Wellan Montessori School

80 Crescent Avenue

Newton, MA 02459

53 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK, K-6
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on September 09, 2024

My child is in Kindergarten at Wellan, and this is our 4th year at the school. She is excited to go to school every day, loves her teachers, and is excited to learn new things. I'm most impressed by the fact that many of the teachers and administrators have been with the school for more than 5 years (some more than 15), which says a lot about a school's culture. We initially started in the beginner program as an alternative to daycare, and we are now looking at staying through 8th grade because of the skills she has gained, the excitement she has, and the school's commitment to a strong academic education that meets students at their level.
Submitted by parent on June 26, 2024

As a parent to two students in Wellan's Elementary program who started at the school when they were 15 months old, I have been continually impressed by the school culture as well as the challenging and individualized curriculum. My students are not only gaining a solid academic foundation but also a deep understanding of who they are as people and learners. They are building strong executive functioning skills and learning to advocate for themselves confidently and articulately, all the while feeling seen and supported within the close-knit school community. I don't have any doubts that when they graduate from Wellan, they will be academically prepared for high school and equipped to navigate the challenges of adolescence with empathy and resilience.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2024

This is our first year at Wellan, and first school experience, and it has been a great year so far. We chose Wellan because of our interest in the Montessori method of education, but also because it felt like more than daycare – it’s truly a school and one our 3-year-old can grow up in for many years. The classrooms are beautiful – clean and bright. Everything is tailored to the children and facilitating their independence (such as child height counters, tables, and shelves, eye level artwork, child size sinks and toilets). They establish great routines and consistent schedules which has even helped with creating routines as home. The communication between families and teachers is great. They are very responsive to e-mails and for the younger children, updates are sent on a daily basis. The curriculum is engaging, and they incorporate seasonal or other relevant topics throughout the year. Parents are even invited to come share on a topic once a week. The feedback from the teachers at parent-teacher check-ins is very thorough.Throughout the enrollment process the staff answered all of my questions and they even accommodated separate tours for my husband and I when our schedules didn’t coincide. I knew what to expect at each step and it was an overall smooth process. As a new parent I have felt very welcomed into the school community, with lots of opportunities to meet other families and the staff. I don’t feel judgement for not being “perfectly Montessori” and in fact they have an educational series just for families and caregivers who want to learn more about Montessori and incorporating it at home. Throughout the year the school and the Parent Association hold many events and activities where you can meet other families or parents. There are “fireside chats” with the head of school, student performances, community service events, and many others. Everyone at Wellan is warm, welcoming, and you can absolutely tell they have a passion for what they do.
Submitted by parent on September 08, 2022

This schools is the best. There is a strong, welcoming community of teachers, parents and staff. The students grow up to be well-rounded, emotionally balanced, open-minded and academically very strong. Cannot recommend it enough! My daughter started here as a toddler and she is now in lower elementary school. She loves her school, her teachers and her friends. The school’s philosophy is deeply rooted in Montessori but not limited to it. There are also many opportunities for extracurricular / afterschool activities including drama woodworking and athletics. The school would benefit from more green outdoor space.
Submitted by parent on March 29, 2021

Our son is flourishing at Wellan. He joined as a Kindergartener and is finishing first grade this year. Yes, academically he is doing really great; the Montessori approach is a good fit for him and as a result he is progressing faster than he probably would under a more typical pedagogy. But what makes us so happy - and why we would not consider any other school at this point - is his love for school and his social and emotional development. He is happy heading off to school in the morning and he is full of ideas and accomplishments and interactions to share when he comes back. Socially, he is learning progressive values and becoming a more gracious, caring, and empathetic person. He had struggled with this before Wellan but we're seeing a kinder side of him develop. It feels great to know that his moral compass is being tuned both at home and at school. Emotionally he is learning to recognize and manage his emotions better, especially frustration and impatience. Sure, it's nice to see your kid doing well academically in 1st grade, but that love for school and that social and emotional development is what gives us confidence that he will be able to navigate and succeed in school and life as he gets older. And that's what I think a really great education and a really great school prepares your child for: a happy, healthy and successful life on their own terms.How does Wellan do it? They have great leadership all the way to the very top with Beth Black - an ambitious vision, a pragmatic plan and a steady hand. They hire great teachers - not only skilled but also committed and caring. And the parent community is invested and committed. As a parent in this community, let me ask that if you think of yourself as a "customer", please do not join our community. This is a school where parents, teachers and the administration strive to partner and achieve goals together. There's a lot of pride in how the whole school came together to continue teaching in person through COVID. I'm grateful for it. Rather than fall behind this year my son had one of the years ever! It takes real direction from leadership, tireless effort from the teachers and commitment from the parents to make it all work - the protocols, the communication, the trust, the sacrifices. Despite unusual and challenging circumstances Wellan really showed its character.
Submitted by parent on March 15, 2021

Wellan is a young school, and that comes with its own set of strengths and challenges. That said, my child has attended for the last three years and is now in the upper elementary program. I've been impressed with the school's ability to create a quasi-normal and highly engaging environment during COVID - he has been in person and continued to make forward progress both academically and socially. He LOVES going to school, loves his teachers - especially some of his specials teachers - and his creativity has blossomed here. He feels like he belongs, and he feels like his teachers care about him. This helps him buy in to his whole day. His classroom cohort is strong, and his teachers are supportive and communicative. I'm so grateful to the school and the families for keeping our kids safe, engaged and positive!
Submitted by parent on October 14, 2019

we are a current family at wellan montessori, and we cannot wait to leave next year. we had read a review once from another parent that classrooms are like islands there and that is true. some are great some are terrible.A couple of years ago during our child's first primary year there the teachers were cool, we invited them to our house and they both came to dinner with their families, although we found out later on that that was not allowed!!when it was time for our second child to enter primary the teachers barely say hi, we have not spoken two words since the beginning of the year and we have no idea what is going on in the classroom or with our child. there is so much inconsistency between classrooms, between teachers and between teaching styles.not to mention the bullying incidences in the upper classes that were never addressed that the families ended up leaving.the entire place is completely unprofessional, there is so much inequality in the way they treat the children and the families
Submitted by parent on August 21, 2019

The best thing about our experience was leaving the school.Montessori in its essence can be a wonderful educational philosophy, but only bad people would send their kids to this school.
Submitted by parent on April 05, 2019

Fake, money-hungry principal and staff unwilling to address parents' concerns.Poor quality of some teachers - awkward, don't know how to communicate with parents, always running around nervous
Submitted by parent on February 25, 2019

Our son is in his second year of the beginners program at NMS and has had an amazing experience. He is our youngest of three and our first to attend NMS. We have been amazed from the start with so many aspects of the classroom - from the thought and care put into each work station to the love and patience with which the teachers guide the children through their days to become loving, thoughtful, and respectful members of a community. The whole experience has been rewarding - for our son who goes to school happy and comes home excited - and for his family as we watch him grow into an independent little member of our community.
Submitted by parent on January 23, 2019

Our daughter is in her 4th year at Newton Montessori School, and we couldn't be happier. NMS provides a natural balance in fostering intellectual curiosity, social and emotional awareness and growth, independence, and collaborative learning. Our daughter's teachers know her exceptionally well, and as such, are able to challenge her in the most personal of ways. We trust the teachers and administration completely; and are so thankful she is in a school that harmoniously teaches to the mind and heart, ensuring that our future is filled with intelligent, thoughtful, and caring humans to lead the next generation.
Submitted by parent on January 17, 2019

This is our son's third year at the school and our daughter began this September. Newton Montessori is incredible! From the parent community to the quality of the teaching, this school really is the best in the area. First off, the education: our son is in his second year of Lower Elementary (akin to 2nd grade in a traditional school) and is excelling in all academic content areas. He is doing multiplication with products in the ten-millions place, reading at nearly a 5th grade level, and is very interested in science at the moment. The Montessori method is, hands-down, the best educational approach - especially to get kids ready for their experience in the work force in 10-15 years from now. Traditional schools (even fancy private ones) are stuck in the past as far as educational approaches that will give kids relevant skills for work and life after school. Basically traditional schools were created in order to create factory workers who can follow instructors and respond when given instructions. That's not what I want for my kids! Montessori is based on the idea that kids (everyone, actually) creates meaning from, and are active participants in, their own educational experiences. My son (and all kids I've seen at the school) has an amazing amount of responsibility for his own learning. In Elementary, my son is learning time management, scheduling, goal-setting, and getting to know himself as a learner. He is responsible for what, how, and when he learns and the teachers hold him accountable to complete the work he plans on accomplishing. This school is great at encouraging in-depth, high-level academic achievement, but in an environment that is low-stress, collaborative, and highly supportive for kids. At Newton Montessori, teachers are not there for crowd control or to try and get students to "behave;" they constantly and actively engage with each student, every day, to help them become more aware of their academic, social, and emotional progress. It's an amazing school! Our daughter is in the youngest division and she positively loves it. She just turned 3 and every day she gives me a kiss goodbye and then runs into the class (not kidding!) with the teacher and doesn't even look back. This is the best school in the area for sure - for little ones all the way through elementary and middle school.
Submitted by parent on January 10, 2019

Our daughter started at New Montessori School in 2018 and the experience has been amazing for all of us. The school puts forth a blend of academic learning, life skills, and thoughtful regard for community that is second to none. The NMS community is comprised of passionate individuals from faculty, staff, and families that work very hard to foster an environment of responsibility, respect, and inclusion. The result of their collective continued efforts is a very special place that is life-enhancing to everyone involved. Students are being prepared for the next stages of life both in and out of the classroom; all while having fun and making new friends. Our daughter is happy and thriving; and as active parents and supporters of Newton Montessori School, so are we.
Submitted by parent on May 01, 2018

We have loved having our family be part of the Newton Montessori community over the past six years. The school just gets better and better every year, as five years of new leadership has led to renewed rigor in the curriculum and increased sense of community among both the children and their parents. Montessori principles are coupled with a progressive educational philosophy in a way that helps children thrive, while doing a great job of preparing them for the next step on their learning journey when the time comes to transition to their next school. Can't say enough about the terrific individual attention each of the students get. This has helped reinforce strengths and overcome weaknesses, all within a supportive community that helps the children along their developmental path with a proper sense of right, wrong & the value of community.
Submitted by parent on December 02, 2017

We have found Newton Montessori School to be a great experience both for our children and for us as parents. NMS not only takes children starting at 15-months but actually has Montessori certified infant/toddler teachers to go with that. When we started looking for schools for our first child, what stood out about NMS was exactly that. Most of the other Montessori schools in the area didn't accept children who were under 2.5 years old. And that was not because our child was too young to start school, but because the other schools simply weren't accredited, equipped or staffed to teach younger children. We probably have two of the most active boys ever - to put it gently, and our teachers from the Beginners classes through the Primary classes have always reported to us about any and all incidents - in both the most professional manner as well as at the most personal level. Between the formally written up standard incident reports and the side chats with our teachers during pick-ups after school, we've never been in the dark about a single boo-boo on our two boys. Also the infant/toddler certified teacher in my first son's Beginners class is still at NMS and it's been almost 5 years and going. The larger NMS community is a welcoming and supportive environment with a wide range of offerings for the family - from the admissions phase when we were paired with a host family walking us through all the important things, to the listening calls with our sons' classroom teachers where we get to give every little detailed feedback and the teachers listen and follow up, to the in-school workshops on topics like Montessori education, your-student-as-your-teacher and the curriculum. And all of that is above and beyond the fulfilling days that our children have at school - from field trips to go apple picking, to the innovative makers lab and its endless projects, to woodworking classes, and drama classes, and reading/writing/science workshops (cannot emphasize enough their handwriting-without-tears program), and of course the specials every week (Spanish, library, music, art, gym). As a school, NMS has honed in on a great balance of work and play in the classrooms and the extracurriculars for the children, our sons spend every weekend and long weekend and vacation counting the days when they will be back at school.
Submitted by parent on October 05, 2017

This is our 6th year at NMS, our boys have both gone through primary and into lower elementary and our eldest is currently in upper elementary. We love NMS, there is a family community there like no other. NMS is multi-culturally rich and there are many international families, all of who's cultures and traditions are welcomed within the classroom so that each child is celebrated for who they are and where they come from. If you are looking for a school that places emphasis on learning at your own pace, celebrating a child's curiosity, being part of a multi age classroom where the kids work together in groups facilitating peer learning and teaching and where teachers are wholeheartedly invested in your child then this is the school for you. Having the same class teacher for multiple years builds strong relationships and an unsurpassed level of investment in your child along with fabulous specials teachers who follow your child through the years. I cannot tell you how many times a teacher (both class and specials) has come running through the hallways to find me at pick up to share what one of my boys achieved that day. Both of my boys can't wait to go to school each morning, they love to learn and are both genuinely upset when the summer starts. I really wish I had had an NMS education because I sure as heck didn't run into school every morning as a kid wanting to be there! In a world filled with so much craziness, NMS is an oasis of happiness and community, what a great start to an education journey :-)
Submitted by parent on May 30, 2017

Our son entered NMS at 3.5 and has been in the same multi-year Primary classroom for multiple years since then. He entered from an elite daycare in Boston, and he's leaving to enter his choice of leading private elementary schools (he chose Meadowbrook)--suffice to say he has been lucky to see great schools. Nonetheless, we believe there couldn't have been a better primary classroom than NMS for him anywhere else in the world.As parents (one of us is a professor and the other a business professional), we chose NMS for the quality of education we believed it would provide our son. It has been all we hoped and more. The environment is nurturing, supportive, attentive, loving, and has taught him to love--truly love--learning. His primary teachers, Ms. Ashley and Ms. Judy, along with every single "specials" teacher and staff member, have been great. We understand why he loves learning at NMS, because--quite frankly--we do too! We wish we got to spend as much time there as our son does.We were also drawn to the school by the strong leader it has in Beth Black. She is both personally, deeply involved in everything at the school _and_ a true thought leader. In our opinion, her unique perspective on how to mix Montessori and progressive education is what makes NMS such a powerful place to learn. Over the years we've been there, we have been meaningfully guided by the messages she delivered in her annual speeches to the parent population--not something we would have expected to say when we entered. Indeed, when we entered, we did so on a leap of faith that some of the comments we saw here were old enough that they reflected an old version of NMS that no longer existed. We've found that to be true. Indeed, none of the present parents we know at the school have had any of the kinds of negative experiences that are mentioned in some of the older reviews. Part of the reason we decided to write this review (we don't often do so) is because we wanted to help others on that front.All told, we have been fantastically impressed and delighted. We doubt our son would have been accepted to the great schools he was without NMS. Our departure is bittersweet. If we have another child, there is no question where we would want her/him to spend the primary years--NMS.
Submitted by parent on January 12, 2017

We've been thoroughly impressed with this school and its current administration. Thus far the door is always open to hearing parents concerns. There is an active Parents Association and an active Board of Trustees. The school truly embodies Montessori values and you truly feel as though everyone has your child's best interest in mind. Where else can you send your child to school and the teachers, staff and head of school not only greet your child but give your child a hug? I can't speak for the previous administrations flaws but I can say with certainty that if you're looking for a warm, loving and nurturing environment coupled with a rigorous (but not stressful) academic experience - this is the school!
Submitted by teacher on June 19, 2016

I have been a member of the Newton Montessori School (NMS) community since 2008—first as a teacher and then as a teacher/parent. The school has changed leadership a couple of times in my years at the school, but one thing that has never wavered is the closeness of the staff and the way the children are cared for. Having started working at the school fresh out of college and with a summer of Montessori training under my belt, I felt intimidated to work alongside such incredible and experienced teachers. Instead of making me feel like I was too young and not good enough (which is how I felt), I was nurtured, taught, and guided by many teachers who are still there today. As the years have gone by, the school continues to support me in both my professional and personal lives; if something unexpected comes up, I never feel like I need to worry that I will be reprimanded or given a consequence. If I have a question, I know who to ask and never worry that I will be turned away. I have even been encouraged by various administrators to push myself beyond my comfort level and submit proposals to conferences! There are always things that can be improved in any job, but NMS’s leadership clearly strives to be on top of things and wants us to succeed.As a parent, I have nothing but good things to say about my children’s education. My older son has been at the school since he was 15 months old and has grown into a confident young boy who will start in NMS’s Lower Elementary program in the fall. He is curious and seemingly always knows more than we do about many different topics, and I attribute that to his amazing teachers. They provided so many learning opportunities that I hope he will remember for countless years. Throughout his three-year cycle, his teachers have constantly and consistently kept us informed of anything we needed to hear but also kept it professional since I am a colleague and friend. My younger son is going to be a second year in the Beginners program next year. The teachers in his classroom made his transition seamless, and he has become a talkative, outgoing, independent 2.6 year old. He clearly loved going to school every day and learned so much in such a short amount of time. I’m sure he will leap even further next year.
Submitted by parent on June 03, 2016

Newton Montessori is an amazing school. We have had the best experience for our child. The entire staff has been wonderful to our child's growth intellectually and emotionally. We would highly recommend this school. We found the teachers encouraging , caring and working individually with every child to bring the best in each child. We came from another Montessori school in PA and loved that one and didn't think we would find another like it. Newton Montessori beat our expectations