Activities

We work on basic skills such as sitting at circle time, waiting for a turn, phonics and pre-academics, academics, socialization, problem-solving, language development, and courtesy.
We also offer Spanish, music, art, gardening, stories, movement and dance, science, and arts and crafts.
We provide a lunch program during which the children take turns setting the table for all their friends and ringing the bells to call them to lunch. The children love this!
We also study “The Nutcracker” and attend a local performance when possible, which is enriching and fun during the holidays. We participate in the Charlie Brown Tree for the Town of Windsor and have a special tree that the children decorate every year.  We like to have a short holiday performance singing our songs in front of the tree. We support  you if you celebrate other holidays, and would love for you to share with us! At the end of the school year, we have a formal tea party, complete with porcelain china and classical music to practice all the good manners we have learned and to dress in our fancy clothes!!! The year ends with a Fun Promotion Ceremony with Caps and tassels and a pot luck with a little performance!

Outside play yard and covered deck   We have a FUN shady, double-gated  outside yard with slides, a climbing dome, easel painting, swings and flower gardens for the children to care for. With a large covered deck, we can play outside almost every day, rain or shine.We spend as much time outside as possible often incorporating an outdoor classroom to include work jobs and circle time outside.

The Classroom

is prepared to encourage maximum age-appropriate independence. The children choose individual work activities from the shelf, and put them back when finished completing the cycle and learning age-appropriate responsibility. They learn to care for their classroom and to clean up after themselves with child size tools. This enables them to feel the pride of true competence, and promote positive self-esteem as a basis for learning.

Multi-ages in the classroom are good for everyone. The younger children learn so much from the older ones and the older ones get a huge boost of confidence as they help the younger ones. When they start as the youngest and stay until Kindergarten it is an amazing process! Their confidence soars at the perfect time, just as they move on into Kindergarten where they will again be the youngest in the school.

We have excellent Kindergarten preparation, and many parents choose to keep their children here for an extra year instead of a TK program because of the quality of the education they receive here. We have such small groups and individualized instruction with teachers that really know them as individuals, and the children master the skills they will need academically, emotionally, and socially. We help them prepare for the changes they are going to experience, practicing centers, bells, standing in line, and raising hands. Our graduates have flourished! We have children who graduate to public schools, Cali Calmecac and other charter schools, private schools like Sonoma Country Day School, The Healdsburg School, and many others as families often commute from other cities to attend Montessori Fun.

Spanish Every Day With a fun Spanish lesson every day we offer perfect preparation for Kinder at Cali Calmecac or another Spanish Immersion school. Si usted no habla Engles, no preocupa. Podemos ayudar y traducir para los ninos y ellos van a estar hablando Engles muy rapido! Es buen experiencia para todos.

FAQ’s

Does my child need to be potty trained?
It is preferred, however, if they are not there 100% we can help and support you.
Are parents required to volunteer time?
No, but you are welcome to volunteer if you like
When will my child start to read?
Many children do learn basic phonetic reading before they graduate into Kindergarten, but not every child is ready And that is OK! We offer lots of fun academic preparation
What sets Montessori Fun apart from other preschools?
The small setting of only 12 children per day ( amazing 4:1 ratio) with the same teachers, the joyous Spanish program, the experience and expertise of the teachers, and the excellent reputation of the school. The home setting is a perfect bridge from home to school.
What happens if my child has separation issues?
This is very normal, and if the parent is secure in their decision the child will begin to recover quickly. We will help them to get involved and hold them if they will let us if they are crying, and you can always text us to check on them. A short and sweet goodbye ritual really helps, sometimes it helps to bring a small love object from home. It usually doesn’t last even two weeks, there are just too many fun things to do here!

A day in the life of Montessori Fun

Daily Schedule (subject to changes for weather and the unexpected )
8:30 Arrival Transition– Short and sweet good byes are easiest! (Text us for quick updates on how your child is doing.) Playdough, art projects and outside play. Try not to be late- they need this transitional play time.
9:00 Ring Bell, line up, take roll, come inside, change into slippers.
9:15 First Circle(English) ABC’s Letter of the Week Sharing, stories, calendar, jobs, lessons and presentations.
9:30 Free choice work time, including snack.  Bathroom reminders (we remind little ones every hour or as needed).
10:30 Second Circle Fun Spanish songs, games, and stories, new work presentations.
11:00 Outside play
11:30  Morning children go home, full day children stay,  Outside play
12:00 Afternoon class joins. Wash hands and lunch program -two children set the table for everyone and we hold hands and sing a simple “Bon Apetite” song in the language chosen by the flag helper. We practice good manners and pleasant conversations or stories and stay sitting throughout the meal. So much to learn!
12:30 They take turns clearing their place and washing their dishes (we put them in the dishwasher later). Outside play
1:00 Afternoon class with a long story, circle time followed by small group lessons kindergarten preparation and individual work time or outside play.
2:15 Wash hands, have snack and a story outside
2:30 Children go home

The classroom is a peaceful place, on most days anyway, a place of working and quiet for concentration, or relative quiet amid the singing, and happy chatting between the children. They learn good study habits and responsibility when they choose and carry the work from the shelves to a table or rug, do the work job respectfully, and return it ready for the next person. They clean up any spills with “drying cloths” available to them and return the cloth to the basket when finished. The children learn to sit ,”criss-cross applesauce” and to listen at circle, with practice.   We use inside voices and we save pretend and loud running games for outside and respect our special classroom environment. Montessori work is grounded in reality. But children also like to pretend and play and are free do so the rest of the day and outside.

The children love having a place of their own to care for, and their classroom is just for them! They have small chairs, small utensils to clean up with, fun things set up for them to do within a consistent structure they can count on. They love it here!

With only 12 children per day, the children really reap the benefit of the low ratio with individually based  curriculum. We have excellent kindergarten prep and often parents choose to keep them here instead of a transitional kindergarten (TK) program to benefit from what we have to offer.