ENROLLMENT

Enrollment procedures for Cornerstone Montessori School are as follows:

Families interested in enrollment at Cornerstone Montessori School are encouraged to call the school office to obtain an information packet. After review of the enrollment packet, families are invited to call the school office to set up an appointment to visit our school and observe in our classrooms. We recommend that this first observation be made without children, so you might have the opportunity to discover what Montessori education is truly about. Observations times vary, but are typically scheduled during the months of October, November, February, March, and April. Observations are approximately one hour to one hour and thirty minutes in length.

At the time of your visit, we will provide you with an observation packet. After your observation, you are welcome to complete the enrollment application card if you opt to enroll your child at that time or take the enrollment application with you and return it at a later date. In order to secure your child a place on our enrollment wait list, a non-refundable application fee of $175 must accompany the enrollment card. Cornerstone's enrollment procedures are on a first-come, first-served basis according to Program availability, age of child, and date enrollment application was received. Typically, a child will not be placed on the enrollment wait list until after the parent/guardian has completed a classroom observation. Siblings of current or former Cornerstone students are given priority consideration, however, an enrollment application card must be completed in order for the sibling to be placed on the enrollment wait list.

Cornerstone has traditionally taken a proactive role in evaluating our programs and enrollment policy to ensure that the child's best interest is met. Our Toddler Program is a full-time (8:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.) program designed to accommodate up to ten toddlers ages 18 months until 3 years old, at which time they will be transitioned into our preschool program. We designed this program as such, to form a small community and provide consistency for these children. Currently we are working towards enrolling children in our preschool program at age 3 rather than 2-1/2 and prefer that children continue attending our program through Kindergarten. Our policy is to enroll children in our Montessori preschool program for a minimum of two years and then attend our Kindergarten program at age 5. We believe that this provides a consistent and good foundation for emotional, social, and educational growth of a child. Montessori education is designed to teach children in multi-aged classrooms in a three-year cycle. We strongly believe that it is in the best interest of a child to provide consistency for the child. While we understand and respect that each family must make decisions based on what will work best for your family, we find it necessary to convey our viewpoint and inform prospective families of the possibility of forfeiting the tuition deposit should a family decide to withdraw their child from our school prior to the end of the child's Kindergarten year. Please refer to the attached article for further information on the three year cycle. Options for our minimum programs are either 4 Half Days or 3 Full Days.

Upon receipt of the enrollment application, the application is processed, the child's name is placed on the wait list, and the family will be notified of a projected start time for the child. Families will receive Cornerstone Montessori School's newsletter (during the academic school year) and are welcomed to attend any of the social activities the school has planned. This will help the child become familiar with his/her new environment.

We will contact the family at least one month prior to the child's start date, to schedule time for him/her to visit the classroom and become acquainted with his/her 'new' surroundings. We typically schedule visits for one week, at a time that is close to the time of enrollment. A Parent Orientation conducted by our Director will be scheduled prior to the child's start date, to discuss Cornerstone's policies and procedures and to address any questions/concerns.

The Three Year Cycle

Dr. Maria Montessori believed that schools should give children the sense of belonging to a family and help them learn how to live with other human beings. By creating a bond among parents, teachers, and children, Maria Montessori sought to create a community. In this community individuals could learn to be empowered and children could learn to be a part of families; to trust one another, and to find ways to be properly assertive rather than aggressive. Children that are able to remain in the same classroom for two or three years are able to develop a strong sense of community with their classmates and teachers.

Each age group corresponds to a developmental state of childhood. Around the world, one can find Montessori programs for children in all stages of development: infancy (8 week - 1.3 years), toddler(1.3 - 2.6 year), primary/early childhood (2.6 - 6 years), lower elementary/middle childhood (6 - 9 years), upper elementary/late childhood (9 - 12 years), middle school/early adolescence (12 - 15 years), and secondary/late adolescence (15-18 years). Each level's curriculum and program offer a very logical and consistent extension of what has come before.

Because children in the same developmental stage work to accomplish the same developmental goals, it makes sense for children in the same plane of development to be together within one classroom. Younger children benefit from older role models, and older children gain leadership skills and empathy by working with younger children. The academic materials that were developed by Dr. Montessori have adaptations that can lead a very young child as well as an experienced older child through successful exploration and academic accomplishment. At each level of development, the program and curriculum are logical and highly consistent extensions of what has come before. Thus, there is a never ending educational benefit for the child in that particular classroom.

Cornerstone Montessori School holds this concept with deep regard and we are continually strategizing to facilitate children staying with the same peer group and teachers until their Kindergarten year. When a child is first enrolled at Cornerstone, a determination of appropriate classroom placement is made for each individual child based upon the program needs of the family. There are family circumstances that may change in the course of time that may necessitate a re-evaluation of the best classroom situation for a child, but a classroom change prior to a student's Kindergarten year is rare, with the exception of Summer Camp. There is a possibility that your child will be placed in a different classroom during our Summer Camp as it is a true "summer camp" experience that consolidates programs in order to take advantage of outdoor activities that are only available during the summer. This consolidation of programs also provides us with the opportunity to involve older students (grades 2 -4) and our summer interns (ages 12-15).

Overall, Dr. Montessori's insights about developmental stages and multi-age classrooms have proven effective. Public elementary schools are implementing similar policies where the teacher moves up a grade level with the children or by combining two or three grade levels. This provides better instruction by building on what the students learned the previous year and eliminates the period of time spent having to 'get to know each other' every year. Cornerstone Montessori School offers a unique and important environment where children can establish a positive foundation and an enthusiastic joy of learning, become familiar with classroom routines, build social strong social relationships, and complete three years within the same school.