Best montessori in Irvine
- Thread starter reshma86
- Start date
ps99472
New member
The one you can get into is your best montessori.....
Seriously, did you sign up already? If not you got some work ahead. We ran our gamut of preschools in Irvine. So ranking the ones we attended:
1. Westpark Montessori
2. ICDC (near civic center)
3. Tutor Time (Oak Creek)
4. IUCC (Irvine Congregational)
3 and especially 4 were horrible experiences for us, do not recommend at all. Westpark Montessori was a pleasure for us. The director is top notch.
Seriously, did you sign up already? If not you got some work ahead. We ran our gamut of preschools in Irvine. So ranking the ones we attended:
1. Westpark Montessori
2. ICDC (near civic center)
3. Tutor Time (Oak Creek)
4. IUCC (Irvine Congregational)
3 and especially 4 were horrible experiences for us, do not recommend at all. Westpark Montessori was a pleasure for us. The director is top notch.
irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
FYI, Westpark Montessori is one of the 4 schools of the Montessori of Irvine collection. University (by UCI), Village (in University Park) and Northwood are the other 3.
They are highly recommended by most who use them but the waiting lists are quite long.
They are highly recommended by most who use them but the waiting lists are quite long.
moonchild508
Member
My kids go to Spectrum Montessori. They like it there.
woodburyowner
Well-known member
Isn't Le Port the gold standard of Montessori schools? I'm still debating whether it's worth the premium...
Our 2 year old just started at Leport in late August and we can say nothing but good things about it. Teachers are extremely nice, facility is good, and our daughter seems to enjoy it. Easy to talk to the teachers about how your child is doing and the dialogue is extremely comfortable. Only tough part is the wait list, I think we waited for about a year before we were able to sign up. But I'd recommend it.
I complained about the cost for a while, but in hindsight, couldn't be happier. Have a couple friends whose children are their as well and we have heard consistently positive things. A good thing to consider is you could do a parent and me class their (for like $100) and get to meet the potential teacher and get a better feel for what it is like.
I complained about the cost for a while, but in hindsight, couldn't be happier. Have a couple friends whose children are their as well and we have heard consistently positive things. A good thing to consider is you could do a parent and me class their (for like $100) and get to meet the potential teacher and get a better feel for what it is like.
In the very early years there is probably not much of a difference (other than out of pocket expenses) but be aware that they are essentially a preaching institution of Objectivism (the Ayn Rand kind). If that lines up with your own philosophy than that should work out great for you. What bothers me is that they are not upfront about this fact and use the disguise of a Montessori label to push their own agenda.
nyc to oc said:
There is no best. No one can tell you which school is best bc at most, they've attended 2 or 3. And there are no state tests or ranking system to crown any school "best". Even within a particular school, you may get a varied experience based on the teacher.
In terms of Montessori style being "free form", different schools apply the Montessori method to various degrees. Some more loosely than others. From my experience, even though it's "free form", there's still plenty of sheepie activities: lining up, group circle activities, group projects, collective class performances, raising hands, waiting to get called, taking turns, etc. If your child is smart (which I suppose all Irvine kids are), the free form allows them to learn at a faster pace than dumb Johnny next door. Pros and cons to every teaching philopshy. Do your research and you will find the right fit for your child.
In terms of Montessori style being "free form", different schools apply the Montessori method to various degrees. Some more loosely than others. From my experience, even though it's "free form", there's still plenty of sheepie activities: lining up, group circle activities, group projects, collective class performances, raising hands, waiting to get called, taking turns, etc. If your child is smart (which I suppose all Irvine kids are), the free form allows them to learn at a faster pace than dumb Johnny next door. Pros and cons to every teaching philopshy. Do your research and you will find the right fit for your child.
irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
All the Montessoris in Irvine are better than the ones in Tustin.
#qwerbullyingquota
#qwerbullyingquota
davenlei
New member
Happiness said:
I disagree. My kids went to Montessori and when they transitioned from Westpark Montessori to a regular school, my kids had a little bit of an adjustment period due to the switch from 'free form' to 'structured' but it was not a big deal. The comments I received from the teachers were the kids rushed through the 'regular' work thinking they would have more 'free time' but other than that, there were no problems.
Every grade when I go to the first parent/teacher meeting and am asked about the kids education background, I get an 'I knew they went to Montessori' response from the teacher after stating as much. They said they like having kids from Montessori because they generally do much better with the curriculum and are better behaved than regular pre-school and especially home cared children.
I don't know if that is really the case but that is what I am told.
I think the teachers appreciate Montessori.
Kindergarten was pretty much only good for getting the kids used to sitting in a room with 33 kids and 1 teacher. I'm not sure how kids learn in the 2-3 hours per day when there's 30+ kids in a class. I think Irvine schools take advantage of the fact that many parents already have educated their kids or will put them in after school programs (like Montessori). I can't imagine how the schools would perfrom with 30 kids in somewhere else Santa Ana with 1 teacher... Oh wait, I can. They are some of the worst performing schools in the country.
My son is at 2nd grade level, but just started kindergarten. (I didn't put him in Montessori, he learned everything on his own...) I expect that he will coast along until around 2nd grade when there's actually new stuff for him to learn. My daughter was also 2nd grade level when she started kindergarten. She's in 2nd grade now and is finally learning new things.
Kindergarten was pretty much only good for getting the kids used to sitting in a room with 33 kids and 1 teacher. I'm not sure how kids learn in the 2-3 hours per day when there's 30+ kids in a class. I think Irvine schools take advantage of the fact that many parents already have educated their kids or will put them in after school programs (like Montessori). I can't imagine how the schools would perfrom with 30 kids in somewhere else Santa Ana with 1 teacher... Oh wait, I can. They are some of the worst performing schools in the country.
My son is at 2nd grade level, but just started kindergarten. (I didn't put him in Montessori, he learned everything on his own...) I expect that he will coast along until around 2nd grade when there's actually new stuff for him to learn. My daughter was also 2nd grade level when she started kindergarten. She's in 2nd grade now and is finally learning new things.