What kind of kid thrives in Montessori?

[loraxc]

DD currently attends a play-based preschool/daycare that loosely incorporates Montessori and Waldorf elements. Today, her teacher commented to my husband that based on her observations of DD, she would recommend that we consider full-time Montessori. Note that this would entail pulling DD out of her current school, so I thought it was quite a recommendation for the teacher to make! Do you think there is a "type" of child who particularly thrives in Montessori? I think the teacher was saying this based on her observations of DD working with the Montessori materials they do have and her feeling that DD does well with structure (but is Montessori structured?) DD is also an interesting combination of cognitively ahead but physically and socioemotionally immature.

The Montessori school here is really beyond our means, unfortunately, but they do participate in our state's free VPK, which is available to 4-year-olds. I think Montessori sounds interesting, but aside from costs, I have been a little hesitant about the lack of opportunity for imaginative play (DD is really into this) and the high ratios at our school (2:22 for DD's age range, I think).

[**guest**]

I worked at a Montessori school for 3 yrs. There is plenty of opportunity for imaginative play! There was a 'homelife' area set up that had kitchen stuff as well as dress up clothes (for boys and girls).
We had a variety of students. Some were special needs.
Montessori is structured. It's not a free for all. heh heh. You do have a choice in what area to work in but that's during certain times. They also have circle time, etc.
If a child chooses to work with something but doesn't know how to use it yet, the teacher will sit with him/her and demonstrate.

I think that Montessori is great for children. It allows the child to learn at her/his own pace. There is an emphasis on respect. They also work on social skills.

Yep, as you may have guessed, I would love to send my child to a Montessori school.

[Melda]

do you mind me asking where you are located ? I am in FL and it sounds like you may be also and my childrens M school is one of the few that has the VPK program ... Anyway ...

I have been told MANY of times that my son is the ideal M school student ... he follows thru and justs moves on and on and on with lessons ... he did struggle a little with reading but we are past that now ...

My DD is 3.5 and while she is also in M school I dont think she catches on to the lessons as quick as my son ... but my son is a very much wanting to learn type kids where my DD is more social ... anyway ...

[TattooedMama]

I think that kids who flourish in Montessori tend to be more like my middle ds than my oldest. Too bad the middler is only 2 and the older is going into 4th grade! Part of what makes my 2 y/o ds a "spirited child" is his intense desire to "do it himself". He takes things apart, doesn't know the meaning of the word NO (initiative and determination) gets into things, loves to learn new things, and is very kinesthetic. At that age those are the things I imagine your daughter's teacher might be observing.
Can you tell we love Montessori too? :

[andreac]

Originally Posted by OdeToJoy

I worked at a Montessori school for 3 yrs. There is plenty of opportunity for imaginative play! There was a 'homelife' area set up that had kitchen stuff as well as dress up clothes (for boys and girls).
We had a variety of students. Some were special needs.
Montessori is structured. It's not a free for all. heh heh. You do have a choice in what area to work in but that's during certain times. They also have circle time, etc.
If a child chooses to work with something but doesn't know how to use it yet, the teacher will sit with him/her and demonstrate.

I think that Montessori is great for children. It allows the child to learn at her/his own pace. There is an emphasis on respect. They also work on social skills.

Yep, as you may have guessed, I would love to send my child to a Montessori school.

I have to say that this doesn't exactly sound like a traditional M school. Ours has no dress up or play kitchen area. There is the "practical life" area, but it's a real kitchen to do real kitchen tasks, like washing dishes and preparing snacks etc. No play food or anything like that.

The "structured" aspect of Montessori is that there are "right" ways to use the materials but for the most part they are self-correcting, so it's not that the teachers would be telling the kids that it's wrong...the control of error is built right in, so the kids see for themselves. In our school, there is no limit on what a child can work on at any given time of day (exept morning and afternoon gathering), but they must put away one "work" before choosing another and they do encourage a child to complete the cycle of any given material before choosing another, but don't force it.

I'll be honest, when we first signed ds up I wasn't sure how he would do with it, but he has really thrived there and keeps complaining about wanting to go back to school!

[**guest**]

Yes, mine was a traditional Montessori school. It had a regular practical life area but also a play area. I also remembered that they were allowed to do the more creative play in the afternoons (those who did extended day).

Yep, a child had to clean up what she/he was working with before going on to something else. And yes, he/she definitely had to use the materials properly.

[RomanGoddess]

I would say that it is orderly more than structured. First of all, there are no actual "toys", just materials. And you can't just take a material, start to use it and then leave it. You have to put it back where you found it. And if someone else is using a material that you want, you have to wait. And you are not allowed to use a material that has not been demonstrated to you by either a teacher or an older child. And you are not allowed to use a material in a way that it was not intended. For example, if your child were practising stacking the cubes of the pink tower, that would be great but if she started to try to build a house with them, she would be told to please use the blocks to build a house, not the pink tower, which was meant for something else.

I think that there is plenty of room for imagination in Montessori but the focus is on learning about the real world and respecting children enough to let them use real things rather than the fake plastic version. Therefore, in a Montessori school, you will typically see real plants to water, a real kitchen sink with real porcelain dishes, a real iron, etc.

[**guest**]

Originally Posted by cmlp

Therefore, in a Montessori school, you will typically see real plants to water, a real kitchen sink with real porcelain dishes, a real iron, etc.

Very true. Our school had real everything...but not a real iron. LOL.
I love how they teach about the real world. None of the Montessori schools that I've been to stifled creativity or imagination. They encouraged all of that...but in the appropriate time.
We had kids at the M school that I taught at who were doing multiplication on a level that I couldn't even do. It was amazing.