Our Primary program welcomes children between the ages of 2½ and 4 years for a morning session, from 9:00 – 12:00, Monday through Thursday.
The Montessori Primary program takes place in what we call a “prepared environment” which encourages children to explore the classroom and facilitates independent learning.
In the classroom, children may choose to work at a wide variety of activities in five defined areas of learning: language, math, art, sensorial, and practical life.
In the language area, children develop pre-reading and reading skills, learning the sounds letters make, discovering how the sounds of letters together form words, writing, and then reading the letters into words. In the math area, the concrete concept of quantity gradually moves to the abstract idea that numbers represent quantity. Using rods and beads, young children discover their ability to add and subtract. Older children move from hands-on mathematics manipulation to written representation of numbers and math. Sensorial materials available in the classroom invite the children to explore all their senses – perceiving and naming objects, colors, textures, odors, sounds, and tastes.
Practical Life is a cornerstone component of the classroom, supporting young children as they develop both fine and gross motor skills to care for their bodies and their environment. Key to supporting the development of 3 to 6-year-olds is the concept of “help me do it myself.” Practical life activities are carefully designed to support success at any age and the prepared adults provide just enough support to help children be successful. This approach builds concentration, focus, determination, and resilience that will last a lifetime.
When space is available, and children are determined to be ready for a longer day, first and second-year students may enroll in our full-day program, staying until 3:00 pm. This option is at the discretion of the teacher, based on the readiness of the child. Please include any interest in our extended-day options when inquiring about enrollment.
Kindergarten
Children who are 5 and 6 (Kindergarten eligible) spend their morning in our mixed-age classroom with the Primary students. Activities are carefully prepared to support and build upon the skills and knowledge they have gained in their first two years in our Montessori classroom. For this reason, most enrolled Kindergarteners have had previous Montessori classroom experience.
In this mixed-age setting, children learn from each other and they learn because of each other. Our older students become leaders in the classroom, sharing their knowledge with the younger students and continuing their own developmental progression.
As the oldest in the classroom, our 5 and 6-year-olds enjoy providing leadership to their younger friends, often reading out loud, helping with clothing, and showing our new friends how we interact together in the classroom.
Kindergarteners stay for a full day of learning, with an additional work period after lunch. Dismissal is at 3:00 pm for our older students.
Tuition and Fee Schedule for our Montessori Primary Program
| Primary Program | |||
| Application Fee: Refundable Deposit (at time of application): Registration Fee (for returning students only): |
$55 $50 $55 |
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| Annual Tuition 2024-25 | |||
| Half Day (2.5 – 4 yo, morning session, 9:00 – 12:00):
Full Day (third-year students only, younger students admitted at the teacher’s discretion, 9:00 – 3:00): Kindergarten (5 yo by Sept. 1, 9:00 – 3:00): |
$6,500
$11,250 $9,250 |
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| Tuition Deposit | |||
| Half Day (for morning session/family):
Full Day (third-year students/family): |
$650
$1,1125 |
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| Discounts | |||
| 10% Sibling discount (applies to the lesser of two tuition rates) Only one tuition deposit required per family |
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Parent Participation Hours: 15 hrs/yr/family
In addition to our annual registration fees, tuition, and a supply fee, each family is expected to provide 15 hours of parent participation each year for the school. If families are unable to volunteer, they may opt to pay $225 in exchange for those hours or $15 per hour for the balance of hours not completed. However, we strongly encourage our families to fulfill their commitment through direct involvement — parent meetings, fundraisers, year-round jobs, and parent projects for the classroom. There are obvious benefits for the school, and building school community, but their child reaps the biggest benefit of all. Each year we also do at least one fundraiser to augment our program wherever the greatest need exists.