lower elementary in montessori?

[mamaley]

my son is 3 and has been going to a montessori school for a year, and i'm wondering where he'll go to school once he moves past primary. there is a lower elementary program in the same neighborhood. does anyone here have experience in montessori from years 6-9? i've had a couple of people tell me that it's not as good when they're that old as it is when they are in primary. is this true? what do you think?

[anythingelse]

my oldest went through montessori in the early elem years, we found it to be a very positive experience. His classroom was 6-12 yr olds and it was a great placement for him to be with a multiage group of children. nothing negative to say, and it was very much worth the money. Is your ? about the method of instruction?? montessori elem kids normally have been in mont from the beginning and the method is no dif working with a 4-5 yr old then a 6-7 yr old, it has the same benefits as well.

[justmama]

I actually wanted to add to this. I was considering montessori for my soon to be 4 year old and my mother practically jumped down my throat. In her opinion montessori is very narrow-minded in that children only work on what they pick out and that doesn't prepare them for real life situations. Example, a child is good at math, likes math, but hates writing. Child avoids writing and works mostly on math. Child doesn't learn enough math???? While I do respect my mother's opinion as an educator(she's taught for 25 years now as a G&T teacher, special ed, behaviorally disordered, pre-k, k, 1st, and 4th grades), I fear that she's very mainstream. She's not really open to any other "alternative" methods of education other than public schools or the private catholic school my sister and I attended(which might as well have been public school iwth prayer!). Is this a wrong assumption on her part? Could she be correct? I guess my assumptions were that a good montessori teacher will recognize this happening with the children and provide activities to not only strengthen strengths but also weaknesses too. I can't see how so many children would be educated in the montessori style for so long and be poorly educated and no one does anything about it. Anyone have any thoughts? Is my mother making me paranoid AGAIN over something foolish?????
Meg

[anythingelse]

a montessori elem day does not have totally child led learning activities all day so a child could not simply avoid math or writing or what have you

the day started with a circle time, there was music, the children had dictation to do, they had agreements- contracts with what works they needed to complete for the week clipboards, and from that they would work out their days.
There was recess and lunch, teacher time to show a new work in the classroom , the teacher would observe children to see if they had mastered certain skills, other kids would group together and rotate through dif areas of the classroom. Math works, like the stamp game and the snake and beads ALL involve some writing simply to record what they did and jot down numbers at minimum.
http://www.newbeginningsmontessori.com/
this is the school we used when living in IL, if you go there download the latest newlwtter form the elem classes and read about what the kids are doing
One thing to know is that elem mont. can vary a lot from school to school, some will require homework, some will be more disciplined, it depends on the staff and type of mont accredit.

I would read more about Montessori and try to go observe at a school to see what exactly the children are doing and the things in the room. from what you posted your mother has some conceptions about montessori that are not accurate at all. If it was my mom I would get her a book or pick up a couple magazines on montessori today, if she is the age of my mom (mine taught 40+ years too) she did not get any mont. training in college prob took one class on methods 20plus years ago. Same thing for me going through my teacher training, plus if in college the professor was not a fan of a certain method they would present it very biased view.

HTH
Mary

[justmama]

Thanks so much for that Mary. I was concerned just because it IS my mother speaking and she practically jumped down my throat when I mentioned looking into it for my daughter. I should have listened to my gut and known she was wrong. I'm off to the library for some montessori books. If you have any suggestions on a good one, let me know! Thanks so much!!!!
meg

[e&r]

I am a Montessori elementary teacher

and I think that the elementary program is fabulous. I should preface this by saying that I did not set out in life to become a teacher. I actually have a masters degree in fine art. While attending graduate school I was introduced to Montessori by an aquaintance who was horrified that her son was going to send his children to a Montessori school. Since I usually disagreed with this aquaintance I was intrigued.

I read a small article about Montessori education and Maria Montessori and then set up an appointment at a local Montessori school, the 3 - 6 year old class. I was hooked!

The children were so focused and capable and also obviously having such a good time! The respect shown to the children by the adults was also remarkable.

I spent the next two years finishing my graduate degree and reading everything that I could get my hands on about Montessori. I also travelled to find just the right training center to become a teacher.

After getting my M.A. in art, I immediately enrolled in a primary (3 - 6 year old) Association Montessori Internationale training program. After completing that, I enrolled in an elementary training program. I also co-founded a school.

I taught for many years before taking some time off to make art and get married and have a baby. I thought that I would not teach again until my children were grown up, I was planning on homeschooling.

A friend of mine had a child in a Montessori program and asked me to observe her child at the school she attended. I did, and as soon as I was in that classroom I knew that I would teach again.

Our new school (my husband is also a Montessori teacher) opens this fall.

All of this background is to show that I am not saying that it is fabulous because I find myself a Montessori teacher and just want to prove that it is great. I want to show you that it is so fabulous that people dedicate their lives to give this gift to children.

The academics are great, the social experience is great, the world view is great. Montessori is very ecological, peaceful, and truly well-rounded. Most of all, it is so respectful to the children.

Here is a link to the link page from my site. Go to the NAMTA (North American Montessori Teachers Association) site for a great chart comparing traditional and Montessori education and a great FAQ list:


www.pleasantvalleymontessori.com/second/links.htm

Good luck and feel free to email me or pm me if you have any specific questions.
Ellen

edited to clarify the link

[briar]

Every Montessori is different but I am THRILLED with my dd's Elementary Montessori education. She attended pre-primary for 4 years and we transfered from to a school that goes through 8th grade.
faerybugmady
A huge misconception about Montessori is that the child has too much freedom and won't get a well rounded education. This is anything but true. A child has a freedom in the classroom true! But it is a controlled freedom of choice.
I was introduced to Montessori as a teen and was amazed by what I saw! 1 day in a classroom at a good school (Montessori's name is not copy righted so anyone can open a school called a Montessori) will open your eyes to a method of education that is so natural! My first thought when I saw Montessori was that I wished I could have been as lucky as the children I was watching. It is truely an amazing method!
A good book to start with is "the secret of childhood" By maria Montessori.

[guestmama9924]

Montessori
My oldest, now 8 , has been at her school since age 4. Her school goes to 6th grade and we are trying to expand to 8th.

My baby, age 3 , just started preschool there and she will stay there too.

We are especially fortunate that our school is a CHARTER school. That means, we pay for it out of our taxes just like public school- no extra tuition.

And my children are brilliant BTW!!!

[SpiralChrissy]

Ellen-
It's great to hear from a Montessori teacher. Could you give me some guidance? My son is about 8months old. We'll be moving when he's about 1yrs old and I'll have to go back to work, at least part time. What do you think of Montessori education for the wee little people? What's the program like? Can kids go part-time? Would you recommend for your own wee ones?
Chrissy

[mamaley]

i hadn't posted on this thread again because, well, long story, but we thought we were going to have to move out of where we are now (where our monthly rent is cheap) and move into a house, where we wouldn't be able to afford the monthly tuition and put ds in public school. but we think we've worked it out to where we can stay here and afford it! i am very excited.
thanks for all your posts. i was wondering about the issue of it not being structured enough and having "too much" freedom to choose, and reading your posts has answered my questions about that. good to hear so many positive experiences!

[Lauira]

I came across this article at my son's school website and it addresses the elementary concerns a bit.

http://www.newgatesarasota.com/programselementary.htm and click on "Montessori in the Elementary Years - Does it Really Work?"

HTH!

Laura