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Nope, not at all! Seems very crunchy to me and I don't get it.

Yup, at least for preschool aged children.

I actually studied and completed a course because I was so curious about it.

Nope. I don't think it's that big in England and if I mentioned it to anyone IRL they would have no idea what I'm talking about. Everything, which isn't very much, I've learned from HB...floor beds, shelves toddlers can reach and wooden toys spring to mind.

I wouldn't call myself an expert, but I've read a ton of books now on the subject, so I feel I have at least a firm grasp of the key principals. I'm sure there is still tons for me to learn! I want to take an Assistance to Infancy class, but I can't find any in our area.

Depending on the age of your child, I recommend reading some books. For birth to age 3, "The Joyful Child" is a great introduction to Montessori.

Since I first heard of Montessori, it just makes so much sense to me. I'd like to one day enroll LO in a Montessori school (there is a Christian Montessori school right near our work which I am already eyeing) but we'll have to see the cost I guess. We plan on putting our kids in private school for their elementary years regardless though, Montessori or Christian.

@NaturallyCathy: A big component is observing each child as an individual and helping them to master the skills they are currently working on and then providing chances to move onto the next skill. This applies to areas like practical life, sensorial, writing, reading, geometry, math etc. Even at 3 they will "work" in all of these areas. Practical life is an easy one to implement at home, think about what tasks your lo can almost do independently and then think about how to change the environment to facilitate success. If your lo can put their PJs on with out help but can't reach the drawer they are kept in you put them somewhere else or provide a stool and show them how to safely use it. At 3 you might scoff at the idea of doing writing work but a big part at that age is getting them familiar with left to right, top to bottom. The entire classroom environment will be set up in this way, every shelf starts with the easiest work on the top left the hardest on the bottom right, the trays of work have the materials laid out in order of how they are used etc. Hand strength is another huge element of teaching a child to write so many activities focus on that. Every element in a classroom was very carefully considered and nothing was randomly selected right down to which color of paints were put out.

@NaturallyCathy: Montessori teachers are very much in demand, and so the cost of teachers is much higher than the cost of a daycare provider.

As a result, the Montessori schools I've visited talk about their program less as a form of daycare, and more as a supplement to whatever your kid is doing now (like staying home with a parent, or being with a nanny). One Montessori school said that they don't usually provide all day programs because the cost to the parents would be prohibitive, and parents can usually arrange for daycare cheaper on their own.

@Adira: I actually don't think it's crunchy. I'm probably the least crunchy person on HB and we plan on sending LO to montessori. We choose montessori because it really treats LO like an independent person, which is what he wants to be. He is able to self stimulate and is not forced to be part of the group which is emphasized in daycare. I went to montessori as well. I feel like montessori is not for everyone. We choose montessori because LO picks up things very fast and at montessori he can move at his own level and is not stuck doing what his peer group is doing, he does what he wants based on his skill level.

I went to Montissori from age 2-4. I absolutely loved it, and I actually remember some pretty good snippets from it.

I remember feeling like it was a place of mutual respect, the teachers required us to be respectful but they were also very respectful to us.
They trusted us and allowed us to have responsibilities, which made me feel very proud if myself at age 4. I remember being in charge of cutting up bananas with a butter knife and serving them to the class.

We had dolls with zippers, buttons, snaps, and ties to help us learn how to use all the fasteners and that helped me learn to dress myself very young.

We also had people come in for special events and teach us skills, one time I remember we had a florist come in and teach us how to arrange flowers. I loved that!

I'm a huge fan of Montessori. If we could afford it I'd put her in part time until we move overseas. We try to use as many montissori concepts in our home as we can though.

@Charm54: That's unfortunate. I don't think that's true of Montessori itself though, just certain schools. It was originally developed specifically for special needs children.

My Montessori school was very diverse, but it was a diverse area so that's probably why.

@californiadreams: I think it just depends on the area and the particular school. I have found with most preschools, the price corresponds to the ratio of teachers to kids, the quality of the facility and the price of real estate in the area (like you would expect!). In my area, Montessori has better ratios than other preschools, which I think accounts for the higher price.

@Arden: @yoursilverlining: yeah it's a bummer, it's become very white/upper class around here, which is sad because I think it probably diverts from the original vision Maria Montessori had!

I'm starting to really research Montessori, and I like a lot of it, but definitely not all. The book I'm currently reading just declares that you must wean at 9 months. Um, no thanks? Attachment parenting is my first love, and my gut is my fallback on deciding between conflicting advice, and I will not wean at 9 months just because a philosophy says I should.

That being said, I'm not sure what our options would be if we want to put our LO in a Montessori school, because she's likely to be at least somewhat developmentally delayed. From what I'm reading, I think that Montessori methods will be good for her, as long as I focus on what she is ready to learn, and not on what she's "supposed" to be doing for her age. But I don't know how that translates to sending her to school.