other languages, performs in shows with all of his new friends, creates wonderful artwork, sculpture, painting, drawing and is now writing and reading with greater confidence. We are enjoying our third year at Anneliese
Place rating: 5
Laguna Beach, CA
Both of my children have grown up at Anneliese’s. My son is now 8 and went to the Aliso campus through Kinder and then Manzanita. My daughter is almost 4 and has been at Aliso since nursery at age 2 on a part-​time or full-​time schedule. My husband and I have been so pleased with Anneliese’s and the education, life skills and cultural experiences that our children have received. I am a nurse practitioner and my husband is a teacher /​high school administrator, so we are both very aware and selective when it comes to our children’s education and developmental needs. Anneliese’s follows the California standards but adds enrichment to it which focuses on how young children learn best. Everything is experiential, hands on and individualized. They garden in the organic garden and grow their own vegetables that they then eat at lunch (they cook amazing food!), practice yoga, music, art, and are exposed and learn German, French, Japanese, Sign Language and Spanish. My children have such an amazing appreciation for nature and for all cultures, which complements what we teach at home. The owner Anneliese is an amazing woman with such a vision. The director at Aliso is Sabine and she is great. I can’t say enough about the school. I will comment however that if you are looking for a very rigid academic only type program this school is not for you. You will not see teachers with flashcards for the 2 yr olds, rigid curriculum and weekly report cards. This is not that type of school. The teachers are very friendly and you can talk to them always to know where your child is at, but it might be outside of the comfort zone for some. Kids come home absolutely filthy because they play and play and play all day… but learning is incorporated into all of it, so the kids learn to love learning.
Place rating: 5
Laguna Beach, CA
I have to agree with Samantha T. and have to believe some of these reviews are fake. My daughter spend one year in kindergarten at the Wesley campus, then moved to Manzanita for the next three years.
The Manzanita campus only goes through third grade, so then we transferred her to the public elementary school, which is excellent and both my older children loved it. But after attending Anneliese’s, my daughter was pining for her days there for the next two years.
At Anneliese’s, there were long play recesses and lunch periods (she still raves about the healthy, organic, tasty food there), lots of play and extensive enrichment in the arts and in languages. Yet when she entered the public school, she also was academically ahead of her grade in every area. She’s continued to be at the head of her class into high school. In addition, the early introduction to languages gave her a feel for foreign languages; in middle school, she took three of them and continues in all of them.
We loved it there, too! Back-​to-​school nights involved cosy visits in the gorgeous home-​like building. A fire would be burning in the fireplace, Anneliese would cook traditional German foods for the parents and wine would be served. Yet with wraparound child care, this cost less than what a private part-​time babysitter would have cost. The garden was a magical place for playing.
More, our daughter learned to love learning and love school. She understood what it was to read for pleasure, write well and think critically. Heaven forbid we came to pick her up too early, she would ask us to come back later! I atttribute her ongoing love of learning and her continued outstanding academic achievement to Anneliese’s. She goes back there to volunteer regularly.
Spanking? At Anneliese’s? Absolutely unthinkable. I have neved seen such a child-​loving place.
Place rating: 5
Irvine, CA
My granddaughter goes to the Willowbrook campus. I agree with Samantha T and Sophie B. The teachers ARE caring and kind. Discipline is appropriate, and I have never heard of a child being spanked. I also believe this is the best school around. In kindergarten, my granddaughter began to learn phonics. By now (beginning of first grade), she is an avid reader, writes letters, usually loves to do her homework, can do double-​digit addition, and delights in learning German. Yes, she’s dirty when she comes home, because she also plays with all her heart, like a child should, in a natural environment that includes trees, a river (safely fenced), and an aviary. These children are learning to be fine human beings.
Place rating: 3
Laguna Beach, CA
It’s definitely fun for kids as mine briefly attended. Not the greatest school but certainly not the worst. And its beautiful.
Place rating: 2
Laguna Beach, CA
My experience is with the Wesley campus. I have to give Anneliese’s school just plain slightly below average marks. Before I moved to Laguna Beach, my kids were in another pre-​school that I now view as much better (and it was more expensive) than Anneliese’s. I guess you get what you pay for. Anneliese’s has many nice things, like a holiday pageant that is very special, a diverse atmosphere and music and other lessons for the kids. Also, they make lunch and it is a wonderfully good healthy lunch menu.
But, at the end of the day, I feel that the Anneliese’s could charge more and hire more staff to teach and supervise the kids. The Wesley campus was overly chaotic. If my kids are not at home, then I expect full supervision at all times for all kids under 5. It seems like Anneliese’s philosophy is to let the kids work out some of the conflict and social issues on their own, because «sooner or later» they will have to. I think the kids would be better off if more staff were hired.
No thanks on the «sooner or later» approach. Not for my under 5 year old kids. They need adults around. And guidance. Full time.
Supplemental review: I see the suspicious new reviews — looks like an organized PR effort was launched in the fall of 2011. I’m glad the other reviewers kids are doing well. However, just because your child is doing well doesn’t necessarily mean the preschool they attended was 5 star excellent. If you are considering attending the Wesley campus, check with local Laguna Beach parents who are in the know and who could easily send their kids to this conveniently close school. Where are their kids going? Why? Such inquiries are well worth it and I wish we had done that. We have 5 college degrees in our house and have experienced true 5 star preschool programs in another part of LA — In my opinion, the Wesley campus did not come close.