Montessori Preschool

[JaneSmith1010]

I am starting school again and my mom will have my 2 yo while I'm gone. I have found a Montessori preschool I think he might enjoy 3 days a week for half days. Is $600/mo + $250 annual fee decent? Also, what kind of activities go on in the pre-k environments?

[BCFD]

We pay $620/mo. for 5 half days at our school. The price for 3 half days is $450/mo. The teachers are AMS trained. Our annual re-enrollment fee is $50 per child and we live in a Sacramento suburb. It's hard to say if those prices are average. Is it an AMI school? AMS? What area of the country are you in?

[JaneSmith1010]

It is in Flower Mound , TX which is a high income area. I am not sure if AMI or AMS. I found it on Montessori Unlimited.

[Rose-Roget]

I'm in the midwest- probably a lower cost of living. Purely for cost comparison, we pay $400 for 3 FULL days, and will pay $690 for 5 full days next year. In non-Montessori preschool/extended care settings, we paid $615 for 3 full days at one, with $100 yearly fee. The most yuppy school we considered was about $750 for 3 days with a $250 annual deposit (or thereabouts).

Anyway, $600 seems a little high for 3 half days...but that's from my perspective, based on what I know for my area. I think the best option for you would be to get tuition rates for other schools around - Montessori or non, just so that you can see what the "going rate" is. That might help you gauge things better...

[ramama]

My DDs school was a hair over $200/mo. for three half days. It is a very established school, so the materials are all bought and paid for and the building is paid for, so I'm grateful that they pass the savings on to the families. Other Montessori schools in our area were asking significantly more. $600 sounds a little steep to me, but it really does depend on the area.

For 2yo. there is generally a lot of practical life, sensorial work, and strengthening of fine motor skills. At first, many parents think "why am I paying for this?" but you'll really see the rewards down the road a bit.

[junipermuse]

What are the hours of the 1/2 days. I was looking at a montessori toddler program for dd that was 3 part-days but they were long. From 9-2:30 and it was 600/month. I live in Marin County which is a very high cost of living area. For 3 days from 9-12 I think 600/mo is a bit high.

[JaneSmith1010]

my half day quote was from like 8:30-12:30pm. this school also had what they called school days that were 8:30-2:30pm and after hours care from 8:30-6:30pm.

[Sam75]

We live in TX too, similar area to Flower Mound and it is about the same. However, our school does not do part time. Its M-F half day (8:30-12:00) or full day (ends 3). We pay $650 monthly and $200 enrollment fee. Ours is AMS accredited. However I know plenty of schools that charge the same price without being AMI or AMS. Is the 600 for every day or 3 days ?

[turtle2who]

I just toured a small AMS school here in CT where the tuition is $400 a month for 5 half days- 8:25-11:25.

[daekini]

Seems maybe a little high to me. We pay $525/mo for 5 days, 8:30 - 12, plus $800 annual fee. I'm in NC.

[JaneSmith1010]

Originally Posted by Sam75

We live in TX too, similar area to Flower Mound and it is about the same. However, our school does not do part time. Its M-F half day (8:30-12:00) or full day (ends 3). We pay $650 monthly and $200 enrollment fee. Ours is AMS accredited. However I know plenty of schools that charge the same price without being AMI or AMS. Is the 600 for every day or 3 days ?

i thought it was funny that it is 645 for 5 school days and 610 for 3 half days. doesn't seem like a big enough price drop to me.

[eepster]

We live in an expensive NYC suburb. We pay around $400 for 3 halfdays/week. There was a one time $50 regisration fee. Next year it will be $550 for 5 half days (they only offer 3 days to the 2 1/2 yo in the modified toddler program.)

The school we first fell in love with but couln't afford wanted the full years tuition paid off by December. It was almost $8k plus there were all kinds of extra fees. The students began the year coming for a quarter day and gradually worked up to 5 half days (3 days is not an option, all kids in the modified toddler program follow the same schedual.)

I looked at a bunch of schools, $6k seems about average for private ones.

The cheapest one in our area ($4,500 for the year, 5 full day) is run by our cities recreation dept. They were very hard to get into, and had very rigid ways; only full day, drop kid and leave no matter if they are crying, full potty learned, etc. They also only did 3-5 yo, no 2 1/2 yo and no kindergarten. So even though you get a lot of hours for your money, it has draw backs.

[knowerofnada]

Wow. I already knew our new school for next fall is a fab deal, but I'm now even more grateful than ever. We will be paying $310/month for 5 half days -8:30-12:30. And this is a wonderful, truly wonderful school.