Is it important to finish 3 year cycle by attending Montessori kindergarten?

[sora]

Hi, I wonder if it is really worthwhile to finish the 3 year cycle (3-5) at Montessori. My daughter is in preschool and going to go to kindergarten this September. And we were wondering if we should keep her there and pay $8000/yr tuition or send her to a local public school. Another option we are considering is to drive 20Km each way to a nearest Public M school. But then that's a lot of driving 80Km a day. People think I'm crazy even to consider this but I really love Montessori and it really hurts me as it is so expensive or that I have to drive that far, which I cannot bring myself to do at the moment. I read an wikipedia description of Montessori education and it says that all the benefits of Montessori kids get academically kind of fade out as they grow older and other children will catch up with them at some point. Is it really worth all the cost and driving and effot? I would not do homeschool as my daughter loves going to school. 

[physmom]

Personally, if that public Montessori school is any good I'd send her there.  Granted it would make a huge difference to me what the exact commute time was (are you talking about 20km of interstate or stoplights? is there a lot of traffic in between?  is there a bus? can you carpool?).  DD's school is only a 5km commute but it's a 20-45 min trip using public transport depending on the time of day.  It's annoying for the time being but will get much better once we finally get a car. 

[Drummer's Wife]

Is 20Km like 12 miles or so?  I would definitely drive that far for a public Montessori.  I drove 30-45 minutes (depending on traffic) to get DD to school when she was in 1st grade, and have no regrets about it.  But we were used to commuting for work/school/etc., so half an hour to get somewhere wasn't really that big of a deal. 

I do think it is important to finish the 3-yr cycle, and ideally this would be in the same program with the same Directress and classmates - but 2nd best would be another M school for Kindergarten, especially considering it also continues on to lower and upper elementary. 

We do pay tuition for our 4 yr old to be in Montessori, but only one more year of that and then he will be free as his older siblings are now.  Worth it to me, considering the education they are receiving. 

[sora]

Everyone I know all are discouraging me to do this drive. They don't know about Montessori and they don't understand why I would do such a thing. It's nice to get opinions from mothering moms who know the value of Montessori though.

It is mainly highway driving plus some windy mountain road, which can be dangerous in snowy day, but snow is not very common in Vancouver. And there is no traffic. Maybe a little bit to get on to the highway in rush hours. It is about 25 min driving from home to school if there is no traffic. 

I have a son who will be 16mo in September. There is a 3 hour free parent tot program (8:45-11:45) at the school. So that would be nice. I will drive home after that, and he will likely fall asleep on the way. And then we have lunch and almost time to go back to school again. It might be too hard on him.  There is an after school program for my daughter Mon to Thursday from 2:30-5pm although there is fees (20 dollars a day). They have some interesting programs like Lego robotics, science experiment, architecture, and arts. So I can take advantage of that and I will have more time with my younger one and prep for dinner if I am lucky. Also my daughter can have a little nap on the way back in the car if she is really tired and my younger one too. Is it going to be too hard for my little one who will only be able to sleep in the car?

Would you do it? I would love carpooling but as far as I know, very few knows about the school or even consider sending their kids there as it is way out of the way

[physmom]

sora- we also had a ton of coworkers who questioned our choice to send DD where we did because of the commute.  We just explained we agreed with the philosophy and sort of tuned out the rest. A 25 minute drive really isn't that bad at all and I think it's doable... did you post about this before, btw, I seem to remember something similar awhile back?  Also, would your DH be able to trade off pick-ups/drop-offs at all? 

Maybe ask the school if there's someone willing to carpool.  Even if they live 10 minutes away you'd still be saving time. 

[mattemma04]

I drive about 300 miles for the typical 5 day school week or 60 miles a day. My only issue has been driving in the snow. I refuse to drive in bad weather. I know some people that actually bought homes closer to the school.Our school goes up to 8th grade so for some living closer is a good option. I would give it a try and if you don't like things just pull out. You will never know until you try.

[Emma Bryan Fuller]

My kids have been in Montessori for 3 yrs. These next few months will be their last as we can no longer afford it. I wish there was an option of driving to a public one. I am choosing to home school and still trying to get my head around it!

I think you are lucky to have the opportunity and nothing is set in stone and you can always change your mind if the drives proves too far. Good Luck :) 

[dramamamax4]

Oh gosh. . . I would drive it in a second for a public Montessori.  There is currently one elementary option for Montessori around here and it is private.  My daughter's preschool is advocating for a public Montessori charter, but that isn't going anywhere too fast.  I am so hoping that we might be able to find a way to swing the public Montessori, as I love the learning experiences my daughter is currently experiencing.

Good luck! 

[Sundrapeal]

The third year of Montessori is crucial.  It is during this time that the work done in the previous two years comes together.  To take a child out in the third year is like planting seeds, watching them sprout and then putting a blanket on top of them.  You mentioned that Wikipedia said that the academic advantages of Montessori fade over time.  What you have to realizes is that Montessori is not an academic program.  If a child is excelling academically in Montessori, it is simply a side effect of the program.  The ideas behind Montessori is to instill in the child a life long love of learning.  This love of learning does not fade with time.  It also allows the children to become self-reliant, self-directed and strong, positive leaders.  During the third year of Montessori the child is given the opportunity to be a leader in the class.  Does this public Montessori School have only 5 year old children in the class or does it have mixed ages 3 to 6?  If it has mixed ages, then it would be worth the drive.  If it is only five year old children then they are only focusing on the academic aspect of Montessori and I would recommend putting your daughter back in her current Montessori school.  If the money is the deciding issue then perhaps you should put her in her local school to save her younger sibling from spending so much time in a car.  I hope this helps.

[sora]

Thanks for reviving my thread. As time gets close to September, I find myself dreading the drive.  There are several other parents in our school district I can carpool with but we are not that close to each other and it is probably harder to coordinate it in reality.

The public M school has 5yr old kindergarten class (because they don't have preschool) and mix class of Grade 1-3. So I guess some would not think it is worth the drive. I question it myself too.  The major difference between this school and regular public school is that it is a small class of 12 kids rather than 22 kids in public schools. The school is in an affluent area so they have over budget - so they are trying to do cool extra activities during the school hours. Also it is a very small school of 50kids in total.  It is a new school so the principle is very motivated and respond well to parents.

Most kids don't have Montessori preschool background, so I was hoping that my daughter is more confident dealing with montessori materials and shows some leadership skills. But definitely this is a new school and in the public system so it is not as authentic as the private school she attended. But because it is a public, it has a full library and gym and a really big field and playground, which the private school lacked.

We can send her to a private M within our budget but we won't be saving as much for her college education and for our retirement. It is a tough decision. Many say it is not worth spending that much for kindergarten and it is better to save for their college education. It is hard to say which is right, I guess there is no right answer.

Now the schools are closed so even if we decide to send her to local school, we don't know which one has space. It would be too stressful for me and my kids not knowing which school we are going to, right? Some one suggested trying the drive and switching to local school if it is too far. But is it possible to switch during the school term? Or am I stuck for one year (Sept-June)? Thanks!