After Montessori
Montessori is a proven method of education and one our families are committed to
providing their children. But it is not offered everywhere. After years of
building a solid foundation using Montessori principles, our children all
transition to other methods of teaching and learning after they leave Shrewsbury
Montessori School. Children leave our school as leaders with rich traditions, a curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, a spirit of belonging, and a dedication to community.
How each child makes this transition is different due to his/her emotional,
social, and academic well-being. The majority of Montessori parents at our
school have found that their children make a very smooth and successful
transition to traditional programs. Many past students visit us after
moving on and mention only minor challenges that occur with any transition: not
knowing everyone at first, getting used to their new building, and understanding
new schedules.
What we hear most often from alumni, their parents, and teachers and
administrators at their secondary schools is that students from Shrewsbury
Montessori School love to learn, come well prepared with real knowledge, and are
a delight to teach because of their independence and cooperative and respectful
approach to learning.
Our students are readily accepted into traditional programs
at well-known private and public schools in the area.
At Shrewsbury Montessori School, we feel confident that all of our students regardless of when they leave our school are better prepared for all of life's transitions.
What To Do To Ease The Transition
Understand that curriculums vary. Though all schools strive to cover similar
material through a child's school career, the order in which this occurs is
different. Depending on when your child transitions from Shrewsbury Montessori
School to a secondary school, he/she may repeat some curricula. This is
short-lived and is to be expected.
Give your child time and support as they get to know new teachers and
classmates. Each year of his/her Montessori experience meant meeting new
children as new students entered the multi-age classroom or your child stepped
up to a new program. Remember that this transition may be harder for you than it
is for your child!
Help your child understand new requirements with regard to time management.
He/she may be used to having more control of when they complete their
work. This added dimension of meeting another's schedule will be new to
them but something they will easily learn.
Tell your child what to expect. Your child will notice these
differences: remaining seated in class, working on a lesson or activity with the
entire class or a large group, using more books and paper and fewer manipulative
materials, and having work choices made by someone else (the teacher).
There may be, generally, fewer opportunities for a child to make choices for him
or herself in the new setting depending on when he/she transitions and to what
environment. Knowing these differences will help him/her know what to expect.
Visit us! This is an important step we feel all of our children
should make as they transition from Shrewsbury Montessori students to Shrewsbury
Montessori alumni and continue their
life-long journey of learning!
A Life-Long Foundation
Words used by Montessori students to describe their experience at a Montessori school are: trust, respect, exploration, independence, teaching, and learning. Many agree that the world they enter after leaving a Montessori school may be less warm and caring but that they are given a life-long ability to build new friendships, healthy relationships, and communities wherever they may go. Not only does Montessori prepare students academically for challenges of secondary schools and college, it prepares them for being more capable members of society.
| Shrewsbury Montessori
School 55 Oak Street Shrewsbury, Massachusetts 01545 Phone: (508)842-2116 Fax: (508)845-2491 |
Copyright © 2009 | Montessori Children's
House of Auburn 135 Bryn Mawr Avenue Auburn, Massachusetts 01501 Phone: (508)832-9262 |