Hawai'I Montessori Schools - Kamuela

This school has three factions - the toddler instructors who deserve 4-5 starts, the upper class instructors who treat parents like they are problems, and the staff, who place money ahead of the child, in striking contrast to the Montessori philosophy. The upper class teachers are authoritative, inflexible, and will never listen to parents' concerns. I never felt welcomed as a parent into the school. I expressed certain concerns such as hygiene and dental care to the teachers and they were rejected outright. And, if you are one second late for school you are not allowed to bring your child in. This ridiculous policy has cost me many work days. The teachers talk a good talk, and will no doubt convince you that they are cutting edge educators, but they actually lack heart and are worn out and tired. The Montessori philosophy is to "let the children lead", but what comes first at this school is convenience to the instructors. Another complaint would be their frequent and lengthy vacations and "work days." This is very ironic, since their staff can often be seen at the nearby Starbucks during work hours, or sneaking cigarettes across the street. Beware.
--Submitted by a parent

The problem with rating the school is that actually, your child's TEACHER matters enormously more than a rating for the school and this school had tremendous turnover in 2007. This Montessori school has a great building which is set up wonderfully for the kids and has a great playground and play yard. At Montessori the kids are allowed to choose what they want to work on. (ages 3-6) I like this philosophy for young kids. The school could and should do a better job of explaining the Montessori philosophy, the manipulatives in the classroom and especially what is expected of the parents. In my experience, what is expected of the parents is manual labour in and on and around the school. In my personal experience, they do not want parents in the classroom.
--Submitted by a parent