For the Montessori aspect, yes, there are a bunch of “Montessori” schools that don’t really follow Montessori principles (at least there are in my area.) If you want to find a school that does actually implement Montessori principles, you have to do research (looking for membership in an association like the American Montessori Society is a good first-pass filter) and interview the school. There’s no substitute for due diligence for this.
My wife, a Montessori preschool teacher for 30 years, calls these unaccredited schools Monte-sort-of.
Appreciate these comments! My wife and I just started researching Montessori schools in our area (socal). Didn’t know about the AMS, will absolutely check that. And now we know we need a rubric to measure from Montessori to Monte-sort-of :)
My wife, a Montessori preschool teacher for 30 years, calls these unaccredited schools Monte-sort-of.