My Own Montessori School

My Own Montessori has been an incredible experience for our family. Our son started attending M.O.M. in 2022, and from the very beginning, we felt embraced by a caring and nurturing community. The staff at M.O.M. are not just educators; they are compassionate, dedicated individuals who genuinely care about each child's development. They have created a warm, welcoming environment that fosters independence and curiosity. The school adheres faithfully to the Montessori method, and this approach has been transformative for our son. We've seen him develop a curiosity about the world, and he is always excited to share the new knowledge he’s gained. Each year has a theme that inevitably makes its way into our home life. During the geography year, our son insisted we print out flags from different countries and hang them around the house. During the botany year, he started to germinate seeds and care for the plants at home. Once, he took some butternut squash seeds from the kitchen and successfully grew an entire plant - to my surprise! The summer school theme was the human body, and he came home talking about how the kidneys work. The curriculum is thoughtfully designed, offering a mix of structured activities and free play that keeps children engaged and eager to learn. The indoor-outdoor space at M.O.M. is beautifully maintained, providing an environment where children can explore and play freely. The school also offers organic and vegetarian snack options, which is a wonderful bonus for health-conscious families. Additionally, the community of parents is vibrant and supportive, with plenty of opportunities to connect through school events and volunteer activities. In summary, My Own Montessori is a gem of a preschool, where children are not only educated but also cherished and supported in their growth. We highly recommend M.O.M. to any family looking for a nurturing and enriching early education experience.

Currently two of my kids go to My Own Montessori and we are very happy with the school. Most importantly, my kids are happy and are thriving in their environment. We have been at 3 other schools prior with my other kids and none of them are even close to MOM in terms of the education and enrichment as well as teaching the kids independence and life skills. The head of the school and the head teacher have overseen the school for the past 10+ years. They created a very special environment where children thrive. A few notes why we love the school so much: - Education – every week parents receive a newsletter explaining what the kids do every day. Each day includes an educational activity or a project. For example, they may learn about an artist and then try to recreate their art. Last week they learned about different types of trees, calligraphy, talked about the function of leaves in a plant (they did an experiment), did a scavenger hunt looking for items with certain letter combinations. My daughter who just turned 5 learned to read simple books and is able to add single digit numbers with ease. All the education is so purposeful. The teachers are able to make every day enriching and fun. - Clean – the facilities are very clean and manicured. Even though the school is in an older building you could never tell from the inside or outside. The indoor areas are well kept and have been renovated. The outside area is very cute with a small playground, pristine white sandbox, separate art building, planter boxes, and a sizable area to run around. - Music, movement and art– Ms. Caroline plays ukulele and kids love her music and movement classes. They learn new songs every week and prep for performances a few times per year. There is a separate art building where kids can create art. The teachers initiate lots of art projects and learn about various artists. - Community involvement – the parent body is very active organizing playdates with kiddos, separate get togethers for parents (weekend hangouts, book clubs, holiday gatherings) and supporting each other when needed. There is a nice tradition of a meal train – to bring meals to those parents who just had a baby. - Teachers – MOM has high caliber teachers and most of them have been in school for years. They are all warm, energetic, calm and extremely creative. - Montessori experience – expect organized shelves with carefully curated materials that get changed every week or so. The teachers help kids learn new “work” and set up their expectations. The kids are then working independently or in small teams on their works. Every time I am at school, I am amazed how calm the kids are. Even when there are disagreements, they resolve them in a peaceful way explaining to each other how they feel while passing around their “peace heart” – it is super cute. - Top notch management – The head of the school Csilla is very professional and is amazing at keeping things organized, sending updates on upcoming important dates, newsletters, events, etc. There are multiple events throughout the school year for the kids to prep for and she sends detailed instructions and multiple reminders (super helpful). One thing I wished the school was able to change is their pickup time. The kids must be picked up at 2:45pm which can be tough for working parents. Lots of parents make it work though with one nanny picking up a few kids at the same time or relying on grandparents. Also, the kids can be dropped off at 8am which helps to prolong your workday. Early pick-up time is inconvenient but is so worth it given what our children learn and experience at this school. MOM is a hidden gem, and I don’t think you can find a better school in our area. Needless to say, we are very happy with our experience.

We were so lucky to find MOM last minute when we decided to move to Piedmont. The school inside and outside environment is great for our daughter with so many individual montessori learning activities, amazing art room, and spacious outdoor to explore. And I cannot say enough about the teachers at MOM and how amazing they are at teaching our daughter about real life topics. She comes home talking about Van Gogh, Eiffel Tower, different continents, and sing amazing songs.

We absolutely love MOM! Our 3 yr old started school at MOM in 2023 and we feel so lucky to have found this wonderful community. The teaching staff is so caring, kind, thoughtful, and attentive to all the children. They have developed an excellent curriculum filled with creative works and activities for children at this early age to learn and grow. Our daughter is thriving in the Montessori method, building her confidence, independence, and all new skills which we have seen translate at home. The school space itself is well equipped, clean, and set up in a great way to give all the students flexibility throughout their day. Could not recommend MOM enough to families considering this preschool!

I went here (Class of '92), and most people think I turned out OK. Great snacks.

My Own Montessori is a wonderful pre-school and we are so happy to be sending our 4 year old there. Here are the three pillars that I think make the school truly special: Teachers - all of the teachers are stellar, kind, brilliant people who have a clearly genuine interest in helping children learn and develop. Most of them have studied early childhood education/Montessori and their commitment shows in many ways big and small — the thoughtfulness of their curriculum, the lovely traditions around holidays, birthdays, seasons, etc. My child is really interested in visual art / painting and I especially love how the art curriculum covers some pretty sophisticated topics in art history in an engaging, accessible and age appropriate way. I think it speaks to the respect they have for children - that they are capable of learning and absorbing more than we might assume. Environment - one of the coziest, tidiest and most inviting indoor/outdoor spaces I saw in all my pre-school tours. They take Montessori pretty seriously and teach the children responsibility and discipline about keeping their spaces tidy for others to enjoy. I love how my daughter comes home and wants to treat our home the same way. It’s very thoughtful and sweet. Parent Community - this was one of the most important things for me because I think relationships with other parents going through the same life stages is really valuable, and having access to an vibrant parent community was very important for me. M.O.M. does a great job of fostering connections by providing lots of opportunities (with the help of an amazing trio of volunteer parent coordinators) to get folks together for coffee, book club, holiday parties, and more. In short we are so happy with this school and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a very thoughtful and enriching preschool experience for their little one.

Now our daughter loves going to school (she didn't like it that much before). She has many wonderful teachers that she hugs and two best friends. The academic focus is so well done, she's starting to read and loves it. She counts everything and also became very independent. The community is very supportive. We highly recommend this place <3

My son joined MOM for the 2022-23 school year. Prior to joining we were at a part time play based preschool which was wonderful but I wanted a more structured experience to help prepare him for Kindergarten. MOM has truly been a blessing, they have experienced, caring teachers who provide both group and individualized learning ina fun and engaging environment. My son has grown leaps and bounds in his critical thinking, writing and socialization skills. I am confident that when he starts kindergarten in the fall he will be well prepared.

We were introduced to My Own Montessori by a friend who sent their two children there. We looked at many schools before MOM and after our visit, we knew we had found the right school for our son. One of my first impressions during the tour was the classroom and play spaces are organized, clean and filled with a lot of Montessori materials. The teachers are well versed about early child development. They are caring, warm and friendly. The way they carry themselves and instill the Montessori approach are definitely reflected in the children. We saw children independently doing their work, asking questions and choosing their own activities without much direction. Our first impression of the school remain true in our family’s experience. My son, who is now in first grade, enjoyed the independence and being able to choose his learning space. As a curious, expressive, and indepent child, the tactile Montessori teaching materials supported my son's learning style. He was allowed to think independently with the right amount of teachers' support. Because of the small class size, the teachers were able to make note of what activities each child gravitates towards and redirect them so they get a good balance of math, language arts, science, art and outdoor play. The school provided a trusting place that is socially, physically and emotionally safe. As a parent, it's always a relief to know your child is in good hands. We see the teachers during drop off and pick up and they alway make themselves available to connect with parents and caregivers. I really enjoyed the parent volunteer opportunities at MOM. Before COVID, parents were invited to help the kids cook Stone Soup together, walk older children to the Rockridge Library for Storytime, and share presentations about their own culture and other fun topics. Being able to participate in these activities gave me a glimpse of my son's day at school and helped me understand the social dynamic in his class. I also enjoyed learning about other parents' cultural presentations through the teachers' Friday letters to parents and through my son. In our family, we believe that it is important for our son to be surrounded and exposed to the rich diverse culture of the Bay Area. My son continues to thrive socially and academically. In short, we are truly grateful for the MOM experience that helped foster his desire to learn, be an independent thinker and stay inquisitive.

We absolutely LOVE this preschool. Our older daughter attended My Own Montessori (M.O.M.) for 2 years before going to kindergarten, and we are thrilled to have our younger daughter here now. We toured several preschools, and have friends with kids who've attended many different preschools in the area, and we truly feel like we hit the jackpot with M.O.M. The teachers here are some of the most caring, warm, supportive, and invested educators you will ever meet. They truly get to know each and every child in the school, which is possible given its small size. They understand how to help each child thrive and develop a curiosity about the world around them that translates to a love of learning. As an educator myself, I can say that the amount of time and energy that these teachers put into each day is unmatched by any other preschool that I've been a part of. M.O.M. teaches the children to be independent, while feeling supported. They teach the children to share and cooperate, but also how to kindly let another child know if they'd prefer to do an activity by themself. The life skills that my children have learned at M.O.M. will serve them for years to come. Not to mention that my daughter was more than prepared for kindergarten, both socially and academically, when the time came for that big transition. In short, I would recommend this preschool to anyone and truly believe that this preschool would be a good fit for any child. The children at this school are celebrated and loved every day - and what a gift it is to have such a wonderful place to leave your young child.