Aidan Montessori School

2700 27th Street Northwest

Washington, DC 20008

26 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK, K-6
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on September 13, 2023

Aidan has exceeded our expectations in every way. We have 2 children who currently attend Aidan’s primary program. We started during the pandemic–a tough time to make friends and enter a community in general–and yet Aidan created a haven for them to learn and thrive in. We were attracted to Aidan by its commitment to meeting students’ needs, fostering diversity and imparting the values of grace and courtesy that are central to the Montessori approach.Our sons definitely have different learning styles, with one being very content to work for long stretches on his own and on the same project, while the other is more likely to move from one project to another multiple times in a single work period. The Montessori method has worked well for both of them. Our eldest has thrived with the opportunity to independently explore different materials in the classroom and spend significant time working on a single project. Our younger son has really benefitted from the teachers’ guidance in helping him focus on one activity at a time, teaching him the steps to each process and encouraging him to calm his body so that he can focus on his work. Aidan’s teachers are caring, smart and attentive, and the parent teacher relationship has proven invaluable. When we have had questions, whether they have been about the boys’ learning or their behavior outside of the classroom, their teachers have been quick to respond and thoughtful in their feedback.What has really set Aidan apart for us, though, is the overall community. The parents, teachers and administrators are all amazing, and they all care deeply about the school and the students. The school puts on a variety of events throughout the year, including a number of opportunities to learn more about Montessori education. There are also so many informal gatherings of parents and students, which are a great way for the kids to see their friends outside of the school and for the parents to get to know each other.Overall, we couldn’t be happier with our experience at Aidan.
Submitted by parent on August 18, 2023

We have been parents at Aidan for many years and are so grateful for the top-notch Montessori education and community of families, many of whom have become our closest friends over the years. The school has most definitely helped our children develop a deep love of learning on which to build the rest of their education. They didn't feel any burn out by middle and high school, like so many other students at independent schools have experienced. And despite the doubt that many parents have about the Montessori Method, our children (and all the others we know from Aidan) went on to have stellar grades and advanced placement in their next schools. Overall it's been a wonderful experience.
Submitted by parent on July 31, 2023

Aidan is a small but mighty AMI Montessori program in Upper NW Washington DC. The commitment to community is evident in every single classroom, where children are encouraged to follow their internal sense of learning, but at the same time, guided through all the curricula they need to progress through grades. The campus is very small, and the administration makes use of every square inch, including an open field across the street.
Submitted by parent on July 30, 2023

My husband and I have had four children at Aidan over a period of 20+ years, ranging from the toddler program to lower elementary. We have had a wonderful experience with teachers and staff members across all grade levels as well as the parent community at large. We have had two young children in the toddler and primary programs from 2020-23 and we have been impressed with Aidan's ability to help them develop socially and emotionally, sharpen their fine and gross motor skills, and foster their budding curiosity and a deep love of learning. The Aidan community is tight knit yet welcoming. It draws a diverse set of students from across the DMV and we are appreciative of the different backgrounds including an array of languages and cultures among students.
Submitted by parent on July 30, 2023

A truly magical school. We had our two children start in Aidan's Toddler program at 18 months, and it has been fantastic. The Toddler classrooms and teaching staff are incredible. They will potty train your child! Our experience has been wonderful and we have been blown away by the beautiful classroom environments that our children have experienced in Toddler and Primary. In a recent observation of the Primary classrooms we saw all the children moving through their workcycles in complete harmony, like clockwork. It was inspiring. We have loved the level of parent involvement in continuing to nurture the children's communities outside of the classroom. The school keeps to a strict Montessori curriculum and is really at the pinnacle of Montessori schools in the US.
Submitted by parent on July 29, 2023

Both of my children have attended Aidan Montessori School and between them they have received over 16 years of education at the school. Aidan is a diverse, inclusive, and welcoming school with amazing teachers, helpful parent resources, and a supportive community of families. It is an AMI school, meaning it takes the Montessori method very seriously, and it is deeply committed to preparing children to be productive and caring citizens of the world of the future.
Submitted by parent on May 15, 2020

It's been a mixed bag for us. Overall this school's approach to learning is very rigid and it discourages creativity and exploration. If you want a well-behaved, prim and proper child who knows all rules of conduct, this is the place for you. Dreamers not welcome.
Submitted by parent on November 30, 2019

We had a wonderful experience with Aidan over the years that my daughter was a student there.
Submitted by parent on October 01, 2018

This school has been great for our two children. Our daughter closed some learning gaps within one year of starting and has been thriving ever since. Our son has blossomed, made strong friendships, and is comfortable in being a gentle, sensitive old soul. Great push for Diversity and Inclusion over the past couple years.
Submitted by parent on October 01, 2018

Spectacular mission, teachers, administration and parent population.
Submitted by parent on September 24, 2018

I regret that our family’s experience at Aidan this past year was a mixed one which deteriorated as the year went along. Under the current leadership, Aidan is not a place we would recommend to any family. Input provided to us, too late unfortunately, over the past year from other Aidan parents, past and present, confirms that we are not alone.
Submitted by parent on June 01, 2018

Excellent. Aidan is one of the best small private schools in Washington, DC.
Submitted by parent on March 18, 2018

If there was an option of giving no star or negative star, we would. We were initially very excited that our child was able to attend Aidan. We invested a lot of money in sending him here as we believed it to be a welcoming, nurturing place. As concerned parents we feel lied to and rejected. We would never recommend this school to anyone based on our experience, because your child may well be dismissed without any warning, consultations and explanations, non-whatsoever.
Submitted by parent on March 18, 2018

Extremely disappointing. We had high hopes for the toddler program, felt fortunate to find a space there for our son and invested lots of money in this as we thought it appeared to be a nurturing and welcoming environment.We are stunned by how we have been treated by the teacher and principal. As concerned parents to a 2 year old child we are left with no clear explanation by anyone for his sudden dismissal. When we demand further explanation we are lied to and we feel our concern is simply not acknowledged. What are they not telling us here? Don’t we deserve to know as parents? We will always wonder what truly happened and would never recommend this place to anyone.Luckily our son is now happily attending another school where mysteriously enough no one have yet noticed his extraordinary behaviors.....
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2018

We have loved Aidan. Incredible teachers and support staff. It is a true community.
Submitted by parent on November 02, 2016

Our children love coming to school, learning with and from each other in a wonderfully warm and nurturing environment that offers independence, freedom and a thoughtful, responsive teaching staff.But we also love the school as parents!!! Shhh. Are we allowed to say that? Best group of parents at any private in the DMV. Diverse, engaged, and hugely accomplished group of people. We are so grateful for the many friendships and working relationships woven into our lives by this school. Reminds me of a saying my grandmother used to use about especially meaningful gifts: It may be small, but love is all !
Submitted by parent on October 28, 2016

We have been an Aidan family for several years now and have experienced the Toddler, Primary, and Lower Elementary programs. We have had a wonderful time. The teachers have been kind, thoughtful, and proactive about communicating and interacting with our family -- which has been great because your child is with the same teacher for each program (e.g. Primary is a 3-year curriculum). Our child -- and indeed our entire family -- developed a strong bond with each of our 3 teachers. In terms of academics, our child was reading fluently and doing multiplication and long division by the time he finished the last year of the Primary program (which is the K year at non-Montessori schools) - so we also have no quarrel at all with the academic rigor of the school! The after-school program is high quality and is basically outdoor Montessori; it also offers many additional classes (Chinese, Spanish, chess, art, sewing, soccer, etc.) if you want to sign your child up for them. The school also has a very supportive program for families that offers free seminars throughout the year on various aspects of Montessori education. The parent community is small but pleasant and tightly-knit - and there are multiple opportunities for parents to get involved and volunteer if they wish. The school has truly been a supportive and warm home for our family and we are very grateful for that.
Submitted by parent on March 16, 2016

We’ve had an excellent experience at Aidan over the past decade. Each of our children joined as toddlers and will likely continue through upper elementary. The building is unassuming and tucked into a quiet Woodley Park neighborhood, but that’s okay because the magic happens in Aidan’s bright, beautiful classrooms. Between our three children, we have, as parents, experienced eight different learning environments. Naturally, as with any school, there has been some variation and bumps along the way (I’ve seen firsthand what some of the other reviewers mentioned). The constants, however, are the quality of the education; the focus on the children; and the passion Aidan teachers have for nurturing a love of learning in their students. We can honestly say that our kids love going to school every day. And that innate thirst to learn and explore never turns off — not after school, on weekends or over the summer. It’s a part of who they are and (I suspect) contributes to their overall confidence in learning and in life. Some reviewers have remarked about rigidity, but our experience has been that Aidan’s adherence to the curriculum is what defines it as an authentically AMI (Association Montessori Internationale) school. There has been some changing of the guard in faculty over the past few years, and while the retired teachers were some of the most revered in the Montessori world, I can honestly say that the new are probably some of the best in the country. There will also be a new head of school next year, whom the entire community seems very excited about. One last note: We happen to love the other families who attend Aidan. I suppose we’re of a similar mindset, having together taken a leap of faith in a method of education not considered mainstream, but they are a special group of people (kind, worldly, well-educated, successful but humble) and part of what keeps us at the school. All in all, we love Aidan. It’s made us better, more mindful parents, and it’s given my kids an extraordinary foundation for learning and life.
Submitted by parent on March 15, 2016

We've been at Aidan for many years, and I can't say enough good things about the teachers and community. My kids are learning to LOVE learning! The teachers show them how to be self-directed, to develop patience and concentration, and to find joy in learning itself--not just because they get a gold star. The elementary school is a shining example of how education SHOULD be. I could not be more thrilled. A new Head of School is coming in who seems skilled and energetic. I'm excited for the future!
Submitted by parent on September 04, 2015

Our child attended Aidan for several years. It was deeply disappointing experience and we regret sending our child. While all the Montessori materials were there, the innovative and differentiated implementation of the Montessori pedagogy was not. We experienced rote and fixed use of materials, a disinterest in the unique capacities and requirements of each student (something we always believed Montessori excelled at), and an unsynthesized process to connect students from their Montessori experience to the high-performing public and independent schools they transferred to. Our child’s teachers had favorites and were uninterested in any extra effort to support students' learning beyond the basic Montessori materials in each classroom. Effective family engagement did not exist - no ways in which families could track the progress of their student or support classroom learning. Effective communication from teachers was nonexistent, and when the time came to apply out of the school there was no process, no support, and no guidance.While Aidan appears to have a stellar history, our experience indicates a school resting on its Montessori laurels. Rather than being on the leading edge of innovation, which synthesizes classical Montessori with education research and best practices, Aidan operated with pedantic adherence to Montessori principles and a lack of responsiveness we found shocking. It was a terrible disappointment.We understand there is administrative change on the horizon and we wish the school the opportunity to reflect deeply on what it wants its next iteration to be. We hope it can build on its Montessori roots a school that has robust academics, an authentic interest and insight into each family, and a welcoming community.