Good Montessori Schools in Sunnyvale/Santa Clara?

Question

We have just moved in to the bay area and are looking for good montessori schools for my 31/2 year old....We plan to live near sunnyvale....any suggestions??

Answer 1

They are in the telephone directory

Answer 2

What a good question!

Just because a school has the word Montessori in in its name does not mean it is a true Montessori school. Some don't have materials, others have some materials, but do not use them.  Many do not have Montessori certified teachers, while still others do not have Montessori trained directors!

So how to find a good "real" Montessori school?

First ask if the school is ACCREDITED by either AMI or AMS. Accredited means that AMI or AMS had observers in to made sure that all the head teachers were Montessori Certified and that the Montessori Method is being implemented correctly in the classroom DO NOT accept them telling you that they are AFFILIATED. All "affiliated means is that they paid 40 bucks or so to an organization for membership.

Ask about teacher and staff training.  What percentage of the teachers are CERTIFIED and by who.  Once again, here wording is very important. DO NOT accept the word TRAINED.  There is no true definition of the word "trained".  I have known schools where their definition of the word trained was to have the employee read a piece of paper or sit through an hour meeting.

As far as certification goes, there are many mail order/on line  courses. DO NOT accept them. There is very little quality control and much more to Montessori education than philosophy and materials usage. I remember a director of a school in Santa Cruz who had a degree from one of these places.  Her daughter, already Montessori certified, had written her papers and taken her on-line tests! The woman, who would flaunt her "certification" in front of prospective parents, couldn't tell the difference between a golden bead and a bead bar!

Another important thing to look for is the CERTIFICATION of the director and the owner.  In the 90's there was an owner of a chain of schools in the Bay Area, who had inherited them from her husband.  She wasn't certified and had very little patience for Montessori philosophy or beliefs. She told more than one Montessori certified teacher to "get off her Montessori high horse and do it my way." She even  screamed at a meeting,"d**n it! This is my school!  I just put a new carpet in and the children ARE NOT going to be pouring their own drinks.  This Montessori c**p of children doing things for themselves has got to go!"

Another thing to do is to look at the classrooms.  Are there materials there? Are the children using them or are they sitting on the shelf or a child's desk.  (I remember one school were the teachers would put materials on the children's desks when observers came to visit so that it was assumed that the materials were in use!)

Lastly, walk around and observe. Montessori or not... Do children seem happy?  Do teachers seem happy?  Or does the atmosphere feel tense and worried? If people seem to be walking on eggshells all of the time.  If teachers and staff members seem "guarded" and or evasive, red flags should go up.