My son started Metaphor as daycare when he was 2,5 yo. Hardly speaking any human language, which is normal at that age, he started to speak fluent Russian only one week after enrollment. Truth be told, the time came and home language was Russian as well. However, quality education and encouraging educational environment triggered very fast results. Throughout the years with Metaphor we had only pleasant experience. The kids all-rounded development according to the age, attentive daily reports about activities, food, and other highlights, almost daily crafts, and seasonal concerts: all of these worked best for the child, as he developed warm memories of his childhood.Past many years, my son continues attend Metaphor for Saturday program, ensuring his Russian language speaking and writing capabilities stay on near-native level; and Math class gives great advantage over regular school curricular. Metaphor school for sure became the cultural center for many families. We always follow Metaphors successes in its development, praise interesting events, and feel very lucky, that our kid may name Metaphor as his base daycare center.I might be mistaken, but there are families with absolutely no Russian-speaking heritage, who choose to enroll their kids to Metaphor. However, if you want your bi-lingual or Russian native speaking child to be raised in warm, friendly, yet very professional environment with meticulously developed curricular that targets development and/or preservation of linguistic skills, you may consider Metaphor as your choice.

I started taking my daughter to Metaphor since she was 4 years old. And this year she went to the 1st grade in this wonderful school! That’s my dream come true! Especially with no public schools being opened in our are area, it’s been a blessing to be able to take her to school in person. They follow all the health safety protocols! The 1st grade’s curriculum exceeded all our expectations, it’s outstanding! We are very humble and grateful to the principle and all the teachers! Best choice ever! Thank you Metaphor!!!

I love Metaphor! Professional loving teachers with passion for what they do. Serious approach and daily developing programs. My child is never bored and always wants to go there and gets sad when not going. Very clean facility and attentive personnel. Exceptional menu and fresh home made food ( not some nuggets from the freezer or something in that verity) .Director is very hands on and responsive. I truly believe that it’s the best what can be for you child.

I found that the staff and teachers were very friendly and open-minded. They showed interest in the students beyond the necessary formalities and classes, and they also enjoyed answering questions and providing a full assistance. This further loosened the already relaxed and casual atmosphere. Highly recommend this school!

Our daughter started attending Metaphor right after she turned two. She spoke only English at that point. She was in the full-day program and it took about two weeks for her to get used to a new environment - after that she didnt want to leave when it was time to go home. Russian replaced English very fast. We were very impressed with the teachers - so knowledgeable and caring. Our daughter adored her teachers and often told us how much she missed them when we were away on vacation. She developed a great interest in reading and math and loved taking art classes.We truly enjoyed end-of-semester concerts and all the kids really took pride in participating. One cant even compare those concerts to the ones in her current American daycare. Metaphors are a different league :o)Now, two and a half years later after switching to an American daycare our daughter started the Saturday program offered by Metaphor. And we are really happy that she gets to see teachers she loves and keep up with her Russian.Metaphor staff is really amazing at making kids feel loved and cared for, while at the same time providing structure, developing interest to studies and music and art.Thank you, Metaphor!

Love how my son learns a lot and the staff is friendly. Creative atmosphere! I love the small class sizes and the individual attention each child gets. The curriculum is impressive and rigorous. Each week has a specific theme: Transportation, Clothing, Nature, Vegetables, etc. Sometimes we get some homework and my son gets excited to do it. The best thing is that my son has so much friends, and as soon as I wake him up and tell him he is going to school he gets so happy and excited. It makes me happy!! Love how he loves his school and how he is learning!

What a wonderful experience! We interviewed multiple schools and the choice fell into Metaphor. The combination of care, dedication and experience teaching little and not so little any more how to read, write, recite poetry in one of the most difficult languages in the world is absolutely amazing! I was pleasantly surprised to see handwritten notes about the work of my child on a daily basis, constant communication from the school, with the reminders about the events or innovations that have been introduced in the curricula. Metaphor is helping us raising a very well rounded child, with the love of learning, art, music as well as gymnastics. I would recommend this school to anybody who wants their child to be bilingual and well educated!

Two of my kids are in the Saturday Academic program. My daughter is 13, she takes Russian, Russian history, and math, my son is 8, he takes Russian, math and choir. They are truly thriving there. They love their teachers and enjoy the various activities and competitions offered. All within the comprehensive Russian immersion curriculum.Weve tried Metaphors spring and summer camps as well. You wont have two days that are alike. There are just so many activities offered!My kids speak Russian with me and more importantly, still speak Russian to each other. Metaphor deserves a great deal of credit for that.Highly recommend!

Two of my kids attended Metaphor school for several years now and we absolutely love it! The teachers are amazing! The school program not only has Russian language, it has Math, Art, Theater, Music, and more! Their concerts are so creative and always well prepared. Their rooms and playgrounds are beautiful, the food is great. One more thing Id like to mention here is the summer program. Its lots of fun and always keeps things interesting for the children. We would definitely recommend Metaphor to all of our friends!

We have been with Metaphor for almost 5 years. Both of my daughters attended Metaphors daycare program at Regent lane, which has a warm and cozy atmosphere and absolutely amazing teachers. The instruction is 100% in Russian language, which combines daily academic activities with fun developmental games and outdoor playtime at the schools backyard. Kids prepare plays and recitals 3-4 times a year and it is a pure delight to see them perform in front of their parents. The kids progress in Russian language is outstanding.When my oldest one graduated from the Daycare and went off to a regular public school, I was concerned with her ability to retain Russian language. Fortunately, Metaphor extended its services and started an After-School Program that provides transportation to neighboring schools. The kids continue to be exposed to Russian language instruction and have a great selection of activities from Ceramics and theatre to fun math.

Our both children attended Metaphor school for combined 8 years and we could not be happier with our school choice. We have geographically closer Russian language day cares and centers, but we chose Metaphor for many reasons. My older son still goes back to Metaphor for summer camps every year. We had experience with both locations at Regent Lane and Arlington Blvd. Regent Lane is a smaller scale program probably better suitable for younger children. Arlington location is a larger scale center with children of various ages divided in appropriate age groups. The program is conducted in Russian 100% of the time, our both children fluently speak, write and read in Russian. Staff is very caring. Food is homemade and our younger child who never liked soups eats them there and asks for more. We receive daily reports on the conducted activities, class discussions. Report also provides type of food served that day and child’s reception of food. These reports help to connect with child’s day activities and provide insight on their behaviors and traits that are not typically seen by parents.The school provides many types of optional additional classes(creative studios) such as ceramics, advanced math, dancing, gymnastics, art, and theater. Our son absolutely loves all of the classes and will never leave in the middle of the class when we come to pick him up at the end of the day. All art pieces they bring home from classes surprise us as to what the kids are exposed to and learn every day.Kids also perform 4 concerts a year for each of the seasons and the amount of work the staff does from coordinating 30+ kids, decorating of the performance space, rehearsals to actual performance is simply amazing.I read some prior reviews and find complaints about number of concerts, holidays and breaks surprising. There are only 4 concerts a year and parents’ participation is optional, moms and dads typically alternate for those concerts. Complaining about necessity to go see your child performance is somewhat strange after all. Some, not all government holidays are considered as days off at Metaphor. Metaphor is typically closed on the same snow days or less than Fairfax public school. Spring and fall breaks are not a full week, but rather a day or two at most. Compared to public schools, Metaphor is closed less.And yes, if main purpose of attending Russian language school is to retain Russian, yet Russian speaking parents allow/speak English as soon as they exit daycare, there is little Metaphor can do...

We are absolutely amazed by the quality of the summer camp program at Metaphor. Our son attended 6 weeks of camp there this summer, and came back with so many wonderful experiences. He learned many Russian songs, that the whole family keeps singing even now that the summer is over. He took part in 3 different musical performances, beautifully staged and designed, brushed upon his language and arts skills and tried a hand in pottery (which he absolutely loved!). In addition to all these activities, he had fun at the pool each day. All personnel at the camp was top notch, you could feel how much they love what they do and try to put their soul into their job each and every day. We know it takes a lot of thoughtful planning, time and effort to put together a full suite of such intensive educational and fun activities, and we are so grateful to all Metaphor staff for making it happen!We sent our son to several camps in the area before, and none of those experiences (by far!) comes close to what Metaphor has to offer. We signed up for the school year Saturday program and are looking forward to seeing our son flourish under gentle guidance of Metaphor teachers and staff.

This is the best school there is currently in DC area. We do not live close, actually its quite a hike for us. We tried options that are closer, but non of them are as good at developing Russian language and culture, while keeping it fun for the kids. When my older child was 2, she went there Monday through Friday for 4 months. She started speaking Russian after that. Then starting at 3 she started Saturday program, which is fun and intense at the same time. She learns a ton and always asks to come back. Zhanna runs a tight ship and is able to attract and retain great teachers.

This schools facilities are very old and overcrowded. They have two larger rooms and 6 very small ones that barely fit one table with seven chairs. And they try, not so successfully, to fit 80 children an 16 teachers/assistants. The facility has just two small bathrooms. Meaning bathroom lines are always a problem as teachers try and control students both in the hall and in the bathrooms. They try not run the air conditioner in summer as long as possible, instead they open windows. So the rooms become very stuffy even if the ac is running.The School becomes exceedingly crowded during concerts. They use their largest room. which might be 6 by 10 meters. They then cram 120 parents, 40 students and 10 staff members into the room and ask you to enjoy their concerts. You feel like sardines packed into a can while you sit there in the middle of your workday, elbow to elbow, and knees it the backs of other parents you do not know. They have 6 of these concerts within the school year and another six concerts during the summer. And all of them are on Fridays at 11:30 a.m. So expect to take off 12 days a year just to attend theses concerts. And if you dont come expect a very sad face from your darling child.Basically, Metaphor does not provide take care of you children from Monday to Friday. Because you have to take days off on many Fridays. After concert is over at 12:00 they expect you to take your child home so their teachers have free time. You have to lose 12 days of your vacation days just to attend these concerts. Plus, four to five days for spring and summer breaks. Plus you have to add snow days and many government holidays that most people do not get off from work. You will spend over a months worth of workdays at home with your child.For every concert they force parent to buy outfits. For example, we spent $120 dollars on a Russian costume and a lot of money on a bunch of other dresses which you cant wear later. They force children to repeat one word or one sentence for the concert every day for two hours instead of studying. They dont provide education for children. In the end children are incapable to speak, read or write.Their food is horrible and they force children to eat it.Many children are not watched outside at all... and some of them have ended up with missing teeth and scars and other various problems.Every morning when I dropped off my child, she was clean and tidy.When I came to pick her up in the evening, she was a mess with dirt underneath all her fingernails. And the teacher who was supposed to be in charge of her would offer me the advice to wash her hands etc.They allow children to bully others and when this occurs and a complaint is made, they suggest that your child chooses different friends to play with, instead of addressing the problem.The teachers are very rude and the typical answer to your questions isI dont care, its not my job to do this.This school is one of the most expensive.They study the Russian alphabet for two years without teaching them to read syllables, so your child wont be capable to read after them.If you want to see what you are paying for visit their Saturday school.Most of their daycare children come back to do Saturday classes when they are older.At Saturday school, if you are listening to the children at play, all you will hear is English.If a parent talks to their child in Russian, a response is only given is English. And if you can get a child to speak to you in Russian, his/her accent/pronunciation will likely be horrible. (There are some exceptions due to truly attentative parents, but this is not the norm.)I dont recommend Metaphor.

My family loves Metaphor! Teachers, staff, and the principal Zhanna Buzov really care about their students! Everyone is helpful and responsive to childrens needs while challenging them academically. We enjoy both regular classes and camps, which are very well-organized and boast excellent academic and extracurricular programs, nice homelike atmosphere (including housemade hot food!) and fun field trips. Classes are small and all kids get sufficient individual attention, learn a lot, and make close friendships. All teachers I met are nice, caring, helpful and always find time to give me a short feedback. The school is very personal and gives you a cozy feeling. My sons Russian language skills have significantly improved; he enjoys the schools semi-annual performances and community events - and he made some good Russian-speaking friends. I am happy - he knows that he belongs to a good community that shares his other language and culture.

Great school kids get to learn Russian fast and in a fun way.

I was taking my kids to Metaphora Russian language school for a few years and Im extremely happy with the care my children get over there, with the personal approach from the instructors .My oldest daughter, really enjoy her time there and I noticed big improvements in her Russian skills and not only but also learning more about her cultural background from Mother side:)And my youngest son likes to be part of all the activities, which school staff organize during the school year.Thank you Methapora and staff for helping us keep our kids in the Russian not only language but also culture pool.

We are with Metaphor for the last 6 years. Both our girls love this school and cant wait for the next day. They learned a lot of songs and poems and say them at home. We love teachers, school curriculum and quarterly performances.

I am a student of the Russian Language and had reached the level where I wished to take the Russian TORFL Test, level B1 (Тест по русскому языку как иностранному). Level B1 is also called The First Certification Level (TORFL-I / B1) and is the certificate required for foreign exchange study at a Russian University, but also serves as testament to an individuals Russian language skills in the business world.Until recently, this exam was only offered in the Russian Federation and some European testing centers, but not available in the United States. Metaphor Russian Language School has now teamed up with the Pushkin Institute of Moscow to administer this exam at the Russian Cultural Center in Washington D.C. The exam is actually still administered by the Pushkin Institute on-line from Moscow, who have the actual license from the Russian Ministry of Education, and a Proctor from Metaphor is present with the student in the test room in D.C. The test is given on-line using a laptop provided by Metaphor and is linked directly through a secure line to the Pushkin Institute in Moscow.The on-line aspect of the test was a surprise to me when I arrived - I expected a written test book and answer sheet - which was the format of previous lower-level exams I took in Moscow. However, once I adapted to this, the exam went much faster. The exam is supposed to last almost five hours, but with this format, I was done in about 3.5 hrs.Fortunately, I passed the exam, and Metaphor got the results to me very quickly (in a few days), and then sent an electronic cop of the certificate to me within a few weeks.My only constructive remark is that it took over two months to get the actual paper certificate from them - which I believe was actually the fault of the people in Moscow. I would have been willing to pay for a courier service if it would have speeded this up.I know from searching on-line that there are numerous Russian Language Students in the United States who would like to take the TORFL exam, and prior to now, had no venue in the USA to do so. I recommend they contact Metaphor, as well as monitor the Russian Cultural Center Website for scheduled dates. It was very easy to register, and the Russian Cultural Center is a beautiful venue. The latter will actually help prepare a student for the exam if one wishes (I did!) You can contact them at: rccusa,org

Not too happy for several reasons:1) Child coming from school always complaining that someone either hit her or pinched her or pushed her. Know of another student who lost a tooth in a group fight there. Doesnt work for us.2) When dropping off we constantly saw children in a fenced playground on their own while their teachers chatting with each other. Very former Soviet Union style which we are familiar with and dont appreciate.3) During our 3 month at the school 4 nice clothing items have disappeared and were nowhere to be found, the lost and found box wasnt of much help. This was the last drop for me. Time for a change. None of the above is an issue at the new school.

My son has been attending Metaphor for several years. Its quite a character-building institution. This is the best Russian school in the area.

Would definitely not recommend.If you are looking for a Russian community in which to educate and develop your child, Metaphor is one of the few choices availablein Fairfax county and as such, it is recommended.Things I did not like. Concerts.Metaphor has an older performance group, and likes to push concerts. It basically uses its daycare/school and other programs as a recruiting basis for its performance group. So, in a calendar year expect your child to perform in about 8 concerts (more if five or six years old). Concerts are held on Fridays at noon. And since your child will be expecting you to go to these concerts, try to schedule 8 Fridays off a year so you can attend (my office hated me). Next, Metaphor does not believe in equal opportunity. In each class they pick whomever they believe is the best speaker/performer and give them 80% of the recital, while the other children are left to remember one line. For three years, I saw the same children in all of their classes do 80% of the performance 8 times a year, while the other 7 children in each class always got their one line to recite.They seem very concerned about what your child eats. They record what they eat at every snack time and meal. Our child was a picky eater and did not like most of their food. So daily we got a report about what she did not eat. And Even though I told them to leave my child alone and let her eat what she wanted. I got repeated reports from my child that they would threaten her with nap time if she did not eat her lunch. My child was 5/6 at the time and had long since quit napping.At age 5 my child was forced to take a nap that she did not want. (some kids napped while others did not) When my child who did not want this nap was not quiet in the nap room, They threatened her again, if you were not quiet they would make you wear a diaper in front of the other children.Every day I sent my child to Metaphor clean. Almost every day she came home dirty. Most particularly, she had dirty socks and feet and fingernails. I was always finding dirt/grass and mulch from the playground on the inside of her socks. Meaning, she was taking her shoes and socks of daily whileoutside.Metaphor also has an after school program for older kids. My daughter always referred to the older kids as the English speakers since they almost never spoke Russian.Summers are a little crowded at Metaphor. Last summer they went from around 80 students in May to 130 in June. My daughter used to complain because she wished she could watch cartoons like the big kids did.

The head of the school is the biggest liar. When first time we visited them she lied to us about 3 children from her kindergarten class went to advance classes. We found out later, classes like that do not exist in elementary school. The logoped in school is very horrible and unprofessional. All she does is scans a page and sends it home for 30 dollars a class. So you are stuck up with doing logoped exercises by yourself and not knowing if you are doing it right. After 1.5 years with Metaphors Logoped, we had to go to another Logoped. They are incapable to teach children how to speak or read. Since age 4 they teach one letter of the alphabet a week, without telling them how to read syllables. After a year, they still cant read even syllables. And from age 5 to 6 they repeat the same alphabet making it last the whole year. So in the end your child will not learn to read and speak in Russian unless you teach them yourself at home. They keep giving homework and forcing to do that. This homework is a hodge podge of print outs from many different books that doesnt make sense (no clear teaching path).Once we got a phone call telling us to pick up our child because they found lice. We were told to keep our child home for three days of lice shampoo treatment before sending her back to school. I asked who did this check. The head of the school told us she had a nurse coming every morning to check for lice. Thirty minutes later, we drove to school and found a queue of 20 children being inspected for lice by one of their teachers. We asked where the nurse was.They told us they never had any nurse, they were checking by themselves. So, we went immediately to INOVA Hospital and had a doctor examine our child. The doctor wrote a noteindicating that our child had dandruff, but no lice and could come back to school. We came back 30 minutes later with the paper from the doctor. I asked the teacher who was doing the inspections to stop sending my child home because she has dandruff and no lice. She got hysterical without apologizing and another teacher took me in a different room and said. It wasnt just one teacher who checked my child, a second had checked her to and they were both certified to find lice (no such certificate exists). She said she did not care about the doctors note and that we must lice treatment. She was very rude and impolite when I mentioned they are not medical experts and are not allowed to force children to have treatment prescribed by them. She told us she would send the child home again if she thought she saw lice again. And any doctors notice is not important to her. When We came home we had a phone call from Inova Hospital telling us that Metaphor had questioned them several times and asked if they knew how to diagnose lice (the hospital was very annoyed at this). After this incident, Metphor started checking all the children for lice three times a day. Some children were sent home twice, after Metaphor found lice a second time, even after treatment. Meanwhile none of the children had any symptoms of lice. It is quite probable that up to 10 healthy children were sent home and forced to treat dandruff with very toxic lice shampoo.One day we were called to pick up our child from school because a cut to the head that ended up requiring 5 Stitches. By the time we came to pick up our child, her teacher had already left for home (2pm). No one had any explanation for the injury. Though, the head of the school suggested that it was minor and that we need not go to the doctor (we needed 5 stitches).They scare children into eating their food. When our child did not eat, she threatened with taking a nap that she did not want or need. We asked them specifically not to do this.. yet they continued.Without outside help, after attending Metaphor, your child will speak Russian very badly and have a very bad American accent.I had big relief after quitting this school and wish I had done so earlier.

My son is in his 3rd year going to Metaphor and we are so pleased. We visited 8 schools before picking this school and we are very grateful that we did.Pros:(1) Russian full immersion: There are even parents from non-Russian speaking homes that enroll their children here, because they want their children to learn a foreign language. Its also perfect for families where 1 parent only speaks Russian--- it gives the child that extra exposure to become fluent.(2) Flexible schedule and pricing: Flexible drop off and pick up times and different pricing and programs offered. You can drop off 8am or 9am, and pick up at 1pm, 3pm, 4pm, or 6pm. Each is at a different rate and compared to other schools of this quality, the price is fair. Even though you have your standard drop off and pick up times, Im just an email away on my iphone from requesting that I drop off early or pick up late (for a small hourly rate). They also have a summer program, a Saturday program, winter break camps, and for kids that are already in public schools, they can go back to Metaphor on e.g. teachers work days just for the day. One of my sons friends who is now in public school kindergarten goes to Metaphor;s Saturday school as well as any days when FCPS is closed and her parents have to go to work.(3) The WOW factor: This school has demonstrated the WOW factor on a number of different occasions. A good example is when my son just turned 5 and for his birthday, we dropped of a small homemade cake (nut free, dairy free) and a candle. While at work, my husband and I got an email with high resolution photos of a birthday party the school had thrown for my son-- complete with party hats, multiple games, group photos, and of course the cake. When I picked him up, his folder had a present and a handwritten personalized card from the teacher. Another example is when they were preparing their quarterly school play and my son was in a skit called Who I want to be when I grow up. The skit was pre-written, and they assigned him the role of a firefighter and he told the teacher that he didnt want to be a firefighter and that he wants to be an astronaut. The teachers rewrote the entire skit to make him as astronaut, and made custom props and music to go with the change-- it was a big hit and my son was so proud and happy. These are just two examples of how they go above and beyond.(4) Relationships: His teachers care about him-- he isnt a headcount. They provide abundant feedback and they go out of their way to communicate with parents, not just on the daily report sheet but also face to face. If my son has a conflict with another child, they inform us about it and we all work together to resolve.... its not brushed under the rug. Very professional.I feel that my son is really being nurtured in this school intellectually, physically and emotionally. We are very happy parents and recommend this school to anybody looking for this type of school.

I would like to let everyone know how much we appreciate the fact that our girls were able to attend Metaphora for over three years. When we moved to the Northern Virginia in the fall of 2010, they were all but unable to write in Russian and their reading skills were rather rudimental. On the top of everything else, they suffered from the lack of opportunity to interact with the Russian-speaking environment, which severely impeded their ability to develop proper Russian conversation skills.What a striking difference these three years (and change) have made! While the writing part continues to be a work in progress, our girls’ ability to speak, read, and comprehend authentic Russian-language source material has improved immeasurably. This is due not only to the combination of Russian grammar, literature, speech development courses offered by the school, but also because of their participation in history and regional studies (AKA Мир Путешествий) classes that exposed them to vocabulary and terminology that they would not be able to see otherwise. I would say that the three years in the Metaphor turned our girls into very solid heritage speakers (I think they could easily attain a speaking score of 2+ on the Interagency ILR scale) and brought them past the point of no return whereby it became highly improbable that they would loose the language because of the lack of usage.We would like to extend our most sincere gratitude to the Russian language and literature instructor Natasha Anderson and Sergey Gerasimov, the history and regional studies instructor, for everything they did for our girls. Last but not least, we would like to recognize the school principal Zhanna Buzov who assembled such a wonderful teaching crew and without whose organizational, administrative, and logistical genius the school would not become such a shiny success.