Playschool vs. Montessori

lolly22

So I only found out there was a difference between montessori and playschool a couple of months ago. Im hoping to send my daughter to one in September, but at the moment im trying to decided between the two.

I could'nt find a thread on this already here, so my question is, which would you recommend, or did it even matter to you much which one they were sent to as both seem ok?!

LegacyUser

http://www.montessori-science.org/

Playschools are ok, but Montessori children excell academically and socially-I'm a teacher and you can spot Montessori pupils from day 1. More independent, less clingy and open to all learning.
Montessori wins hands down.

cynder

How old is she?

Is she potty trained?

Most montessori require child to be toilet trained.
Education wise montessori.

I send my guy to a pre school, in the school grounds. the kids have to be potty trained and he loves it there. There is a real modern up to date montessori down the road from me but i prefer the pre school and there are only 16 kids in the class with 2 teachers and a sna. Im sending my other fella in sept he will be 3 and 9 months then, i dont think its so much about the place itself its what the teachers are like that matters.

The montessori down the road didnt feel that welcoming but the pre school feels very welcoming.

littlebug

You should probably go and visit both, meet the teachers and get a general feel for them. My eldest had a year at a playschool and a year at montessori and the montessori would get my vote anyday. The playschool tended to be that.... play...while the montessori had much more structure and is a really good preparation for school. That said.... i know there are some out there that call themselves montessori but don't really follow the montessori method so it would really depend on the places/ teachers involved.

lolly22

Thanks for the info, I guess I just want the best for her.

I liked the idea of montessori when I looked into it I didnt realise a 3 year old could learn so much but then I wasnt sure if it was too much at such a young age, I honestly thought they just had play time and story time! I should probably visit both.

She was two in January.
I thought they all needed the kid's trained, I started potty training her about 3 week's ago now. It's not really working at the moment but she still has 6 months before id send her to either so hopefully that wont be a problem.

alanajane

This is just my personal opinion and experience you of course are the only one who can decide what is best for your child.

I have three daughters, the first two went to playschool and the third to montessori. Purely because there were no places available in playschool for her. I found playschool to be better as it was enough for them to be learning to be away from Mammy, taking a little lunch, learning to sit at desk and taking instruction from another adult without the 'stress' of learning. (using the word stress as im at the loss for another word). I also found with my daughter who went to montessori she was way ahead of others in her junior infant class when she started big school and hence was bored and was slightly disruptive in class.

Ickle Magoo

I think it depends very much on the individual establishment rather than whether it's a playschool or monti. There are actually very few registered montissori's in ireland but plenty that call themselves one, so you have to check they are a legit montessori.

Go and visit and get a feel for the place and the staff and try and get some personal recommendations. My wee fella was at playschool, hated it & I was less than impressed I have to say, for various reasons - he moved to a monti & absolutely loved it and we never looked back. My wee girl is there now and loves it too - but we have friends at the playschool who's kids are having or have had a great experience there, so I think it really comes down to the place and whether their style suits you/your child.

Best of luck!

iguana

alanajane wrote: »

I also found with my daughter who went to montessori she was way ahead of others in her junior infant class when she started big school and hence was bored and was slightly disruptive in class.

Possibly the biggest problem I would find with sending a child to montessori is that montessori is designed as a full primary education not just 1 year before attending a standard primary. The children are learning in a way that ideally they should be learning for the next 8 or 9 years, but very, very few montessoris go right up to age 12. I think there is only one full montessori in Ireland, in Donaghmede, and another 1 in Wicklow that is sort of half montessori/half national curriculum. I do wonder if children find the change a little shocking when they go to a montessori pre-school into a normal school.

Monkey61

I went to a montessori school for 4 years and can honestly say they were the best 4 school years of my life - academic wise.

I think it depends on the child though. I was very bright and montessori suited me as I could learn at my own pace and was constantly being stimulated and never bored. After all, the early years are when we are the most capable of absorbing new information and such so to me anyway, it makes sense to make the most of that.

It is a fair point though about montessori being designed to take you the whole way through primary school and not just for a year or two. The transition to primary school was difficult in that I was very far ahead of my classmates academically and was used to being able to work at my own pace and thus found it quite boring to spend a lot of time sitting around with nothing to do. That depends on the primary school though and the teacher because some teachers were more than happy to give me extra work to do whilst others weren't bothered.

RealistSpy

Montessori is the best way to go, expensive yes but its the best way.

lolly22

Thanks again to all.

I was thinking more on sending her to montessori just because i was so impressed with how much she could learn.

Iv only checked out one that would be near where id be living and the teacher running it has the highest recorded grades in Ireland for montessori level 6 diploma in Ireland for 2009. . . .surely thats enough to make her's a real montessori?? I dont get why some places say they are montessori but they dont follow the proper method's.

Hearing that some kids learn too much and get bored in first years of primary school because of it though is not something I thought of.

I would hope if that was ever the case with my little one, a teacher would be please with how much she learns and how quick she learns it, there will always be kids who pick up things quicker than others no matter where they've been, no?
I didnt think this was going to be a hard choice lol

kia123

I have my LO 3.5 in playschool at the moment. We moved counties back in Jan & was not able to get her into any Montessori where we are now living..

Will be handing her notice in in the next wk or so - tbh I have found it a complete waste of money - all she does is colour, do puzzles etc & the majority of the kids are alot younger than her.. now prior to playschool she was in Creche where she was highly stimulated which may explain why she is bored in Playschool - but would be of the opinon that Playschool may suit some children & montessori others.

Just hoping a Montessori place comes up for her soon:)

Khannie

Went to a montessori myself and still have fond memories of it. I used to go back to visit my teacher for years after I'd left. Also, my sister is a qualified montessori teacher and I saw the amount of effort she had to put in to achieve it, had a look through some of the course material and discussed some of the rationale behind it with her at the time. Overall I think it's a super method of teaching.

If there were one near us I'd be going for it. There isn't. Having said that, our little one is coming on in (actually shocking sometimes) leaps and bounds and she's attending a local playschool.

Ickle Magoo

lolly22 wrote: »

Hearing that some kids learn too much and get bored in first years of primary school because of it though is not something I thought of.

I don't think that's always the case...I could read and write before I started school & I wasn't bored, I loved it because I was good at it!

Truley

For a sort of 'happy medium' you could always consider a waldorf-steiner based kindergarten. Children there are given a very structered day and are taught life skills such as baking, crafts, gardening, tidying up, storytelling without the emphasis on starting schoolwork too early. They also place a very heavy emphasis on outdoor play and nature which I found was lacking hugely in my experience working in 'normal' playschools. You can check out their website to find out more about them and see if there is one in your local area.

http://steinerireland.org/

Jumbo156

My Little lad is starting school in September and has been in the montessori room of his creche for the last 18 months or so.
I nearly fell of my seat last week when he started counting in both Irish and French and starting saying a few phrases in both languages also.
I was very impressed....:)

I think if you find a good montessori then you are really setting your child up for life.

I've experienced both playschool and Montessori and imo there is simply no comparison. My daughter was reading and writing before she went into Junior infants and she is so independent and logical in her way of thinking. I personally would never choose a playschool over a montessori (but I have good choices close by), however, it's about your child and where they will be happiest. If it's a bad montessori and a good playschool then it makes more sense to send your child to the "good" place.

Best of luck with the potty training

albetty31

aw let the poor kid go to playschool and blow off some steam being a kid. they are only kids once and school beats most spontaneity out of them soon enough, let her be free and run wild and she will be formally educated soon enough.my daughter turned into a military nightmare in montessori and was acting like a bossy boots every eve she came home.switched to playschool and she learned to play and make friends. personal growth more important, she'll learn enough at school and wont be bored by knowing everything already

alanajane

hear hear albetty!!!! i agree with you 100%, let them be kids they will be in school soon enough for long enough.......

albetty31

albetty31 wrote: »

aw let the poor kid go to playschool and blow off some steam being a kid. they are only kids once and school beats most spontaneity out of them soon enough,

A good montessori will allow your child to be a child "blow off steam" while also giving them structure and the ability to be independent. And a good school will not "beat spontaneity" out of them.

My daughter excels both socially and academically and her teacher has never seen such a happy child (her words).

It depends on the child, some will thrive in montessori, others may not. A child from my daughter's class moved to playschool as he just wasn't suited to the montessori environment, but most children do very well.

lolly22

Deleted User wrote: »

Best of luck with the potty training

Thanks

albetty31 wrote: »

aw let the poor kid go to playschool and blow off some steam being a kid. they are only kids once and school beats most spontaneity out of them soon enough, let her be free and run wild and she will be formally educated soon enough.my daughter turned into a military nightmare in montessori and was acting like a bossy boots every eve she came home.switched to playschool and she learned to play and make friends. personal growth more important, she'll learn enough at school and wont be bored by knowing everything already

Thanks for that, although tbh I think if i did end up sending her to montessori I wouldnt feel guilty as she runs wild at home and get's to play all day long, everyday, after all its only going to be 3 hours a day five day's a week.

Kids at this age always want to learn new thing, or atleast mine does, ok so she may not be getting the hang of the potty training as fast as some kids would, but she is being brought up with two languages and its not a bother on her and is always wanting to read with me just wants to learn all the time, but none of that has ever deprived her of her play time and just being a 2year old.

I would'nt force her to go to college or do anything she doesnt want to do in life, but if i can give her the best start to a good education then i will.

Ill make up my mind when i go see each one but which ever it is, if she's not happy there ill move her to another one for sure.

beemaja

My boy goes to a Montesorri School, I would defenitely recommend it.

He is cooking, growing vegetables, doing crafts, learning about things, he is playing outside in a big garden with swing set and climbing frame, he is doing lots of arts and crafts, he is in a small group of 5 kids and they are all good friends.

The teacher knows him fully and gives me feedback all the time, she also let me stay with him to settle in.

Most importantly, it is fun and he loves it to bits.

Kindle Mont.

lolly22 wrote: »

Thanks



Thanks for that, although tbh I think if i did end up sending her to montessori I wouldnt feel guilty as she runs wild at home and get's to play all day long, everyday, after all its only going to be 3 hours a day five day's a week.

Kids at this age always want to learn new thing, or atleast mine does, ok so she may not be getting the hang of the potty training as fast as some kids would, but she is being brought up with two languages and its not a bother on her and is always wanting to read with me just wants to learn all the time, but none of that has ever deprived her of her play time and just being a 2year old.

I would'nt force her to go to college or do anything she doesnt want to do in life, but if i can give her the best start to a good education then i will.

Ill make up my mind when i go see each one but which ever it is, if she's not happy there ill move her to another one for sure.

You're absolutely right Lolly22, speaking as a montessori owner and teacher (and parent) children have a need for knowledge particularly between the ages of 3 and 6, and they treat working with the montessori materials as play. In most good montessori schools working with the materials only account for about 90mins of their 3hr session anyway, with the remaining time being spent at circle time, arts, crafts & music, snack time and outdoor play.

I would just urge parents to do a little background research on the montessori method of education before they choose a school, as unfortunately Maria Montessori did not legislate her name, and therefore any playschool or preschool can just slap the word 'Montessori' on their sign and charge the higher fees for your child to play with a room full of toys.

Best of luck in finding one, I'm in the process of filling mine for September! If I can help at all just PM me.