Public Montessori-thoughts?

[thefragile7393]

I should start off by saying that right down the street from me is a regular district school (not a charter) that got Montessori accrediation and now is billed as a Montessori magnet school.  I've read up on the philosophy, taken a tour.  I'm still not sure how it would differ from a private Montessori at all...with the exception of standardized testing.  I know every school and teacher is different of course, but I was wondering if there were any general differences that can help me decide if this would be a good place for ds to start Kinder.

[carmel23]

from which organization do they have their accreditation from?

[thefragile7393]

They are members of the American Montessori Society.

[Drummer's Wife]

We are on our 3rd public Montessori (2nd one where we are paying tuition for 3-6), and have been happy w/all 3 schools. I figure, even if they aren't the most authentic Montessori programs, they are still much better, IMO, than the regular curriculum in the school district. We do have standardized testing, and other aspect mandated by the school board, but we are happy with the education our children have received.


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[sapphire_chan]

Go in and ask to talk to the teacher your child will specifically have.

Here are the questions I'd be sure to ask based on the horrendous experiences people have encountered with non-Montessori teachers who got Montessori certification:

What is the required work? (One school had mandatory worksheets before the students could begin work)

How long is the work cycle? (Another didn't use Montessori work cycles at all)

What are the regular interruptions to the work cycle? (One had work cycles, but they were interrupted DAILY with other things so that the effective work time was only an hour)

Tell me about when a child didn't want to do a particular work. (The worst of all, the teacher was insisting that a THREE year old do a particular work because "letting" him do other work was "giving in". more later)

Tell me about when a child wanted to do a work and wasn't ready. (so, same teacher as the last one, for a 3 year old who was having trouble with writing (yes, that's right the work that this horrible excuse for a teacher was fighting with a three year old about was WRITING) that teacher didn't bring out any of the scads of fine motor control, writing grip developing, hand strengthening works)

What are your classroom management techniques? (This last one is from RL not MDC, I met a Montessori aide whose lead teacher implemented a token system where the kids all got "Kid Name Bucks" to pay them for doing their work.)

Oh! And the very first thing to ask, "Why have you chosen to teach in a Montessori school?"

ETA: Just to clarify, I'd ask these questions of any Montessori program, especially one that I was going to pay for and contract for. I'd allow a public school teacher to be a bit less than perfect in the answers, based on things that are affected by district policy, but for a private school wrong answers would be met with me not using the school and telling the school exactly why they had lost my money.

Edited by sapphire_chan - 4/21/11 at 8:36pm

[thefragile7393]

 I am so going to print this out for when I meet...it likely won't be until school starts unfortunately.  I don't know if I can try and meet with the teacher now while class is still going on.

Thank you Sapphire_Chan! 

[sapphire_chan]

Observing the classroom should help too. And the school's response to a request for an observation will also be telling.

[physmom]

Originally Posted by thefragile7393 

 I am so going to print this out for when I meet...it likely won't be until school starts unfortunately.  I don't know if I can try and meet with the teacher now while class is still going on.

Thank you Sapphire_Chan! 

You said you took a tour.. did you actually get to see the class in action?  Did your child go with you? If not I'd strongly suggest that it really helped us cement our decision. 

[thefragile7393]

Originally Posted by physmom 

You said you took a tour.. did you actually get to see the class in action?  Did your child go with you? If not I'd strongly suggest that it really helped us cement our decision. 

SIgh.  No.  Well...yes and no.  No my son didn't go with me.  Yes I did see the classes in action, some of them....I went at my lunch time which happened to be the kids' lunch time. but I didn't....quite know what I was looking at.  I've read up on it a lot, but I at the time I had no clue about anything still.  I saw how there were rooms that opened into a large common area, I saw kids from older grades helping the younger ones.  I saw them doing some tracings with sand on paper.  I should go again with the info from sapphire_chan and see it through different eyes.

[physmom]

Originally Posted by thefragile7393 

SIgh.  No.  Well...yes and no.  No my son didn't go with me.  Yes I did see the classes in action, some of them....I went at my lunch time which happened to be the kids' lunch time. but I didn't....quite know what I was looking at.  I've read up on it a lot, but I at the time I had no clue about anything still.  I saw how there were rooms that opened into a large common area, I saw kids from older grades helping the younger ones.  I saw them doing some tracings with sand on paper.  I should go again with the info from sapphire_chan and see it through different eyes.

Yes, definitely try it out again and you might get a better feel for the school.  I'd also suggest bringing your son with and letting him join in one of the classes (if they allow that).  I was really glad I had read up quite a bit on Montessori before visiting DD's school, I think it really helped with the decision making process.  Good luck!

[BCFD]

I have 3 children, one still in private preschool, and two in a Montessori charter (previously at private M preschool).  We have been extremely happy with the Montessori charter school that our children go to.  They do have mandatory testing, but the school doesn't make a big deal about it.  I have heard that it's presented as more of a "show me what you know" than "this is a test and it's extremely important that you do well on it" pressure. There are mandatory parent hours, it's very small, and it really feels like a community.  We opted for Montessori because I think traditional schooling is failing in so many ways.  We did not want a teacher-led environment for our children and once I discovered the Montessori philosophy, I knew we were right at home (considered Waldorf for a split second). I am not totally against rewards and "I like that"'s, but in a Montessori school it's not about the child trying to please the teacher and earning little bribes to do their work.  We have been VERY fortunate to land in a public Montessori school with top notch teachers who uphold the Montessori philosophy.  It's not perfect, but I'm not sure that any school is.  Our school maintain accreditation through MSAC (Montessori Schools Accreditation Commission) and AMS.  Also, I love that it's a K-8, so we are set until high school.  The middle school program in our Montessori school is hands down one of the best programs in the district, area, and possibly the state!

I agree with PP's and think you should schedule a tour, observe classrooms, talk to the principal, talk to some teachers that teach the grade level your child will be in, stop some parents in the parking lot and ask questions, read reviews online, etc.  Good luck!!!

[sapphire_chan]

Have another question for you to ask them!

"Tell me about a child who wasn't a good fit for Montessori and what was done."