Kids who went to Montessori - how do they compare to others later in public elem?

[Anonymous]

My son was kicked out of a Montessori at 3. At 10, he is a super student and never had a behavioral problem. In hindsight, Montessori was just too rigid for him at that age and we had a teacher that was a stunningly bad fit. His next preschool loved him.

[Anonymous]

DC has been to several schools since Montessori (we've moved several times) and continues to thrive -- this is at a "Big 3" feeder in DC, a private school out of state (comparable to GDS), and now a public school out of state.

I wouldn't trade her Montessori years (3 -- age 2-5) for anything. Our only concern was that at a certain point she said she was "tired of brain work" and so we worked to "follow the child" (focused more on play based for a year), and the school was spectacular with that decision, too.

Every child's different, but at least in our case I'd say that the Montessori experience gave her an advantage as a reflective, empathetic, inquisitive learner who also learned leadership skills and independence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Montessori kids are more inquisitive and self directed. They have strong focus and are well prepared for individual study even at a young age. The Montessori kids I know are much more independent and self sufficient and much more confident than other kids of a similar age.

This sounds more like home schooled kids.

[Anonymous]

I went to a private Montessori school from pre-K through 6th grade. Then a traditional public middle school and high school, along with my other Montessori peers.

Here are my observations:

I am and continue to be very good a writing and other creative pursuits.

I am very good a team building, communicating and leadership.

I am good at critical thinking and problem solving.

I am terrible at math.

I crumple at the idea of a pop quiz or trivia, or anything that requires quick thinking and route memory skills.

I have issues with structure and respecting authority. I really want to be left alone and trusted to get my work done on time without being hassled about it.

If I loose my enthusiasm for something, it's never going to get done.

I do think these are foundational traits that I learned in my Montessori elementary school. All this aside, I went to college, have a good job, married with kids, I own a home and a car, and I am a solid tax-paying citizen of the United States.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to a private Montessori school from pre-K through 6th grade. Then a traditional public middle school and high school, along with my other Montessori peers.

Here are my observations:

I am and continue to be very good a writing and other creative pursuits.

I am very good a team building, communicating and leadership.

I am good at critical thinking and problem solving.

I am terrible at math.

I crumple at the idea of a pop quiz or trivia, or anything that requires quick thinking and route memory skills.

I have issues with structure and respecting authority. I really want to be left alone and trusted to get my work done on time without being hassled about it.

If I loose my enthusiasm for something, it's never going to get done.

I do think these are foundational traits that I learned in my Montessori elementary school. All this aside, I went to college, have a good job, married with kids, I own a home and a car, and I am a solid tax-paying citizen of the United States.

The fact that you are "terrible" at math doesn't tally with my Montessori experience which is that it provides an excellent, incomparable foundation in math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montessori kids are more inquisitive and self directed. They have strong focus and are well prepared for individual study even at a young age. The Montessori kids I know are much more independent and self sufficient and much more confident than other kids of a similar age.

This sounds more like home schooled kids.

How many kids do you know who attended Montessori through elementary? I'm not talking about Montessori preschool. Or any Montessori that is not accredited. Perhaps the homeschooled kids you know followed Montessori principles at home? Like home schooling, Montessori is very individual and completely tailored to the kid. Essentially each kid has an IEP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a private Montessori school from pre-K through 6th grade. Then a traditional public middle school and high school, along with my other Montessori peers.

Here are my observations:

I am and continue to be very good a writing and other creative pursuits.

I am very good a team building, communicating and leadership.

I am good at critical thinking and problem solving.

I am terrible at math.

I crumple at the idea of a pop quiz or trivia, or anything that requires quick thinking and route memory skills.

I have issues with structure and respecting authority. I really want to be left alone and trusted to get my work done on time without being hassled about it.

If I loose my enthusiasm for something, it's never going to get done.

I do think these are foundational traits that I learned in my Montessori elementary school. All this aside, I went to college, have a good job, married with kids, I own a home and a car, and I am a solid tax-paying citizen of the United States.

The fact that you are "terrible" at math doesn't tally with my Montessori experience which is that it provides an excellent, incomparable foundation in math.

NP, and for what it's worth, I had the same experience as the PP. I'm not terrible at math, but I was very far behind in math instruction when moving into a traditional curriculum. I still don't know my multiplication tables, but I've made do.

However, I also stayed in Montessori through part of elementary. I don't think this is an issue for the average preschooler attending Montessori through age 5 or 6, since public schools understand that kids will come in with a wide range of mathematical backgrounds. I think Montessori does instill some core problem-solving and critical thinking skills that are crucial in higher level math, but at least at the school I attended (which was a very traditional Montessori), there was not a lot of computational math taught. There was far more taught on patterns, shapes and geometry, sequences, etc. (I actually think that pedagogy may align better to Common Core today than it did to 1980s public school math.)

Like PP, I came into a more traditional school experience with very strong critical thinking and writing skills, but very weak in math and other rote skills. I have had similar experiences with working independently, but I think that's less about Montessori and more about personality traits that may have led my parents to choose and keep me in Montessori in the first place. (I am an introvert by nature and prefer working solo, and I have problems with persistence on things I'm uninterested in--but my sibling, who followed me through Montessori, has a different personality and is quite extroverted, loves group/team work, etc.) I suspect it's more the case that kids who are good fits for Montessori (and thus more likely to stay for multiple years, or through elementary) have traits that dovetail well with and are fostered by the Montessori method. That has had positives and negatives for me personally, and I ultimately did not choose Montessori for my own kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a private Montessori school from pre-K through 6th grade. Then a traditional public middle school and high school, along with my other Montessori peers.

Here are my observations:

I am and continue to be very good a writing and other creative pursuits.

I am very good a team building, communicating and leadership.

I am good at critical thinking and problem solving.

I am terrible at math.

I crumple at the idea of a pop quiz or trivia, or anything that requires quick thinking and route memory skills.

I have issues with structure and respecting authority. I really want to be left alone and trusted to get my work done on time without being hassled about it.

If I loose my enthusiasm for something, it's never going to get done.

I do think these are foundational traits that I learned in my Montessori elementary school. All this aside, I went to college, have a good job, married with kids, I own a home and a car, and I am a solid tax-paying citizen of the United States.

The fact that you are "terrible" at math doesn't tally with my Montessori experience which is that it provides an excellent, incomparable foundation in math.

Not in our experience. We left in the middle of elementary because of a move. Math assessment at beginning of third grade put my child at the middle of second grade in math. Not a big deal and he caught up, but I was surprised since math is supposed to be a Montessori strength and we were told it was one of my child's strong suits. I wouldn't say he was/is terrible at math, but he isn't advanced now in 5th grade either. This was an AMI certified school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There's not much difference among the kids we know. I think there's some self-selection among parents who choose Montessori for their kids. The kids we know who struggled in Montessori because of their personality types have the same personalities in elementary school (and the same struggles). The kids who were stereotypical "Montessori kids" still are.

I attended Montessori through mid-elementary, and I do think there were some lasting elements of that (both positive and negative). But I also think my personality was always going to be pretty Montessori-aligned, and that may well have contributed to my parents deciding to keep me there for that long. But for kids who just did primary, I can't tell the difference in DC's early elementary class (where about a quarter went to Montessori).

Yes. The kids who stay in Montessori are the ones that thrive in it, and they are going to have personality traits that fit that educational model. It's a self-selected population. I doubt that an educational model can create those personality traits except maybe on the margins.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a private Montessori school from pre-K through 6th grade. Then a traditional public middle school and high school, along with my other Montessori peers.

Here are my observations:

I am and continue to be very good a writing and other creative pursuits.

I am very good a team building, communicating and leadership.

I am good at critical thinking and problem solving.

I am terrible at math.

I crumple at the idea of a pop quiz or trivia, or anything that requires quick thinking and route memory skills.

I have issues with structure and respecting authority. I really want to be left alone and trusted to get my work done on time without being hassled about it.

If I loose my enthusiasm for something, it's never going to get done.

I do think these are foundational traits that I learned in my Montessori elementary school. All this aside, I went to college, have a good job, married with kids, I own a home and a car, and I am a solid tax-paying citizen of the United States.

The fact that you are "terrible" at math doesn't tally with my Montessori experience which is that it provides an excellent, incomparable foundation in math.

Not in our experience. We left in the middle of elementary because of a move. Math assessment at beginning of third grade put my child at the middle of second grade in math. Not a big deal and he caught up, but I was surprised since math is supposed to be a Montessori strength and we were told it was one of my child's strong suits. I wouldn't say he was/is terrible at math, but he isn't advanced now in 5th grade either. This was an AMI certified school.

My son attended Montessori elementary and was way ahead in math when he got to middle school. Since kids work at their own pace, it's probably different for different kids. I think the Montessori math program was wonderful, in terms of conceptual understanding of math.

[Anonymous]

Actual studies with links

https://www.public-montessori.org/resources/making-the-case-for-montessori-in-the-public-sector/does-it-work-what-research-says-about-montessori-and-student-outcomes/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hear a lot of complaints from teachers that they fall levels behind in math or another subject and have issues with the school structure. Even though several teachers have said this, my kids have known many and I simply don’t see a difference or that they fall behind. The biggest issue might be early on with behavior but I personally think that is kid specific and just happened to be a few from the same Montessori who also put out some other kids with no behavior issues. To paint all kids with one brush is ridiculous. I think people just like to feel better about themselves by putting others down.

Yes. I used to teach at a strong East Coast prep school, and middle school students coming from Montessori had these issues. I do not teach math, but I can say that the Montessori students did not have a strong base in writing, and they did not have adequate grammar/structure preparation. I am not a Montessori fan, and this opinion is based purely on observations of Montessori kids arriving at our school. My colleagues shared this view (especially my math colleagues).

[Anonymous]

My child recently transferred from a Montessori to traditional school in 2nd grade. He thrived in both and has zero issues with the adjustment to a different classroom structure and tools.

[Anonymous]

My son was doing 4th grade math (fraction operations, long division) in his kindergarten Montessori. I teach high school math, so maybe he always would have gravitated towards it—I’m not saying Montessori made him love it. The number sense it gave him as a foundation was incredible though. At 3 years old, he could tell me all the ways to make any multiple of 10. “Mommy, did you know that 50 is 45 plus 5, or 22 plus 28, or...” and list out a dozen more combinations. I honestly don’t know how they taught it other than bead chains and the hundreds board, but man—it worked for him!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child recently transferred from a Montessori to traditional school in 2nd grade. He thrived in both and has zero issues with the adjustment to a different classroom structure and tools.

? How is this answering the op - see the post, not just the title.