For Parents and Carers

Whether you are a parent or another carer, choosing a school, already enrolled, or wondering whether any of this applies to your own home, start wherever matches your actual question.

New to Montessori? Start with Understanding the Stages: the four planes of development everything else on this site refers back to.

Choosing a school? Choosing a School covers what the word “Montessori” does and doesn’t guarantee, what to actually look for on a visit, and the questions worth asking directly.

Already Montessori, want to extend it at home? Montessori at Home covers practical life and a prepared environment, and explains why none of it requires buying a shelf of specialist materials.

Have a specific question or heard a specific claim? FAQ and Myth-Busting answers the questions that come up most often, including the ones where the honest answer is that it is not known yet.

Want the vocabulary straight? Glossary defines the terms used throughout this site and most Montessori schools.

Want to read further? Further Reading reviews three popular Montessori books with an even hand. It covers what each is good for, and where each falls short.

Want one free thing to try at home? Ten Quiet Minutes is a printable sheet for sitting with your child for ten minutes and noting what they choose, repeat and leave, and what you wanted to do and did not. It has not yet been tested with families.