OP I really hope you will check in again. I am researching schools now for Fall 2015 and I will have a child who is 2 and 10 months old. for the start. I toured one private Montessori (Christian Family) and I liked it. And I am doing some reading up on the method in general. What I really can't quite grasp though is how to know if its a "good fit" for my kid. that phrase is used all the time. My daughter is an only child and plays well independently. Sometimes I worry she will be too independent at a MOntessori and maybe a standard perschool would be better if she is "forced" into more group activities. But I really don't know. I find most regular preschools are becoming fixated on too much structured learning. I have read through this whole thread and find it really interesting. Hoepfully you will check back in.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any thoughts about NE Stars Montesstori? It's a small program and we are interested in it and would love to know if you've heard of it and whether its reputation is good.

It has an extremely poor reputation among the Montessori community. There's a separate forum for it- I'd ask there for all the specifics.

To the poster asking about Northeast Stars - my child was there last year and absolutely loved it. Child is now at one of the more lauded Montessori schools in the District and is blasé about school. I see nasty posts about NES on here fairly regularly and I honestly don't understand why.

NES has operated without proper licensing before.

Hi OP -
I am 09/22/2014 21:41. Now that you are back, I wonder if you might be able to answer my questions that I posted earlier.

Any information/advice you can offer would be really helpful.
Thanks!!!

OP here. I'm back! Start of school makes my life a little wild.

FYI: Regarding the above post, I also meant to say I am not the OP.

The other Montessori teacher here. May I hijack, and answer the PP's question? Social & academic both play a role. At my school, we prefer for the kids to move up closer to 6.5 years. Although, of course, we also consider the whole child, and make exceptions. Never younger than 6 years, though. It is really up to the school's discretion to make the decision if your child is ready. However, always be an advocate for your child, if you disagree with their decision of when the move up should occur. I will also add that sometimes admissions takes a part in the school's decision. For example, how full is the elementary class? Remember, move up can occur throughout the year at many local Montessori school. Each school's move up policy is different. To sum everything up, your school would probably be the best source of info because every school has their own way of doing things. Hope this helps...

OP, if you come back, please give me some insight on when a child is ready to move from the 3-6 classroom to the 6-9 classroom.

In particular when an extremely academically advanced child should move up. Is it primarily social or does academics play a role too?