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Original poster

Any experiences of Montessori nurseries/schools please?

11 replies

Mirage · 07/03/2006 21:46

We have a Montessori school near us with a very good reputation & my mum has offered to pay for dd1 to attend,as she feels that she would benefit from it.

DD1 is 2.5 & is a bright girl,& I think that she'd get a lot out of it.One of my other thoughts is,that as her birthday is 29th August,she will be only just 4 when she starts at the local primary.I thought that perhaps it may help her settle in with her classmates a bit better & that there would be less likelihood of her feeling out of place,if she had gotten some experience of school before then.

She attends preschool 1 day a week & loves it.We have taken her to see the Montessori & asked her if she would like to go to school there too & she said yes (The fact that some of her friends go there may have swayed it).

Hsa anyone had any experiences of Montessori schools,good or bad?
Thanks

OP posts:
monkeytrousers · 07/03/2006 22:33

one near us too but I haven't a clue so bumping for you

4blue1pink · 07/03/2006 22:36

Just about to start our ds at one - well easter..

He is just 3 and it just seemed all quiet and calm and lovely on our visit - i dont know really but hopefully they live up to their reputations!

mrspink27 · 07/03/2006 22:53

dd1 has been going to a montessori school since she was 2.5 as she was more than ready! She started off with 2 mornings a week and very soon she extended this to include lunchtime. She is now 3.7 and attends 2 full days, 1 half day and 1 half day + ballet. They have a specialist music teacher who comes in once a week and the same for french. Whenever I have been in the classrooms have been quiet calm and everyone has been doing something which atleast looked purposeful (rather than milling around doing nothing as I have seen over the last few weeks while visiting schools for September.) It has a lovely atmosphere and my dd absolutely loves it. SHe is quite bright and the open endedness of the learning is fantastic for her. She has started to read and has experienced mathematical concepts pratically. The school has fostered her independent side and really boosted her confidence.Even better is that she has started becoming very tidy at home, folding clothes up and putting toys away etc when she has finished with them. I couldnt recommend it highly enough.

Original poster
Mirage · 08/03/2006 21:47

Thank you,monkeytrousers,4blue1pink & mrspink27.

Mrspink27,my dd1 sounds very similar to yours,she is very keen to go to school & points at every school that we pass as 'her big school'.

Other parents have mentioned how calm the children are & how they seem to blossom whilst there.I like the sound of the tidying up bit too.We could do with some of that around here Grin.
I think we'll be sending her at Easter.
Thanks again

OP posts:
sphil · 08/03/2006 22:47

My older son (now in reception) attended a Montessori nursery and his younger brother is still there. I would echo all that has been said about the calm, purposeful atmosphere. DS2 is autistic and the positive ethos and structure suit him very much.

Flos · 08/03/2006 23:23

My two girls, now 17months and 3.4 have both been going to a Montessori nursery since they were each 10 months old - (elder dd went part time while I was on maternity leave with the second but now both full time.) I was reluctant to leave them, but our house comes with my job so felt I had to - and I don't regret it.

They both adore it and have really strong relationships with the adults and children there. They are affectionate, sociable, confident children - though quite different from each other. They both eat pretty much anything and enjoy mealtimes, partly from having the positive reinforcement of eating with other children. I don't mean to boast about my own skills - they are much better behaved at nursery than in the holidays (DH and I both teachers). In fact, I was putting DD2's coat on the other day to go home and she had a massive toddler tantrum and the nursery assistant was astonished!

I know of another Montessori nearby that everyone says is not as warm and well run though, so, as with any childcare, check it out as thoroughly as you can first.

DominiConnor · 09/03/2006 15:07

2.0 went to Beechoak farm, loved it, and 2.1 has taken to it very well. Is learning stuff as well.

Can't say whether it is the Montessori bit or just well done, but my experience is 100% posiitve.

monkeytrousers · 09/03/2006 16:12

What exactlty is the Montessori ethos though? How do they differ from 'normal' nurseries?

mrspink27 · 09/03/2006 19:31

\link{http://www.montessorieducationuk.org/features.html\ might be useful}

\link{http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/features/2015026.stm\bbc article}

hellsbellsdownunder · 09/03/2006 19:49

Ds went to a montessori nursery. He loved it and thrived there - the structure and orderliness of it suited him very well. He had autistic tendencies as a child.

But my cousin in Australia who has been a kindergarten teacher for 40 years was absolutely horrified that I had sent ds to montessori. She couldn't believe that there were any montessori nurseries still around and that they were far too restrictive and just plain wrong!! I have also come across very anti-montessori attitudes amongst teachers in England too.

But I still think it was a perfect environment for ds!!

monkeytrousers · 09/03/2006 20:17

Thanks for that. It sounds interesting.

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