Good Neighbor Montessori

My experience with Good Neighbor Montessori (GNM) so far has been really good.

After we had visited over ten pre-schools, we chose GNM because it was the only school that we had visited locally that allows parents to accompany their kids to their daily activities, especially in their first few weeks.

We like GNM also because it is not extremely academic focused. I dont want my son to feel bored about things he had already learned at preschool when he enters kindergarten, and forms a bad habit of not concentrating in class.

The other thing we really like about this school is that the school is very clean and well organized. They may not have the largest collection of toys, but I care more if my son can concentrate on one toy at a time.

My son started GNM when he was 33 months old. I have to say it was tough, very tough at the beginning as my son does not speak English and has never gone to any day care center before. I am so glad that I made the right choice to come to GNM. Not only because I can accompany him first few weeks to make sure that my boy get familiar with the schedule, teachers, and classmates, and to make sure he can pee, poo, and eat lunch at school. Even if he cried, it was because he missed us, not because he was frightened. But also, I am EXETREMELY happy with the quality of the teacher here based my observation. I felt they are godsend. Without them, my son would never be this happy. Starting third week, my son already told me that he likes GNM, and started to ask me English words!

Posted 11/04/09 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

I have been working at Good Neighbor Montessori since August of 2000 and don't plan on leaving anytime soon.

Most of the teachers have been here for 5 years or more, so there are no turn overs which is a great thing for children.

The Administrator is pleasant to work with. She is very educated & experienced in her field.

In my opinion, to make a school a good school, is trying to find the right teachers. But to make a school a great school, is having those right teachers, stay.

I recommend Good Neighbor Montessori not only because I work here, but also because I know that we focus on the child, their needs and the quality of our school.

Posted 10/01/08 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

"As I walked into Good Neighbor Montessori, I was in love. Finding the right Preschool for my child has been hard, I have visited many schools in the area and my heart didn't feel the way it did when I entered this one. The place is clean, the teachers are A.M.I & A.M.S trained and the director is very easy to work with. The place just feels perfect for my family.

My next move is to fill out an application and start as soon as possible. My child felt comfortable and happy here and when he is happy, I am happy."

Posted 09/20/08 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

My daughter has been there for 3 years and loves it. Teachers are great - loving and dedicated. The kids are doing the best art projects ever. Amazing curriculum - they learn about continents, different cultures, insects etc. Have New Years and Mother's day shows - all the kids sing - absolutely lovely. Good Neighbor offers Spanish and Chinese lessons for free. Kids can enroll to sports and dance class in the community center in which the preschool is. I don't have enough words to recommend this wonderful place.

Posted 07/01/08 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

When I first came to this place for my daughter, it didn't strike me as Montessori, there were few jobs out (the Montessori teaching tools). I thought I would bring my girl here and see if she likes the place, the person at the school said I need to pay the application fee. So I wrote them a check. When I got home, we realized this would not be a good fit, so the next day, I called them saying I wasn't going to bring my daughter for the visit and asked if they can destroy the check I wrote them. The person answered no problem. But later I found they have deposited the check. It is ridiculous I need to pay the application fee for my daughter to have a visit, and even worse, they lied so they can collect application fees. You should be careful when you visit the place, I feel the people are not being honest.

This isn't a right place if you are looking for Montessori. I watched a kid there playing with a Montessori job, the kid was not doing it the right way, and teachers did not say anything about it.

Posted 02/14/08 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

I've visited this preschool 3 times last year. First time it looked really good, very clean and with lots of extra curricular activities (dance, gym, piano ...), they really take advantage of the nice location in Cubberly Center.
So I've quickly decided to pay 100$ for what I thought it was to secure a spot, but it turned out to be just a fee for the next observation visit ...
So in the next 2 observation visits something really puzzled me, the rooms were sparkling clean, but there weren't too many materials on the shelves! The kids were behaving somehow different from what I was expecting from a Montessori school, I've seen only one kid trying a Montessori job in 2 visitis! The morning activities were plain computer printed "jobs" that I can print at home too ... The Spanish circle was like a first lesson, it was given by the head teacher that I'm not sure how much Spanish knows anyway ... She is the only Montessori teacher in that room, so that might explain why they are not doing too much Montessori stuff.
But if you are not really interested in the Montessori approach, the school is again very clean and with lots of extra curricular activities in Cubberly Center, so that's the reason I'm still giving 3 stars. It's a Good Neighbor, but not quite Montessori...

Posted 01/23/07 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

I went on a tour for this school as I was considering it for my daughter. I liked the concept of Montessori so I decided to check this one out. The place looked neat and clean and the kids over there seemed to be enjoying the activities. They had a nice play area. The staff looked Ok...not all that great.

Posted 05/30/06 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?

My son attended this school for two years. We were very happy with the teachers, facilities and curriculum. It offers a nice blend of structured and unstructured activities. The art projects are also really neat. The program is more geared toward full-time enrollment, so it can seem a little costly for part-time. We feel the program prepared our son well for Kindergarten and he enjoyed his time there fully.

Posted 04/26/06 | Report Abuse

Was this review helpful to you?