“When we met with our son’s teacher for fall conferences, she was a bit concerned with his reading level. On the system they use to measure reading ability, they expect 1st graders to enter in Sept at a “6”. JD had entered at a “2”, but at the point of the conference in Nov, he had progressed to a “6”. Apparently, the expectation is that students progress to an “18” by the end of the school year. Just before Christmas break, we received an email from his teacher explaining that they had “accidentally” tested him – meaning he was showing interest and seeking books that were at a higher level than his most recent assessment. They found that he was reading at a level of “18” and were pleasantly surprised at his progress. I knew that keeping him in Kindergarten at MCH would mean that he would have a different kind of experience than in the public school, supporting the virtues of learning and development in the Montessori method that Jorma and I care about the most. We also knew that he might not be learning at the same rate as some of his peers using a more rote method of learning. We are thrilled that JD completed Kindergarten at MCH. I am confident that the freedom to explore and learn in his own way, be part of a learning community with his peers, take on leadership roles, along with a host of experiences all helped him to become more confident and develop a stronger sense of his own identity. These are the very traits that are enabling him to learn and progress in 1st grade and beyond. I remain sad that there is not a local Montessori grade school, so we are doing the best we can with the resources available. Thank you, again, for all that you do to create such a nurturing environment for my children and so many others.”

“We are very excited to be able to write about our oldest Son’s experience in the extended day kindergarten program at Montessori Children’s House. Tanner, now eight years old, was one of the first to go through this program. The self-confidence and independence the program helped build in Tanner started showing almost immediately and were great assets for him when he started elementary school. Tanner’s learning and concentration skills significantly improved throughout the time he spent at Montessori and now serve him very well.

We were especially impressed with how well rounded the extended day kindergarten program is. The program helped teach him respect and care for others and the environment through incorporating gardening and animal care tasks into his daily schedule. Tanner still loves to garden and explore the outdoors with us. The program also boosted his reading, writing, and math skills significantly. The instruction he received at Montessori was top notch and the teachers are some of the most caring people we have ever had the pleasure to know.

In short, we can not recommend the program highly enough and would be happy to discuss it with anyone who is considering it for their child.”

“Madeline’s year at MCH was priceless. She had attended a partial day/partial week preschool program for 2 years prior to her year at MCH. At MCH she had just turned 5 years old in August and was ready for an all-day school experience.

At home as a younger sister, she had many things done for her.  At MCH Madeline recognized her own abilities and was able to practice them: social responsibility, personal acceptance, and confidence.

Today, Madeline is a leader in her First Grade classroom.  She looks out for the younger students and feels empowered to excel in reading and math.  The characteristics we see in her now were all planted during her year at MCH- priceless.”

“Our son, Will, was fortunate to be in the first kindergarten class at Montessori Children’s House. It was an amazing year of growth and exploration for him. Always eager to get to school, Will enjoyed the day’s daily activities and the ability to interact with his surroundings. Because of the smaller class size, he was able to practice his leadership skills and enjoyed interacting with some of the younger children. He developed meaningful friendships with peers, teachers and the animals. To this day he still talks about Bella and is always helpful when working in our garden – part of the seed planted at MCH! He looks forward to alumni days to connect with some of his friends again. Our son transitioned well to public school but now I know if there was a first grade at MCH, we would have wanted to stay!”

“James had such a wonderful third year with you and entered school with confidence.  He was able to be self directed in his elementary work from day one and remains driven by his curiosity and interest.”