How do I know if a Montessori school is genuine?
Look for four things on a tour: a two-to-three-hour uninterrupted work cycle, mixed ages in one room, one of each material on open low shelves, and a teacher who trained for that specific age range.
‘Montessori’ is not a protected term in the United States. Any school may use the name regardless of what happens inside, so the sign guarantees nothing and the room guarantees everything.
Ask to visit mid-morning rather than at the end of the day, stand at the back for ten minutes before you talk to anyone, and notice what the children do when nobody is directing them. Then ask the awkward questions: when does the work cycle run and what interrupts it, what is the age span in this room, where did this teacher train, and what happens in the kindergarten year.
Use that list on us as well. We published it knowing parents would bring it to our tours.
Where to go from here
Other things parents ask
Still deciding?
Call the school office at 650-616-9000, or come and watch a morning.