Montessori nurseries

[minkmama]

Hi everyone - started to look for a nursery for ds1 because he's getting very bored at home with mummy and new baby. He's only 19mths. Thinking about a Montessori - has anyone looked into them before? What do I need to look for and what does everyone think?

[Thomcat]

Lottie is starting at one in September. I chosse it becasue of all the schools I went to it just felt right and i knew I wantted her to go there in my heart, not just my head.

To feel it in my heat was the most important factor.

I felt it right in my head becasue no other pre-school i looked at taught them to write, they all said they showed them how to hold the pen etc but at the Montessori school they actually taught them to write the alphabet.
I also like the structure of it all.

Lottie has Down's syndrome and their attitude was wonderful. I felt that their structure and emphasis on education would benefit her and possibly givce her a little bit of ea head start / good grounding /start for when she starts school school at 5 yrs old.

[bundle]

we decided against the montessori nursery near to us - it was one of about 3 or 4 we visited and it just seemed eerily quiet (despite being full of children) and a bit soulless. opted for small community nursery, which is v loving - both our dds go there, have done since they were both 7 mths old. didn't get as far as thomcat re: asking about writing etc - but our nursery follows the Early Years learning goals and tbh she'll be writing for the rest of her life (she starts reception next january when she's 4.5), we're in no hurry to get her into 'formal' learning, rather stick with learning through play which has built up her confidence over the last few years. I have nothing against montessori, btw, one of my friends trained as a montessori teacher & seemed to enjoy it, though she's not doing it any more.

[sponge]

My dd goes to a montessori nursery school. We actually moved her there about a year ago as her traditional nursery was failing to stimulate her and teach her anything more.
At her montessori part of the day (morning) is structured with exercises designed to help them learn to read, write, understand numbers etc. However they also get lots of active play (they go to the park most days and play outside at the end of the day), art and craft etc.
I feel it has really benefitted her in a number of ways:

• a certain amount of structured learning will prepare her for a more formal classroom when she goes to school in September
  
• her writing has really come on, she's beginning to understand the sounds groups of letters make rather than just individual ones, so on the way to learning to read, her number comprehension is very good, and she still has the freedom to be artistic which she loves (she brings back about 30 picture a week!)
  
• the ethos they apply in terms of respect for each child as an individual helps the children to learn to value themselves but also to have some consideration for others, and good manners (which can never hurt).
  I think a lot of it is down to the individual school and teachers but I think it has been a good experience for dd.

[Thomcat]

I'm SO sorry about my awful typing btw.

Lots of people feel Montessori isn't for them becasue they put a lot of stress on the education side of things but that is exactly one of the reason I liked the idea of the school. She gets to play all day every day on the afternoons and days she isn't at pres-school. Due to her special needs I was keen on her starting with the education side of things earlier rather than later. All the medical professionals I've seen all talk about how important these things are before the age of 5 so I'm obviuosly keen, given our situation, that Lottie lerns as much as poss as early as poss iykwim.

Having said all that if the school hadn't felt right she wouldn't be going there. Like I said it was the feeling and their attitude towards her that made me want her to go there and then everything was just a bonus.

Not too sure about her learning French tough, she hasn't evern nearly mastered basic English but the school and teachers are all so nice, lovely location etc.

Will be gutted to take her out of her lovley little nursery she attends at the moment but still think I'm doing the right thing.

We'll see if I'm right this time next year!

[Chandra]

I was a montessory child and I loved it, I wish there were a Montessori school in the city so DS could attend one.

They may be quiet sometimes but this is because one of the principles is not to interrupt the concentration of a child because they know that a child will learn lots by focusing his attention in something, so there are common activities that will be a bit noisy and times where the child will be allowed to focus their attention in an specific thing.

I think the system is great but much of this greatness comes from how good and creative are the teachers. If the teachers are not good the system may not work as well as it should. But I personally loved it, and yes one of the milestones was that the children would be reading fluently before their 6th birthday, and we all did, it was not too pushhy or anything, I was the last one in my class to learn and don't remember to have had any special pressure.

[shrub]

dear minkmama - my friend sends her children to a montessori nursery and i looked around a couple. decided against it in the end as it felt too formal/structured. similar to bundles response really - there was no laughter. there are parts of it i think are wonderful. its all about the real world. for example instead of talking about the number 1000 they have a block of 1000 beads so the child can see and feel what 1000 looks like.(these are specific montessori materials)another example is instead of singing nursery rhymes they will use the melody of nursery rhyme and substitute for real information - ie the melody for the farmers in the dell becomes a song about all the planets around the sun. when i visited the children were singing a song about the continents - they were 3 years old (i have to admit i wouldn't know all the continents )i think they are all different and you have to be careful as some nurseries use the montessori name but they are not montessori trained. i think they take children at 2 or 2 1/2.

[LIZS]

ds started at a Montessori at 2 3/4. He loved it and I was really sad to have to pull him out 6 months later when we moved away. He learnt really quickly but I felt it was still done at his pace, without pressure , and I liked the tactile methods they used. In hindsight I feel he lost out as a result of leaving and would have thrived more there. Perhaps not all are as cosy or personal as our experience though.

You may find that Montessoris are reluctant to take him much earlier than 2 1/2 though.

[Chandra]

Excuse me, but as far as I know one of the most important things about montessori is that they learn through play, I personally remember that all my class was so crazy about the Division tables material that we used to rush every morning to be able to get it first, I even remember children hidding it so they don't miss on it, and running to get it when somebody was ready to put it back. If they can have children so crazy about a maths toy, I think they could make any subject interesting.

[soapbox]

Chandra - I think there is one in the edge of the City. on the main raod in Wapping. Seem to remember driving past it on my way to work.

minkmama - both my children went to Montessori nurseries and absolutely thrived on it. It focuses a lot on making them independent both in physical terms (dressing, feeding going tpo the loo etc) but also in emotional terms (choosing who to play with, what work to do, resolving disputes with others amicably etc).

The techers were so loving and kind with the children and had such high expectations of their behaviours and they really were not often let down.

I loved it - loved the teachers - loved the two confident happy children that came out the other end!!

[soapbox]

Chandra you are right - the activities are play based, but designed to promote learning. However, the structure of the day is more set perhpas. At my childrens nursery they had a news circle, then 'work' session (but play based and free to choose their own activities, but usually done on their own - i.e. working as a group discouraged), then snack time, then free play (as a group - dressing up, outside play etc).

I think the structure is very good and although at times in teh 1 hour 'work' session you can hear a pin drop - it is crucial for settling into proper school that children learn how to sit still and concentrate - and to self motivate. I think this made the transition to school very easy for my two, much more so than if they had been used to free play for the whole session.

[Thomcat]

Ohh this thread is great and making me feel i made the right choice before I fget to find out for myself if I did or not.

They would not take Lottie before she was over 2 btw, she starts in Sept and will be 3 in Dec.

And yes it is all education through play as far as I'm aware anyway.


Soapbox - your last line gave me goosebumps!

Fining, choosing, selecting the right school for your children is such a scary, difficult tak isn't it but when you know and feels you've found the right one it's a freat feeling. Hope i still feel this way after Sept!

[Chandra]

Soapbox, we had some materials (I don't know if this is the word in English) that we could do as a team, but even if that was not the case I remember I loved the freedom of being allowed to bring the material out to the garden, I used to take the mammals clasification material and a friend the one of the birds, and then we would play races to see who could finish it first. Lovely time!

[sponge]

At ours they do some activities together although a lot of the materials are for individual activities. However to the children they are toys - what we see as structured learning they see as play. Whenever I go in to talk to dd's teacher (once a term) she is really keen to run and show me the materials she has been using etc. She loves it. And yes, they have some quiet, concentration focused times, but lots of noisy play too.
And I agree with you Chandra, there's nothing pushy about it. They just make learning interesting so the kids want to learn but there's no emphasis on a particular pace, or milestones by a certain age or whatever.

[TurnAgainCat]

I chose a Montessori nursery because it was the nearest nursery to home which I really liked, and I was very ignorant about Montessori. Since then I have become a real fan. The Nursery holds workshops to explain to the parents what they are doing with the children and why. It is a wonderful philosophy, to make the children independent, able to do lots of practical tasks, help one another, and to chose what work to do each morning. The children in our Nursery are never made to do anything, eg I was getting concerned that ds was not interested in his letters, but the teacher insisted on waiting till he chose to learn, and when that time came, he learnt very rapidly. I have tried to adopt a Montessori philosophy in how I treat ds at home too.

[Fio2]

I had a bad experience with a montessouri nursery

I would say dont go for name go for what you like. Go and veiw as many nurseries as you can and choose the one you feel will be best for your daughter. Good Luck

[Fio2]

and it could be the montessouri nursery which is best for her btw

[minkmama]

Thanks for all your help everyone, it's been invaluable! I feel that I know much more now and you've all clarified their philosopy for me. We'll be looking at one in 2 wks time and I've ordered prospectuses from various types of nurseries for comparison. You've all made me feel that a Montessori might just be the right place for DS1, so we'll see.

Many thanks and keep it coming if there's any more

[codswallop]

I diagree that nrserys shoul d prepeare them for school in an educational sense - re pen holding and formal learning FGS they are under 5 years old !-

on that basis should we let them start cooking and going to work to perpare them for that>

[codswallop]

anyway a lot of the stuff that is qouted as being particular to montessori is the gpomt recommended style for all nurseries.

No nursery has open ended free play sessions - it would fail its OFSTED for that

MUVCH more impt IMO is the proximity to your home and the staff turnover and opps for staff training

[soapbox]

I think the point that we were trying to make though coddy is that although the experience does go some way to preparing them for the behavioural aspects of starting school, all of the 'work' sessions that they do are not formal but play based. So they won't feel in a formal setting at all.

It is different from a normal nursery setting in many ways but perhaps the mainstream nurseries are picking up on some of the montessori type methods.


Don't disagree with your other comments though - at the end of the day you have to choose what feels right for you and irrespective of the school's methods and principles the quality of the teaching makes the biggest difference!

[aloha]

The funny thing is, I would normally agree with Coddy and I hate to see young children pushed into formal learning too early when they clearly aren't ready. But my ds is a funny one. He loves to count (walks up the street reading all the numbers on the doors, asking if they are odd or even) he counts on his fingers in his cot when he is bored, knows his alphabet and can write some numbers and wants to do more. He's not a physical kid (hopeless!), but he is imaginative, laid-back, really enjoys interacting with adults and hates noisy, chaotic environments. This thread has made me really interested in checking out a Montessori for him. After all, if it's good enough for Lottie...

[Tanzie]

DD1 went to a Montessori Nursery in Sarfeast Landan and it was perfect for her. She needed some discipline and structure and she loved it. She went from when she was just over two for a term and then went back when she was three for another couple of terms (we moved about in the interim). I wouldn't say it was too educational, but it was structured eg drawing and puzzles when they arrived, then different things like painting later, or climbing frame, and sometimes they went to the park. The downside was the other mothers who were all Boden wearing Sloanes (I do admit to wearing Boden clothes before you all start!) who completely ignored me or froze me out (and I talk to anyone ) if I tried chatting.

[Thomcat]

If I felt as if L was being pushed into formal education early I wouldn't send her there but that is not the impression I have of the Montessori school we've chosen.
I don't see anything wrong with showing them how to hold a pen properly, being helped to practice writng, being given one-on-one reading lessons etc etc. Don't we bake cakes with our kids at home, is that pushing them into having to cook their own dinners early, no couse it isn't.
If the child is being taught but in a relaxed informal way how is it a bad thing? They will still have free play at school and at home so....
I've also been told by medical professionals etc that they years before 5 are so vital for learning. Lottie is going to have a tough enough time as it is at school, i just think Montessori may help in giving her an early / head start and can only see that this is a good thing. I don't feel like I'm ramming education down her throat at all, I feel I'm giving her the opportunity to learn through play in a structed but relaxed way.

too many of the schools i checked out had too much free time for my liking, kids lying under tables, sitting on their own knocking down a tower, kicking a cardboard box around the room etc. Personally I think that's damaging and would rather her be shown how to hold a pen for example.

At the end of the day it all comes down to what feels right for you personally and this school that felt right for us just so happened to be a montessori school.