Now open in Pacific Beach
A preschool and infant center on Felspar Street, from the owner of Bella Daycare. Ages 12 months to 4+, open 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We are open now and enrolling our founding families.
Tours are with Luna, the owner — usually the same week.
Parents tour a lot of schools. They ask about curriculum, and ratios, and what time pickup ends. But the question underneath all of it is a different one.
Will someone notice my child?
Will someone see when she is quiet. When he is trying so hard. When she has had a hard morning and needs an extra minute in someone’s lap before she is ready to join the circle.
At Bella, the answer is yes. That is the whole promise. Everything else — the curriculum, the schedule, the policies — exists to protect it.
Luna PecoraroFounder
Our philosophy
Luna built this over twenty years with children. Five things, in order, every day.
The day starts with a smile, eye contact, and someone genuinely glad to see your child walk in. Joy is not a reward here for good behavior. It is the baseline.
A teacher who kneels down to your child’s level is not being nice. She is finding out what is actually wrong, from where your child is standing.
We listen, then we say it back, so the child knows they were understood. A two-year-old who feels heard does not need to scream to be heard.
A hug has never hurt a child who is suffering. When a child is upset, they are held. We think it is strange that this needs saying, and we say it anyway.
Every child is good at something, and it is not our job to decide what. Kindness counts. So does humor, building, drawing, noticing. We find it, we name it, and we celebrate it out loud.
Academics matter. So does raising a good human.
We are not choosing between them.
Three rooms, three stages
Full-time and part-time schedules in every room.
12–24 months · 10 spaces
Ten spaces, on purpose. Your own routine, followed, not ours imposed. Bottles, naps and diapering on your child’s schedule, written down and sent to you. Floor time, music, and outside every single day.
2–3 years · Full & part-time
The year of hands and words. Cutting, gluing, pouring, climbing, and the beginnings of please, thank you, wait, and I’ll help. Potty training when your child is ready, done together with you.
3–4+ years · Kindergarten readiness
Letters, numbers, writing and early reading, taught through work children do with their hands. Alongside it: patience, taking turns, finishing what you started, and asking for help.
Tuition depends on your child’s age and the days you need.
Call (858) 886-7844 and Luna will walk you through it.
Meet the owner
When Luna was pregnant with her son Angelo, she toured preschools all over San Diego. Many were lovely. None were the one she had pictured — a place where a child having a hard morning was met with a hug instead of being hurried through the door.
So she opened her own. Bella Daycare has been in Pacific Beach for years, with five-star reviews on both Yelp and Google and families who still write to her after they move away. Bella Preschool is that same care, in a real school building, with room for more children.
Luna holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Urbino in Italy and was awarded a scholarship to work with children with autism in 1999. She is Italian, and the school is deliberately international in feel — a warm, family-centered atmosphere, and children who grow up knowing the world is bigger than their block.
She hand-picked every teacher here. She is at the school every day.
Children will forget many of the lessons we teach, but they will never forget how we made them feel.
Six things you’ll notice
Not a regional manager. Luna is on site daily and answers her own phone.
Ten infant spaces. Not a waiting room with a number.
Fresh meals and snacks prepared daily, not delivered in a box.
Photos and updates while it’s happening, not a summary at pickup.
Pacific Beach weather is an asset. We use it.
Every child is treated as a specific person with a specific strength.
What families say
We knew instantly when we came to visit that it would be a great place for our little Maverick, 18 months… They are structured, but in a loving, guiding way. Luna is warm, friendly and caring and looks after our son as if he was one of her own… They are always patient and kind and treat every child as unique and special.
We noticed a huge, positive change after transferring her from a different daycare. She came out of her shell at Bella and is flourishing! The staff is caring, thoughtful and creative. We never question this decision.
Every person who works there has a good heart, and I highly recommend Bella for anyone looking for a safe and fun childcare option… Thank you from the bottoms of our hearts for everything you do! We already miss Bella so much.
Reviews are for Bella Daycare, our sister school under the same ownership. Bella Preschool is new, and its first reviews are still being earned.
From open to close
Infants keep their own schedule. We follow yours, not the clock.
Come and see us
Tours are with Luna. No pressure, no script — just walk the rooms and see how it feels.
Or email [email protected]. Luna answers her own phone.