I know it doesn't matter in the long run. Can you remind me?

[Anonymous]

Kids are in Montessori preschool now but it's only a so-so fit. They are both doing really well at school but we don't like the school for several reasons. We'll likely switch them to a much more play-based, free-form daycare that (gasp!) even shows TV occasionally.

It doesn't matter, right? I'm not screwing up my kids by making this change? They are 3 and 2, for what it is worth. I'm cross-posting in the elementary school forum too, just to get those perspectives too.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I barely remember what DD did at preschool. As long as the kids are safe and happy, it will be fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I barely remember what DD did at preschool. As long as the kids are safe and happy, it will be fine.

Plus 1. I am a Montessori teacher who is opting to keep my 3 year old at her loving, play-based daycare.

[Anonymous]

Why is this post in tweens/teens?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is this post in tweens/teens?

Because she's asking you if it mattered, as they grew up, and if you have thoughts or regrets on what you did. The preschool forum can't answer that since they are living it now.

[Anonymous]

I pulled my DD out of Montessori after two months because the program (at this particular school) was unable to accommodate imaginative play. They also did not really do much in the way of art. There was a certain way to handle the materials, and the kids were praised if they conformed. They had these number rods which DD used to build a rocket ship, and she was told they were only for counting, etc, etc. I doubt this is the way it is at other Montessori's, but it was at this one.

DD is now at a very top New England college. She is hugely imaginative and that ability to "envision" comes across in her coursework, papers, lab work. Basically everything. It has been interesting to spend time around her peers at this college. The common thread that comes across to me is that, as a group, they are extraordinarily resilient and imaginative. They have those two qualities in spades.

I agonized when we removed DD from this particular preschool. But really, it was one decision in a long line of small decisions that honored her basic self and allowed her to flourish.

We have had friends at other Montessori schools with an entirely different experience than ours. It truly depends on the school and the teachers.

[Anonymous]

Nope, doesent matter one bit.

[Anonymous]

OP, I didn't even send my kids to daycare or preschool. Every day was free form until they went to kindergarten. They're all doing great.

[Anonymous]

No. But if you don't like it move to another one. Not hard to do. I never loved Montessori for my kids.

[jsteele]

Please do not crosspost threads:

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/577398.page