Village Montessori School

Outside of one outstanding toddler after care instructor and an amazing primary guide, our entire six month journey at VMS was an unmitigated disaster. School leadership is well intentioned, but patronizing and inconsistent. Communication is terrible. I spent a lot of money for a school experience that would embrace my child for who they were—and that isn’t what happened. My note to the school’s owners went without reply. My sister-in-law said it best (she runs a school in another town): they could have made this work. They chose jot to because there were chilsren out there who are easier because they aren’t as smart as your kid, and they come with the same tuition check.

Many people may not be aware that all Montessori schools are not the same and basically anyone can open a school and call it a Montessori school. I learned this the hard way when my children were starting school. So, after a bad experience, I was very careful in choosing the next school for my 3 children. I visited nearly every ACCREDITED Montessori school in the North Metro area, but when I saw Village Montessori, I knew right away that's where our family needed to be. It's very well established, has a wonderful, highly trained staff with very little turnover and is AMI certified (VERY important!). This is now our 11th, and sadly, our last year at Village (my youngest is about to graduate from the Adolescent Program) and it's been one of the best parenting decisions I've ever made! My 3 children (2 girls and a boy) could not be more different from each other , but it was a great experience for each of them for very different reasons. The teachers go above and beyond in their concern and care for their students, the administrators are professional, friendly and responsive and plan informative parent training and support events and the owners have continually invested in major improvements to the facilities and educational opportunities for the students. I could go on and on. If you are looking for an exceptional school for your children where they will be cared for, encouraged to be their best and receive an exemplary education, I would encourage you to consider Village Montessori.

We have been at this school for 6 years now. We started in primary when my older child was only 2.5 years old. I have been amazed at the breath of knowledge my oldest has gained. I've also been amazed at the depth in which she has been able to explore topics of interest to her (not just superficial exploration for a set amount of time). This year (she's in what would be the equivalent of third grade in a regular school), amongst the works she's brought home, a few that really amazed me were a long division problem that spanned the entire surface area of the carpet in my family room (6x8 ft), detailed botany drawings, detailed drawings about the solar system with the different moons and dwarf planets, geometry and the greek numeral system. She's also measured the surface area of all possible flat surfaces she's been able to find in our home. My younger child, who's now in primary (he's 3) but has gone through the toddler program, told me just two days ago that he learned how to work with the Binomial Cube. You could have knocked me down with a feather !

Our daughter—now 11 years old—has been attending Village Montessori School since she was 18 months old. The school has been like a second home to her, providing a loving, connected, and stimulating environment during her formative years, helping her grow and thrive as she got older, and setting her up for success in the future. The value of Village became extremely clear to us when we transferred our daughter out to public school at the beginning of first grade. After a few months, we started to see a marked difference in her behavior. It was like the bright flame was getting snuffed right out of her. She was no longer interested in creating new things, drawing pictures, writing little stories, reading, and the like. Instead, she would complain about how tired she was and ask to watch television—something she rarely did before. We moved her back to Village before the school year was out. We didn’t even want to wait until the following year. Within a month, the flame was burning brightly again. We have never regretted our decision to return.

Have two kids currently at the school (2 & 4). The academics are excellent, and there are two teachers per class. One of my eldest sons peers was working on multiplication towards the end of last year (yes, in PreK), and both my sons are doing well. There are currently three extracurriculars offered (for an additional fee) - dance, piano, and soccer. The outdoor playground area is larger than most in Montgomery County. There is an indoor area between the classrooms large enough for the kids to play in winter when it's too cold for the children to be outside (a huge plus - since many schools just keep their kids in a classroom. However, the most important aspect is that the director cares about the kids. The director is a former teacher of Room 5 who bought the school from the former administration. She communicates with the parents (and is honest with the tough subjects). If you don't select this school for your child, best wishes and glad you found a great school. However, if, for whatever reason, you later find yourself unhappy with the school you originally placed your child (i.e. my case when I didn't know anything about MC schools) - give her a call.