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Pre-School and Daycare
LisaMinFL
member
Questions for (Montessori) preschool tour?
LisaMinFL
member
DD will be 2.5 next fall and I would like to start her in a Montessori program. There are 2-3 schools we are looking into, and the orientations are coming up soon. What are some questions we should be asking, Montessori, or even general preschool related? She has stayed home with DH thus far, and will only be attending mornings to start (not sure how many mornings yet 2, 3 or 5).
TIA
also posted on MM
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Re: Questions for (Montessori) preschool tour?
What is your Reading/Early Language Development Curriculum like? Do you follow any particular program? Is is phonics based? - for a long time many montessori schools focused on sight reading rather than phonemic awareness and development. Not all montessori schools are like that, but enough that you should be aware and some what concerned if it's not a phonics based program because it could hinder your child's reading development later on.
What is your math curriculum like and do you follow any particular program?
What are your arts and crafts like? Do you allow children to develop and use their imagination or do they follow a more strict art program? If your child is consistently required to color or draw in a specific way, it could stifle their creativity (particularly threatening to an intellectually gifted child)
Do you have a music program? What is it like?
Is your program religious based, if so, in what way?
What is your classroom management/behavior plan like? At what point will you inform me if there is any incident involving my child?
How do you organize free play? What portion of the day consists of free and/or imaginative play?
Do you have any classroom contribution plans - will I be required to send a snack on a regular basis? If so, what are those stipulations like?
Those are all of the ones I could think of off the top of my head. GL!
What do they expect from their 2.5/3's? Behaviorally? Self-care? "Academically"? I have had a few issues with DD's teacher not noticing DD's strengths, and focusing more on getting her behaviorally normalized. I believe both should be happening. She's very bright, and very interested in letters and writing, but I don't feel like they've noticed or encouraged those things because she doesn't sit in circle like the 5/6's.
Communication has also been an issue. How do they communicate what she is doing well, and what she is struggling with? We didn't find out there was a problem until mid-November. We've since worked in it with the teacher and director, so we're all good now, but we've certainly been frustrated.
I am training to be a Montessori teacher, so if you have other specific or general questions before or after your tour, feel free to let me know. DD is in her 2nd Montessori school (we moved across country in Jan 10), so I've seen to distinctly different ones, and have learned quite a bit in my training so far.
DS has been at a Montessori school for a year and a few months now. He started at 2y3m. I wish I had asked about teacher/assistant training, discipline, and parent/teacher communication since those have been our biggest issues.
I toured the school, saw it in session, met with some teachers but not all, got a copy of the schedule, etc. I loved the classroom and the school itself and really felt like they were trying hard to really follow the principles of Montessori that mattered to me. We visited several Montessori schools near us and they were sad -- the classroom was generally organized with "jobs" on low shelves but some had all plastic toys, others used movies for in-service days, others were really crapped space wise with no room to spread out with a job. Some were not mixed age.
Good luck with your search.
Wow, great questions! Thank you so much everyone. I really appreciate not only the Montessori feedback, but the general preschool questions. I have no experience in this, and don't really have many people around me to ask.
Thank you so much!
I made a Preschool Selection Guideline Checklist that may prove useful for you:
https://noobmommy.com/2011/09/noob-mommys-guide-to-choosing-a-preschool.html#.Tx3Q2KWvJ8E
It isn't Montessori specific, but I think it address most of the important factors to consider. There are also free printable versions of the guide for you to take with you. Hope you enjoy it!