Fort Collins Montessori School

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: February 24, 2022

We cannot in good conscience recommend this school, especially the primary program, to families. We absolutely love our lower elementary teacher, which was the one bright spot at this school. We’d heard some horror stories from other families about the administration, but honestly our love of the Montessori method blinded us to some glaring issues at this school (we transferred from a wonderful out of state AMI program), and we’d hoped we’d be the exception at this school.

Our horror story started with the police being called on our primary aged child, because him and another child decided to “explore their body parts” (as experts note is common especially among the 3-6 age range) but it did not stop there. The school continued to escalate the issue after concerns were brought up on how the issue was being addressed and showed little empathy or understanding towards the families who had shared to the school that their response had been extremely traumatizing. We brought in a childhood therapist to the school to help the school better handle developmentally normal behaviors for this age group. The feedback we received from this licensed medical professional was she only received arguments from the school about their credentials to diagnose “concerning” behaviors. This is in line with the sort of complaints we were hearing from other parents, that ANY behavioral concerns were treated with a completely inappropriate response and parents who’ve brought up concerns to the administration were treated with a dismissive and almost passive aggressive attitude from the head of school. This has resulted in a rather high turnover rate in recent years in both students and staff.

Posted: February 24, 2022

Posted: May 10, 2019

Year to year, teacher assignment remained the same. If you get a less effective teacher, for some reason the children stay with that same teacher the next year. This is great if you have a good teacher. We did not.

Posted: May 10, 2019

Posted: May 10, 2019

Paul, at the time we went through, has more interest in perception than reality of what is going on at the school.

Posted: May 10, 2019

This is ironic, considering the Montessori methods. The teacher and leadership we had for 2 years could not break out of their mindset of how they think a child should learn.

Posted: May 10, 2019

Posted: May 10, 2019

no homework was given in preschool or kindergarten level

Posted: May 10, 2019

We had a very poor experience here (2017 to 2019) which I attribute mainly to teachers and leaders not listening to us as parents as well as their "one-size-fits-all" approach to teaching and discipline. This is highly irregular for a Montessori school. My daughter attended for preschool and kindergarten. Upon her arrival for preschool, she could read at a first grade level and was working on addition and subtraction tables. By the end of kindergarten, her teacher did not realize that my daughter could already read. She continued to progress in reading but made zero progress in math. My little one has some significant issues, signs of possible autism, but the teacher and director could only fixate on behavior problems. Despite these problems, which were present, they refused to listen to us as parents when we would tell them what WORKS to help the little one to center, focus, and de-escalate. As inexperienced as the teacher and director were, they could not help but take a constant patronizing and condescending tone in all communication. First grade now at a different location, and so far FCMS is the worst my kids have attended. So disappointing.

Posted: April 22, 2017

We were drawn to the concept of a public Montessori school. The folks at this school are caring and very helpful. Not just good teachers for the children but a great resource to parents.

Posted: January 22, 2017

After struggling with many issues during our oldest son's 1st grade year at the neighborhood school we were recommended to look into Fort Collins Montessori School. My 2nd grader is thriving in this amazing environment that they have created at Fort Collins Montessori School. We were lucky to also get my preschooler into the school. It is worth any parents time to come check it out and ask questions because in today's world we need more positive encouragement and influences which you will find at this school plus a lot more great benefits.

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 22, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Posted: January 20, 2017

Fort Collins Montessori School is a true community and teaches community. Our children love going to school...a teastment to an academic environment that engages and inspires children to seek and learn. Very satisfied! One of my most loved principles of Montessori is "with freedom comes responsibility." I imagine a future of generations that embrace this and live it. My kids are learning it from a very young age thanks to FCMS.

Posted: January 20, 2017

Our son is thriving at this school. We couldn't be happier with the quality of his education.

Posted: January 19, 2017

My daughter is thriving at FCMS. The academics have been strong, but it's much more than that. Based on what she is learning about community, conflict resolution, and leadership, she and I have amazing conversations that have literally improved the way that I show up in my own work place. It's wonderful to be growing my own life skills from what she is learning at school. I can't say enough good about the staff and the entire FCMS community.

Posted: February 9, 2016

Fort Collins Montessori School is truly a wonderful place. The staff and teachers are the best you'll find - passionate about educating in the Montessori method; caring and compassionate towards the students; easy to work with, communicative, and responsive. We absolutely love it here!

Posted: February 9, 2016

Posted: February 9, 2016

Posted: February 9, 2016

Posted: January 30, 2016

As a family with 3 children attending Fort Collins Montessori, we could not be more pleased. We have one child in the preschool and two in Lower Elementary. All three of our childrens' teachers are incredible- knowledgeable, caring, understanding- I cannot say enough wonderful things about them. Our children previously attended Montessori schools in other cities, so we were well-versed in Montessori methods. Our high expectations for Fort Collins Montessori have been exceeded in every way possible. This school is a gem!

Posted: January 30, 2016

Posted: January 30, 2016

In Montessori, work is done at school. You won't see homework unless the student is working on a project or needs just a little bit of extra time on a particular skill.

Posted: January 30, 2016

Posted: January 30, 2016

Posted: January 30, 2016

The kids do not receive homework as a regular part of the program. I can't say enough about how amazing this is. It hones their focus toward the time they are at school, and allows us to have a great balance of family time and time for other important activities without wearing ourselves thin. It's also funny because my kids often repeat their lessons at home out of their own natural desire to continue what they are learning. I hear this from many other parents as well.

Posted: January 30, 2016

Montessori has a strong emphasis on the classroom as a community, and integrates these elements daily. Also, when children have the ability to move freely around a classroom they encounter far more opportunities to engage in small interactions with each other where they can hone their skills in sharing, taking turns, and negotiating the vast situations that arise.

Posted: January 30, 2016

We are so happy with Fort Collins Montessori School and our kids' amazing teachers. We couldn't hope for more caring people to entrust with our children's well-being and education. They make such an effort to really know each child and it shows. The depth of education the children get to experience is so comprehensive, and many projects seamlessly integrate three or more elements at a time. The standards and expectations, while flexible and tailored to each individual child, are also very high in terms of helping each child achieve to the utmost of their abilities. Montessori is a unique combination of freedom and responsibility, and focuses on the development of self-control and intrinsic motivation, which can only really happen within a realm of freedom and choice.
The mixed age classroom, which honestly was one of the elements I was most skeptical about, is actually a huge advantage. It fosters respect, understanding, and motivation, and adds to the notion that everybody is learning at their own pace and thus minimizes competition and comparisons to others.
The school in general also does a great job reaching out to parents, understanding that most of us are coming from traditionally educated backgrounds. Thus in some ways many of us are learning alongside our children.
In short, we love seeing our children engage in this process of learning with joy and excitement, and are looking forward to seeing what the future brings as our kids progress through this program.