Switching schools from Reggio to Montessori schools (or vice versa?)
Hello BPN,
Hope to get some advice on switching schools from Reggio to Montessori schools. I plan to send my baby girl to school when she turns 2. Some traits of her made me originally wanting to enroll her in the Montessori school. She is a very content and gentle baby. She plays well on her own and has always been very organized (put toys away on her own without me asking etc.) But now I wonder if Reggio will be a better fit to encourage other developments (such as creativity) for her. I am debating if its worth to let her attend Reggio first, then switching to Montessori in a couple of years. I still think her learning will benefit from Montessori's philosophy. I am hoping to hear other parents thoughts and experiences. Thanks a lot, Melli
Parent Replies
My daughter attended both types and is now thriving in a Reggio. For the Montessori, I think it depends a lot on the individual school and how closely they actually follow the curriculum. We toured and talked with a lot of schools in Berkeley/El Cerrito/Kensington before selecting a Montessori. My daughter attended there over a year, but just seemed miserable. She liked her friends, but dreaded going there every day and it seemed like everything she was learning was pure memorization without actually understanding the concepts. Example: at 2, she could tell me all the names of the continents, but when shown a map or globe - she didn't know what it was. She painted a picture of the "big bang" but couldn't tell me the first thing about it other than it sparkles.
After seeing her frustration, we moved her to a nature based Reggio program. It's further away and more expensive than the Montessori- but she is so excited to go to school everyday that she runs out the door. In the evenings she tells me all the things she is learning and they are more age appropriate lessons on tangible things, like how trees and flowers reproduce and grow and how colors can be combined to make other colors.
Bottom line- don't be sold on Montessori just because it's called a Montessori school. Sometimes the name means nothing.
My daughter went from Reggio to Montessori with a year of kindergarten and public school in between. There are definitely different advantages of either type of school and I think you are asking the right questions. My daughter is the opposite of yours...she was fussy as a baby and has always had trouble with cleanup and organization. I've wondered if having her in Montessori earlier would have supported her attention for jobs that are not of her first choice. On the other hand, creativity has always been a huge interest and strength for her and the very clear child-led play aspects of Reggio has supported that tremendously.
What I've seen is that the model is important, but not all schools are created equally and many schools are actually blended models. Although my daughter's preschool was Reggio, they did a lot to support pre-literacy skills and most of their students had a leg-up in kindergarten. In addition to the method of learning is the overarching philosophy of the school and how the child (and family!) is supported within. I'd suggest that you don't overthink it too much. Visit some of each and you will probably figure out which school feels like the best fit for your whole family's needs. The best Montessori and Reggio schools will support learning and development in all areas for children of all temperaments and abilities.