Montessori Education Yay or Nay?

I have this friend who is going to drive me away and make me fucking crazy!

She has called me every day for the last 2 weeks telling me how gifted her kid is (who is 6) and that only a private school can meet her needs of education since she is so gifted. However whenever she is at my house (her kid) she zones in front of the TV and eats her boogers and says "huh?" all the time.

I sent my 1st child to a Montessori school for 2.5 years and found it to be fucking over-rated and over-priced. IMO, its was like any other public school.

Also, my friend's annual income is about triple what mine is and I feel like she is constantly waving in my face how she can do this or that because she can afford it. Maiking comments to me like "Well if you had the money wouldn't you send all your kids to a Montessori school?" The answere to that is a big fat Hell No.

Anyways, this is more of a rant because I just got off the phone with her and she really fucking pissed me off.Belittling the fact my daughter who is 9 goes to a public school.

 

montessori schooling is good for people who can afford it but as you said it is like any other school. so really it isnt that big of deal if your child goes to a private school or not. honestly if this woman is making you go crazy and all she does is brag about how good she's got it then she's not your friend she's just a prissy pain in the ass

~Fallen Fairy~

 

i agree; tell her if she's so damn well off, why isn't she giving her child the BEST education by staying home

 

Damn. The amount of money a person has is directly proportionateto the amount of ingnorance they have. I'm sad for your friend. It seems like she has a lot to learn. I can understand why you're frustrated with her, but why not be the better friend and show her patience and tolerance (and a better way)?

My bf watched an episode of "Penn and Teller: Bullshit" the other night. The topic was "the best". Here's the synopsis of the episode from their website:

"We are constantly told that we can have "the best": the best televisions, the best q-tips, the best cars, the best vacations… even the best spouses. The problem is, there's no such thing as "the best!" It's a constantly moving target. And there is always someone who has something better than you do.
As we explore America's insatiable pursuit of "the best," from day-to-day household items to lifestyle experiences, we'll see that the harder we try to get it, the more miserable we make ourselves. It's bullshit that's making us crazy! "

I didn't get to see the show, but dear bf told me that one thing they did was get customers at a restaurant to order certain items because they were supposedly "the best." They then served to the customer (without the customer's knowledge, of course) cheap supermarket, yet the customers raved about how wonderful their meals were! It's all in the head.

What do you get when you send your kid to one of those schools? Instructions on how to properly apply the school uniform? Teachers with a few extra initials tacked on at the end of their names? Bragging rights? What's the big deal? No offense, TaraBeth. I know your heart was in the right place when you first sent your oldest. I'm glad you woke up! Maybe your friend will, too.

Peace and good luck!

 

Thanks for the replies~ And Venus on a clam, I really liked what you had to say. And you're right. I need to be the better friend. Seems like for 2 weeks I held my tounge and said things like "Oh,thats fantastic" but I was given over-kill on the god damn subject and I just can only fake it for so long...ya know?


Anyways, I emailed her last night saying I needed a time out and just needed some time to chill out. Maybe it pissed her off, I don't know because I haven't heard from her. We'll see

 

Some people really like Montesorri school. Some children do very well there. I know Bear and I looked at one, when our oldest was ready for preschool. OMG, was it expensive! There was no way we could afford it. Even if we could, the children at this school (I went to the school while it was in session) were TOO quiet. My Sunshine is a BOISTEROUS child.

I asked why the children were so quiet and was told "They don't need to be loud." But I kind of wondered. They also had all day preschool (which seems almost du riguer for our "Moms doing better things with their time" attitudes) which I thought was too much for Sunshine at only age 3. (They tried to convince me it was better, I still don't think it is, unless parents have no other choice) Also, the kids being so quite was kinda creepy, so even before they gave me the tuition booklet (they saved that for the very end) I decided it wasn't right for her.

However, I do know some people who really like it. I think it has changed a lot since the original Maria Montesorri planned it. When mamas were home all day, and the school was the only alternative to either public or Catholic school.

I don't think they are all bad. But, just like Waldorf, they are so expensive that I don't know how anyone can afford it unless they get a huge pay job.

 

Ya, I hear ya ...


Great sig pic Maggie Sugar! Love it!

 

I started Montessori as a pre schooler, I could read at a third grade level by first grade, was very advanced as a youngun, then got to High school and wasted my mind and future with drugs. You never can tell how they will turn out but to me it seems to at least a good start, gives a child some amunition for success

 

my daughter went to Montessori for a year. i was so happy to have her in there...i felt like i was all about the individuality of it. she was 2 years old....
my experience is as such....for a 2 year old, i did not like it...it allowed her to be wild and too non-conforming...not enough structure....
for an older child i would love it....but not that little

 

YellowBellyHippy - I'm glad you found what I said helpful. Maybe by the time you chill out you and your friend can have a constructive convo. Maybe by then, she will also realize what led to you being pissed off!!!

Maggy Sugar - What you said about how quiet the kids were really struck me. I remember when I was living in North Carolina I drove past a Montessori every day on my way to work, just as the kids were letting out. I noticed that the kids never seemed to look like your average kids getting out of school for the day. They all looked like they were moping...walking slowly and with their heads down like someone had just kicked their dog. I've noticed the same thing at a school here in Alabama that I've driven by a couple of times on my way to various places. I thought it was pretty weird.

mariecstasy - I'm curious as to why you decided to put your little one in a Montessori at 2 (I do know that they recommend you start them early - I thought the preferred age was 3). Please understand that I'm not being critical at all! I just found it interesting that she was in school at 2, and wondered what happened that led to that decision being made. I am, after all, only a parent-to be, and I'm enjoying learning other's perspectives on all aspects of parenting.

 

cause i left my husband and that was the daycare program i decided...

 

Hmm... By us take the school sometimes childs which parents have not so much many, but in germany the schools get some money from the state, i think in USA they didn´t.
(i´m not very good in english so favour )

 

Our family is not at all rich, not at all, but my brother, my sister and I all went to montesorri for preschool. (from 3 - 5 for my bro and sis, from 2/1/2 - 5 for me)

I adored it there, i could read fluently by the time I went to 'big' school, and write as well, and it was the same with many of my classmates.
but i also remember playing a lot - and i remember that montesorri disguises learning as play, which is another great thing.

I think that going there set me up really well for both high school and university (where I am now). Maybe it's not the same for everyone, but I do know that maybe 80 - 90% of the people I went there with have gone to tertiary level education, and I'm still friends with a lot of them. I'm so glad I went there, even if it was just preschool.

I think though, that the appropriateness of a Montesorri education depends on the child, some are more suited to it than others.

 

Revo, in the USA the schools do get money from the state, and the individual district or town the school is in, from taxes, but it is now tied to evil designs from Bush, disguised as his "No Child Left Behind" plan (or as most parents I know of Gifted children call it "No Child Gets Ahead.") NCLB basically is based on ONE test a year, which determines teacher salary, who gets fired, who stays, and what is now taught in class. Good schools, with money from the community say NO to this plan, but our village (without any votes from the parents) took the money and the black mail which comes with it.

American Education is in serious trouble, which is what happens when you have an illiterate president.


Moonbeam, maybe your Montesorri wasn't that expensive. Our M schools cost about 3-5 thousand dollars a year. WAY out of what we can afford.

 

I went to a montessori school for 2.5 years from half way through 3rd through 5th grade. I am so happy to have gone! However my parents were pullin down about 25,000 between the two of them and as a result I got to go free. Also at the time I went the school had a total of 30 or so students thats for all grades 1>6. The school was just starting so we all got extra great attention from the teachers.

That same school now has 100-200 students and is probably much more like a public school.

If we were all to send our kids to private schools, the public school system in this country would slide even further downhill. This country should have the best public schools in the world, cuz we are the richest country in the world.
The republicans all sent their kids to private school, so they don't want to spend they're tax dollars on "poor people" aka public schools.

I bet your friend drives a Lincoln Navigator. (much offence intended for anyone reading this who does drive one)

Oh, sorry Yellow Belly I kinda started going off there... I'll stop now!

Your a great Mom! I can just tell.