Difference between Montesorri & Nursery?

[LouBailey]

Hi all!

I'm new to this so please bear with me....

Just wondering what the difference is between a Montesorri and a nursery? (if any at all!). I have a 20 month old daughter and we are moving out to the Ecclesall area of Sheffield. We have noticed there are choices of both in the area but don't really know what the difference is. As she is coming up to the age where we would like her to go to one we are a bit confused!

Would appreciate some feedback on this - especially if you are from the Ecclesall area!!

Thanks

Louise

My 2 DCs attend Collegiate Montessori in S11 and they both love it.

At the nursery, there is an emphasis on children doing things for themselves, eg tidying away after playing, and learning about the world around them through sensory activities, playing outside in (nearly) all weather and so on. But, tbh, I don't have a great understanding of the Montessori ethos; I chose the nursery because I was impressed with the staff and children.

A Montessori is a nursery that follows the theories and methods regarding child development defined by Maria Montessori. You can read about those here.

Montessori nurseries can be fantastic, as they often have very dedicated staff that really believe in the theories and ideas behind it, but as with all nurseries, they can also have problems. I think that some Montessori nurseries can be a bit rigid -they have a certain idea of how children should play and behave (according to the Montessori idea), and can be a bit inflexible if children want to do things differently. It's worth visiting a few nurseries in your area (both the Montessori nursery and some 'normal' nurseries) to get a feel for how they are before you make a decision.

The EYFS that a normal nursery has to follow has to follow has ben influenced by the Montesori method and a good nursery should be doing all of the things that LucyEyelessbarrow mentions, whether it is montessori or not.
The EYFS has been influenced by many great theorists on child development and amalgamates all the best bits.
A Montessori nursery is not necessarily a better nursery- that will depend entirely on the people working on them.