Posted on 02/18/2005 9:25:37 AM PST by Basselope
I am seeking advice and opinions about Montessori schools. We have a toddler and are starting to consider his educational options. While I know this is early in the game, it has also been brought to my attention that many private schools have waiting lists that are months or years long!
If anyone has had experience with the Montessori program for their youngsters (preschool, elementary, homeschooling with Montessori method, etc), I would be very grateful to read about it. I know there are other programs, such as Waldorf, but am not as familiar with that approach.
Thanks in advance.
I'd google both schools and compare them. But more importantly, take your child to observe both schools and listen and observe. Talk to the staffers. Both schools have much to offer and, in the end, it's what appeals to the standards you've set for your child in a safe and creative atmosphere.
I have heard good reports about this kind of school from two other people, but I know nothing about it firsthand. I am skeptical, however, whenever one promotes the view that the problem with education is the lack of "innovative"
teaching format and method. Learning is hard work, and relatively few are willing to exert the effort required to learn, I have always found.
Have you looked into any schools using the Carden approach?
My 5-year old daughter is in Kindergarten in a Carden-based private school - every single child (14 in the class) is reading and doing basic math... this is 4 months into Kindergarten.
Needless to say, I am impressed.
Sorry, I'm not familiar with the Montessori method.
My sister is a Montessori teacher. Her three daughters all started in Montessori schools. One is still in it.
Her advice to me (I have a 3 month old) was: "A good method, but not for everybody. Some kids need more structure than Montessori provides."
My wife and I are going to homeschool, starting with a Montessori-type approach. We will then modify our style so that it more closely matches with the needs of our daughter.
There is a wealth of info on the web. Drop me a Freepmail if you need some places to start.
My wife and I are considering a Montessori school for our daughter. We checked out the program a few months ago. We liked what we saw and have scheduled an interview in March.
Buy the books. Read all of the Maria Montessori books that you can find. They will affect your whole approach to parenting, whether or not you go into Montessori School. My kid was Montessori taught at home and in school, and just went into performing arts school (at 13). It works.
I think the quality of the teachers is more important than the theory. I visited a Montessori school one time. The teacher smoked on the playground and the children were allowed on very high playground equipment that was unsuited for young children.
Find something convenient to your house, safe, and run by people you feel comfortable about.
Visit a few times. Drop in once in a while to see what is going on.
I personally feel that the regular American nursery schools are good at encouraging socialization between the children. The kids shouldn't just be sitting there being talked to by the teacher. The focus should be on the kids interacting with each other. They should learn to play nicely, share, make things together.
Montessori was created to educate children in Italian slums to take care of themselves. It is adapted for America.
Yoor child should be safe and having fun with the other kids. This is not the time to teach the more advanced skills that begin in school. Most children will just be frustrated by the pressure.
They want to see their friends, play with the cool blocks and trucks, and try out the pre-school-sized gym equipment.
Watch out for dangerous playgrounds that are intended for older children or staff that are trying to make your kid do what he is not ready to do.
This is nursery school--not school.
I have heard the exact same thing.
Since there is nothing to prevent a school from calling itself "Montessori" regardless of its actual operating principles, it would be good to check whatever the school claims against the descriptions set forth in reference sites like:
http://www.amshq.org/
http://www.montessori-ami.org/3amiusa/3aamiusa.htm
http://www.montessoriplus.org/school/method.htm
http://www.montessori-ami.org/ami.htm
Note that a school's claim to affiliation with one of these is no guarantee. Check the substance as well as the credentials.
A brief defn.
What is a Montessori school?
Early in the twentieth century, Dr. Maria Montessori, Italy's first woman physician, developed educational materials and methods based on her belief that children learn best by doing, not by passively accepting other people's ideas and pre-existing knowledge. It was an innovative learning idea and means the active personal pursuit of many different experiences: physical, social, emotional, cognitive. With the materials Montessori devised, an environment in which such learning takes place can be created.
Montessori believed learning should occur in multi-age classrooms where children at various stages of development learn from and with each other. Her developmentally appropriate approach was designed to fit each child instead of making each child fit the program. Montessori teachers believe that children learn more by touching, seeing, smelling, tasting, and exploring than by just listening. The success with children from all social strata and those with special needs has attracted wide interest.
You need to determine what would work best for your child. I'm avoiding montessori like the plague for my preschoolers because I question the logic of sending toddlers to "preschool" in the first place. Just call it "daycare" for a few hours a few days a week. I just want them to have fun at this time of life & also to learn to socialize with others-- the learning comes from their life experiences and mostly from their father and I. I abhor the idea of rushing to "educate" kids this early. They learn to read if you read to them. They learn to count when you count things with them. Etc.
However, for your child, you may find he/ she desires this sort of early structured learning. I have sought out two particular preschools in our area specifically because they DO NOT emphasize the academic part of preschool and they DO emphasize very active playtime (my kids are extremely active & exhausting). And even those have insane wait lists (another sign of how crazy people are-- WAIT LISTS for PRESCHOOL???).
Try the Ramsbotham method -- open books in quiet rooms with plenty of parental feedback.
We had a very bad experience with it. The teacher told us our son had ADD and recommended we have him evaluated and put on meds. Fortunately, I had more faith in my son than this loser. Pulled him out of Montessori and he went on to win the state Science Bowl during both his junior and senior years. He is now in college majoring in Chem E. Therefore, I don't recommend it, but I realize that could be an isolated experience.
My daughter went to a Montessori school in San Francisco from preschool to first grade. I went back after my daughter's first grade year and told them that they should be sued for "excessive empowerment." I had required weekly conferences with my daughter's first grade teacher because Tina was a "child lawyer." Be careful to keep a firm hand on the reins. Disclaimer: Your mileage may vary.
My daughter went to a Montessori daycare, but honestly I don't know if it helped her or not, because she's a lot like me, and I'm wildly smart and artistic! Hee-hee!
But, I do know they start on phonics early, and I'd never known a real discipline problem they ever had, but that could be because of the teachers (who were all terrific, by the way).
Now, there was another Montessori place much closer to home I didn't care for; for one thing, there were way too many kids, 'cuz it was also a school; the other thing was, they wouldn't let me try out the place for a week; I had to make a big commitment before they'd even let us in the door. So I said "screw you".
How long did your children attend?
My only encounter with this type of school was a complaint against them on a parade float. They used Blue Star Banners as a border for their Children For Peace float. Not a single person at the school had a family member in the military.
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