What is transitional kindergarten?

TK is a publicly funded grade in California for children before kindergarten, taught by credentialed teachers in the public school system. Following the state's phased expansion it is now available to four-year-olds statewide. Enrollment goes through your local school district, not through us.

Is Mills Montessori free, or is there financial assistance?

Mills is a private school and tuition is paid by families. If cost is the obstacle, speak with the school office at 650-616-9000 about your family's circumstances rather than ruling us out on the published number.

Can we do TK and then join Mills for kindergarten?

Yes, and families do. Be aware of what you are joining mid-way: the Montessori kindergarten year is the third year of a cycle, and a child arriving new to the method spends part of it learning how the room works. It is very doable — we would want to talk about your child specifically first.

Does Mills accept public funding or vouchers for TK?

No. Mills is a private, tuition-funded school. The published rates on the tuition page are what families pay.

What if we cannot decide?

Go and see both. Watch a TK class and watch a Montessori morning, on ordinary days, and notice what the children do when nobody is directing them. Twenty minutes of that is worth more than any comparison table, including this one.

The honest comparison

California TK is free. So why would anyone pay for Montessori?

It is the fairest question a parent can ask, and most private schools answer it by changing the subject. Here is a straight comparison — including the situations where the free place is plainly the right choice.

Transitional kindergarten and Mills Montessori, compared

	California TK	Mills Montessori
Cost to the family	Free	$1,200–$1,750 a month at four years old, by schedule
Who it is for	Four-year-olds, statewide	Ages two through fifth grade
Typical day length	A school day, with separate paid care before and after	7:30 am to 6:00 pm in one place, one bill
Who chooses the work	The teacher, for the class	The child, from work already presented
Class grouping	One age	Mixed ages, roughly a three-year span
What happens the year after	Kindergarten at the same or another public school	Kindergarten here, then elementary through fifth grade
Continuity of method	TK, then kindergarten, then first grade — often new rooms and new approaches	One method and one building from age two to eleven

TK enrollment runs through your local school district. Tuition figures are the school’s published monthly rates — see the full table.

Straight answers

Five things worth saying out loud

We would rather you chose the right school than chose us.

Free is a serious argument, and we are not going to pretend otherwiseTransitional kindergarten costs a Bay Area family nothing. Montessori at Mills is $1,200 to $1,750 a month for a four-year-old. For many families that difference is the entire decision, and there is no version of this page where we tell you it should not be.
TK is real school, taught by credentialed teachersCalifornia TK is part of the public system with credentialed teachers and a defined curriculum. It is not a holding pattern, and choosing it is not settling.
The comparison people miss is the wraparoundA TK day does not cover a working day. Once you add before- and after-school care, the gap narrows — sometimes a lot. Compare the whole arrangement you would actually need, not the tuition line.
Where Montessori earns the money is the years either sideTK is one year. The Montessori argument is a three-year cycle whose payoff is the kindergarten year, and then an elementary program that continues the same method to fifth grade. Buying only the middle year of that is the weakest version of the case.
The honest testIf your child is four, TK covers your hours, and you would move them to public kindergarten afterwards anyway — take the free place. If you want the method to run its full course, or you need 7:30 to 6:00 in one building, come and see what the money buys.

Questions

What parents ask about TK and Montessori

What is transitional kindergarten?TK is a publicly funded grade in California for children before kindergarten, taught by credentialed teachers in the public school system. Following the state’s phased expansion it is now available to four-year-olds statewide. Enrollment goes through your local school district, not through us.
Is Mills Montessori free, or is there financial assistance?Mills is a private school and tuition is paid by families. If cost is the obstacle, speak with the school office at 650-616-9000 about your family’s circumstances rather than ruling us out on the published number.
Can we do TK and then join Mills for kindergarten?Yes, and families do. Be aware of what you are joining mid-way: the Montessori kindergarten year is the third year of a cycle, and a child arriving new to the method spends part of it learning how the room works. It is very doable — we would want to talk about your child specifically first.
Does Mills accept public funding or vouchers for TK?No. Mills is a private, tuition-funded school. The published rates on the tuition page are what families pay.
What if we cannot decide?Go and see both. Watch a TK class and watch a Montessori morning, on ordinary days, and notice what the children do when nobody is directing them. Twenty minutes of that is worth more than any comparison table, including this one.

Still deciding? Come and look.

Tours run during the school day, year-round. Bring the comparison with you.

Schedule a Tour Call 650-616-9000