Montessori Schools

AviatorJJ

we are thinking of sending my (will be in Aug) 2 1/2 year old to a Mont school three days a week for the mornings.  what are some of the pros and cons of a Mont school?

we toured the place and it just doesn't look like much fun. im sure he'll learn a bunch but jeez he is two! there really weren't any toys or fun books or anything. what is your experience with a Mont school?

Sulla

I think Montessori is a good fit for some kids but not so much for others. If it didn't feel right to you, maybe he'd do better in a traditional preschool.

I really really wanted my son in a Montessori preschool but couldn't get him in the ones we wanted.

Also keep in mind that Montessori is a philosophy and schools vary hugely, sort of like churches of the same denomination... people's experience can be totally different based on the school. Personally, I love the philosophy.

hikerbeth

I really like the educational philosophy and I think it's something my DD would really benefit from, but when I toured our local Montessori I didn't like some of the other "red tape" type things about the school.  I also didn't like this particular school's philosophy on outdoor education (and I know that outside of the core educational philosophy, things vary from school to school).

When all was said and done, I enrolled her in a different preschool.

triplea1819

For my DS, montessori is not a fit for philosphy. 

 My DS, requires direction.  He needs to be told how to do everything and needs to be shown at least once.  He is an independant player, but as far as discovery, he is too cautious to really discover anything on his own. 

 As far as pro/cons.  I have spoken to a few kindergarten teachers, and they strongly, DO NOT LIKE montesorri.  They feel the kids have no direction, no classroom skills at all.  They do not understand it is time to sit and do circle time, or sit at a desk for a while.  They feel they are "wild" in a structured classroom. 

 

 

emiliemadison

No books or toys?? Hmmm....The problem is that Montessori isnt a registered trademark, so basically anyone and their dog can slap the name "Montessori" onto their daycare, preschool, home daycare etc. It may be the exact opposite of what a true Montessori should be.

We chose a Montessori school for DD and we're thrilled about it! It's Pre-K through 6th grade and it uses all of the true Maria Montessori principals and ideas. There's a lot to it, so if you're interested, here is a link that has some good facts:  https://www.montessori.edu/

 

emiliemadison

triplea1819:

For my DS, montessori is not a fit for philosphy. 

 My DS, requires direction.  He needs to be told how to do everything and needs to be shown at least once.  He is an independant player, but as far as discovery, he is too cautious to really discover anything on his own. 

 As far as pro/cons.  I have spoken to a few kindergarten teachers, and they strongly, DO NOT LIKE montesorri.  They feel the kids have no direction, no classroom skills at all.  They do not understand it is time to sit and do circle time, or sit at a desk for a while.  They feel they are "wild" in a structured classroom. 

 

 

'

That's too bad. I've worked with a lot of kids who have been to true montessori school settings and none of them run wild in traditional classroom settings, nor do they lack direction. I think it all comes back to the fact that ANYONE can put the Montessori name on ANYTHING and then do whatever they want. And this is how some people get the idea that montessori doesnt do anything but let the kids run wild with no structure or direction. That is simply not true.

jnicks19

I'm with emilie, anyone can call themselves a Montessori school.  Just thoroughly check them out.  Are the teachers Montessori trained? 

My DD goes to a Montessori school that goes to 8th grade.  It was the 2nd Montessori school in the US and strictly follows the philosophy.  True, they don't have traditional "toys" but they do have regular books and tons of Montessori materials.  This has been my DD's first year, she started at 2 and turned 3 in October.  

We just had a conference this week with her teacher.  She said my DD was able to focus on work for 30-45 mins on one activity, could interact easily with the 3 year olds as well as the 5-6 year olds, her confidence has grown during this year.  She loves her school, has begun to read and loves working with numbers (units, tens, hundreds, thousands).  She also loves the practical tasks, table washing, preparing and serving snack, silver polishing etc.  

 I couldn't be more pleased with her teachers and school.  I was hesitant to send her this year or wait until next because of her age and am soooo glad we sent her this year.  I guess you just have to learn about the Montessori philsophy and truly believe in it.

Maybe get a book from the library ( our school also loans them out) and see what you think.  

 

 

 

Chrisy-Wyobride

My DD goes to a Montessori school.  It was a good fit for us...she had missed the cutoff the year previous so she went to a traditional preschool (Young 3s) the semester before Montessori...She had a blast in traditional but all she did was play dress up & chum around w/ 1 other little girl.  I know because we have to volunteer & spend several days as the "helping parent" at that school.  My child is not shy in the slightest (quite the opposite) & does not need school for "socialization" & has plenty of toys at home.  It was not challenging her in any way.  I like Montessori because she's in a mixed age classroom (currently her classmates are 3-6yrs old) so she's not always the oldest one in class like she would be traditionally.  I also like that the learn through doing, not just from watching.  She knows an incredible amount of stuff already through playing (or like they say "working") w/ the montessori materials.  They stress kindness, courtesy, manners & helping each other out.  It is FAR from a free for all...in fact it is SO structured that it was bothersome to me at first.  But then I saw all that she's learning...phonics, nature, culture, geography, 2 other languages (Chinese & Spanish), math, etc.  The kids in her class are writing stories...I don't just mean reading at 5/6yrs but writing multipage stories.  My DD is 4 & came home & made/wrote a book on her own...I just spelled out the words she wanted & she wrote them down & drew the pictures.  It had nothing to do w/ me or my prompting...she's just motivated to learn/do from watching her peers in class.  Her school has 2 tracts, traditional & Montessori & I see both every single day--the traditional is MUCH more chaotic & wild.  Her school has both until 5th grade when they merge--the 5th teachers say there is no difference...that school has been doing both for 30+yrs so if it was failing, I am sure they would stop.  In Montessori they still do circle time, go over the date, the weather, songs, prayers (she's in a religious school) first thing every morning.  After they do that stuff, then they do the work cycle (just like in regular preschool when they would play w/ trucks or whatever).  I think either is fine, you just need to find the fit for your child.  I am not sure what they would do in a 2.5yr old room because DD's school starts at 3 by October 1st.  I would just observe & check out each school--like everyone says, they vary widely.  Good luck! 

AviatorJJ

thanks for everyone's response. the school has some Montessori certification or something. i don't remember the exact title.

it's hard to decide if a traditional school or a Mont would be better for my son? we did not see the school when it was in session because it is under construction but we were able to walk through the classrooms.