Choosing a Montessori School for your Child

Are you embarking on the process of choosing a school for your young child? 

Maybe you have heard from friends or relatives that their children are thriving in a Montessori school. Perhaps you have read about the approach, or maybe you attended a Montessori school yourself. With good memories of the experience.

Referrals are a good place to start, but it is worth adding some variables into the mix:

What is your child like?  

Where are your priorities as a family in terms of approach to education and lifestyle? 

Which Montessori school options do you have in your area?

Let’s start with looking at your child

As a teacher and Principal, I have found that a well-run and authentic Montessori school will be suitable for children of all temperaments and learning styles. The extrovert or the introvert, the creative and curious, the imaginative and dreamy. The budding engineer or scientist will all find their needs met and personalities embraced. At Ocean View, we equip the environments for Toddlers, Pre-primary, and Junior Primary. Using all the developmentally appropriate Montessori learning materials for each age group.  Learning through movement, use of the senses and discovery are key.

 

Timid children will feel encouraged and more boisterous children will learn appropriate and respectful limits, yet maintain their confidence.  A Montessori teacher will see each child as an individual and reflect daily on the best approach to take to each of her pupils. We appreciate that each child follows a slightly different path and travels along it in their own way. We plan and stay aware of curriculum outcomes for each stage of learning to ensure that children meet progress requirements. The environment offers a variety of learning spaces, activities, and topics. Which we can refresh and tweak according to the needs of a particular group and pupil.

 

Individual choice

 

Individual choice, based on interest, is promoted and this leads to the development of focus and concentration.  The classroom Ground Rules of ‘walk carefully, talk softly, be kind to others and take care of the equipment, provide a consistently reinforced framework for discipline.

 

Within this framework children have ‘freedom to’ choose activities to complete on their own or with friends, they also have ‘freedom from’ interruption from both peers and teachers.  Children learn to respect each other’s work and teachers respect each child’s concentration, only intervening when materials are being used inappropriately or unsafely.

 

Nevertheless, it is important to understand that there are critical points when a teaching team need to recognise that a child may be requiring additional help on their journey.  Perhaps the child has become stuck; the toddler continues to have tantrums well beyond toddlerhood, sensory-seeking behavior disrupts learning, or the child cannot remember phonic sounds or learn spelling patterns. Whatever the developmental stage, the teaching team’s experience helps identify where support is needed and provides possible options for a referral to a specialist. Doing this compassionately and timeously, working hand in hand with parents will ensure a successful and happy outcome.

Your Family

With a young family, social life for parents can really grow from a school community. Children’s play dates, parties and school functions can become highlights, rather than chores in the calendar for busy parents, juggling the work/life balance.  At pre-school, children and parents form many long-lasting friendships. At Ocean View, our school community consists of like-minded families from various walks of life. These parents have made a conscious choice to enrol their children in our school. We strive to work in partnership with our families at every stage of their child’s development.

 

An important part of your school search is to look at the School’s Vision and Mission and the values that these statements embrace.  Do these resonate with your family? Starting by reading up on this on a school website is a good idea, but you should also speak to past and current parents, read reviews, and follow the school’s activities on social media. These actions will help you establish exactly how the school makes its Vision and Mission real in terms of the education and service they offer.

 

The greatest part of choosing a school is how it ‘feels’ for you on the day of your school tour.  Intuition is often our clearest indicator.  The welcome of the staff the atmosphere amongst the children and the attractiveness of the setting will all help you to make your choice.  This is why it is so important to be offered a tour during a school morning. Book a school tour.

What Montessori school options do you have in your area?

Each Montessori is independently run, it is not a franchise.  The teachers will have been trained in the Montessori Method of Education. It is a good idea to check the South African Montessori Association Website to search for schools. Ensure that the school you are interested in is registered with the Society as this is the first benchmark of quality.

 

Schools that have FULL MEMBERSHIP STATUS with SAMA will also have all of the Education Department Requirements in place in terms of school policies, curriculum, and registration.  Furthermore, the staff should be fully qualified for the phase that they teach and registered with the South African Council of Educators.

 

POPIA

 

You may wish to view the school’s safety, health, child protection and behaviour policies and ask about POPIA compliance. For schools, the main impact of POPIA has been in terms of the sharing of images of children on social media and all schools are required to have permission from parents before doing this.

 

Ask about the daily programme and what is included in the fees and what extra murals are available.  Some schools offer many extra murals, but all at an extra cost.  At Ocean View, it is our policy to ensure that our school programme caters for all the developmental needs of the child and that school fees are inclusive.  Extra Murals are just that, offered after school hours, so as not to take away from teaching time, and paid for separately by the parent.  Only tried and tested providers are used.

 

Practicalities such as the location of the school in relation to your workplace. Ease of drop off and collection, school hours, aftercare and holiday care options are also important considerations.  

 

Finally, it is worthwhile asking which schools the pupils will progress on to. And if these are schools that you would like to consider as your child grows.

 

I hope to have raised some useful pointers to guide you in your search for a school.  All Principals should be open to answering your queries. Once fully informed you can then trust in your instincts in choosing the right school for your little person.