Montessori For All

Reviews (5)

• Re: Montessori for All reviews?

  September 2024

  I know M4A and the owner, Hulda well. We started attending when our daughter was around 18 months. She is now five and we still have her in there a couple of days a week for after school. I have also spent quite a bit of time in the classroom over the years for various reasons and have witnessed Hulda and the other teachers with the children. I love Montessori For All , and Hulda is truly on another level when it comes to working with the children. She has a deep level of respect for them and their abilities, and I’ve witnessed the positive impact she has had on my own child. I would not describe it as a flawless administrative operation. Hulda is a bit of a Luddite and the communication and administrative bit can have some hiccups. We who love her know to roll with it. If you need video feeds and structured communication, it might not be for you. Hulda also has a certain formality that can sometimes come off as stiff, but I assure you she has a deeply warm heart and I see her as a true partner, in raising my child. I think she is among the very best at her job. Truly. She is an absolute devote of Maria Montessori through and through. For her, Montessori is much more than a job - it is very much a way of life. I recommend M4A wholeheartedly.

• Review from the Spring 2024 Early Education Survey

  June 2024

  Review: The women who run Montessori for All are incredible. My daughter is happy to go to school in the morning, and it is clear that she is in an environment where she is supported, challenged, and understood for who she is and where she is developmentally. Hulda has advanced degrees in psychology and early childhood education, which is apparent in interactions with her, especially in her careful articulations around any behavioral challenges or conflict resolution (which is always deftly and gently handled). She, and the other caregivers (we love Anne!), are respectful and warm with the children and attuned to their unique needs as individuals. They are remarkably flexible, too, with scheduling, which is such a big help for parents with atypical work schedules. We feel really lucky to be a part of this community. We have had zero concerns about the care my daughter receives, but communication has, at times, been challenging. Admin is not their strong suit, which they acknowledge, but there have been some improvements since we started at MFA (they use what's app and will communicate, as needed, during the day, but photos and updates are a 'treat,' and not regular). Parents need to keep up with the calendar on the website, as school closures are not always clearly communicated. If you have questions about how long your child napped, if they ate well, etc., they will happily answer them, but do not typically give much of this type of feedback if parents do not ask. It's a magical place, though, of course, like with any school, it all comes down to fit. If you embrace the Montessori method and philosophy, are wanting a school rooted in deep understanding of child development and respect for children, and can tolerate a bit of imperfect communication, I'd highly recommend. Amenities: Has after-school options What would you change about the program, if anything, and why? Regular outdoor time. They do go to the playground on Underhill, but it does not seem to be a consistent part of the schedule. Better COVID mitigation practices. They do have an air purifier, and caregivers mask if they are feeling unwell, but this seems to be the extent of it. As parents who still practice COVID precautions, the influx of new students, which has accompanied them moving to a larger space, has given us pause.

• Montessori for All

  August 2023

  We've seen our daughter flourish in this program over the last 9 months. The first way we noticed this was different from so many other programs was that there's no scheduled nap time. The program director, Hulda, has spent her life dedicated to the craft of developing young minds. This is so clearly her passion, and she's masterful at it. She helped our daughter during a rough transition, allowing us to spend the first week coming early to the classroom to get our child comfortable with the new daycare after we moved. Each caregiver at the school deeply cares for each child. I may not get a lot of communication from the school itself, but I'd rather have someone who's full energy is on the children than someone who's focused on it as a business first. And now that my child is able to communicate what she does during the day I'm even more confident that we made the right choice. We have recommending this school to friends and will have our daughter in the program as long as she's able to be here.

• Montessori daycare in park slope, prospect heights or crown heights

  August 2022

  I love Montessori for All in Crown Heights. It’s perfect if you’re looking for something part time and flexible. Not so much if you need full time.

• Review from the Spring 2022 Early Childhood Education Survey

  July 2022

  Location: 553 Prospect Pl, Brooklyn, NY 11238 Type of facility: Daycare Review: Hulda Haughton is a true visionary deeply rooted in the teachings of Maria Montessori. She respects children and believes they are "the teacher of man". She is extremely gentle and clear with the children and her space is intentional, with beautiful toys & materials to explore. She doesn't use the word NO with the children and is expansive and gracious when it comes to explanation and redirection. The flexible hours are helpful. The downsides to this program are lack of outdoor space, little administrative updating about classroom illnesses and communication around Covid protocols could be improved. Would also love to see a price reduction in tuition when a student takes on more hours. It feels expensive at $25/hr when considering these downsides. That said, our daughter is thrilled to go to MFA each day as are most of the children we see entering the classroom space. Hulda observes many emergent details about our daughter, showing genuine interest in her personality, development, and growth. What amenities does the facility have? Has after-school options What would you change about the program, if anything? Better administrative communication (an email list with all parents could help a lot here). Clearer sense of how children are spending the day (i.e. A Brightwheel app would be great)! Lower hourly rate given lack of outdoor space- or at least a discount as families dedicate more hours to the program. Is there anything you would like to add about how the school is handling the pandemic? Would like better communication around Covid protocols.