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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The deal breaker for me is that pretend play is NOT allowed in Montessori. If your child picks up a string of beads and pretends they are a snake, they will be told that isn't allowed. Beads are for a specific purpose, perhaps counting or string but never for being snakes because that is not there intended purpose.

Blocks are just blocks to build and never a phone or walkie talkie or powerful crystal with powers. [/quote]

You say this like it’s universal. Both my kids are in a Montessori school and they engage in tons of pretend play including at school. They don’t do it during the ‘work cycle’ but there is a lot of additional time in a Montessori schedule. And, a good Montessori school worships things like recess and free time — I’ve watched the kids at  outside time and they run around like total maniacs/3 year olds.

‘Work’ isn’t just sweeping and stuff. For the little kids, it’s, like, playing with dinosaurs. Or dancing. Or yoga. Or washing their hands. Or arranging flowers. Or whatever. For my kindergartener, it’s more like typical school stuff. But a work cycle at our school is about 1/3 of the total day.

[/quote]

PP, and reading the original PP and I feel the need to amend my previous comment — some of the key montessori materials used in their math and language arts curriculum may look like toys, but they’re not and they’re not intended to be used like toys. Traditional school kids use certain materials for math, Montessori kids use other materials for math. So, yeah. The beads aren’t a snake. The beads can’t be a snake — the beads are part of the math program. There is a ton of other stuff in the classroom that can be used for imaginary play, but some materials are off limits for that.

If that bothers you as a parent, it is 100% not the kind of program for you. But my 2 year old is in a Montessori school and she pretended a hot dog was a phone today, and my older kid plays make believe all day long. [/quote]

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