Montessori School of South Riding, South Riding | Fees, Rankings, Address, Admission, Vacancies, Reviews & More

Montessori School of South Riding is hands down the best Montessori School in the area! Being new to the area, and being parents of a pre-school child, we knew that we wanted the best for her. We live in an area where there are so many different choices and we felt a bit overwhelmed. In our gut we knew we wanted a place that will foster organic learning, encourage the sense of self- esteem, introduce her to a sense of community and belonging as well as kindness and sharing. A lot of the places that we visited felt that all the children were doing things at the same time, “circle time”, “music time” etc. and for us it did not foster the individual growth that was important to us. MSSR was recommended to us by two of our close friends. We did not know a lot about Montessori Schools and did not understand what Montessori meant but knowing our friend’s amazing kids we immediately scheduled a visit. The minute we entered the classroom to observe a day in the life of a Montessori child we knew it was the place where we wanted our child to go. It was calm, the children were doing challenging but fun activities, they were working in teams of two, there was no yelling, running or chaos. They seemed like little grownups. It was a sight to be seen. In addition, the environment created by the director Carmen Arenas and the amazing teachers was of support, guidance and love. We immediately could see our child enjoy this school. We walked out and we knew this is where we will apply. We felt like we finally found the perfect place. This was our experience a year ago. Our child since then has finished her first year of pre-school and we see such an immense growth in her. She is learning so much, she is a self-sufficient and independent person, she is kind and she has made amazing friends. We look forward watching her continue her journey at Montessori School of South Riding. Last, but not least, another thing for us as parents that is different from other schools is the level of engagement we have with the school. We participate in activities and events; we feel part of a larger community and we have met some incredible parents that we call friends now. We would not change a thing in this educational journey and look forward for our second child to join in a few years.

As soon as we walked into the doors of MSSR in 2015, I knew we had found THE place. My son attended Montessori School of South Riding for almost 6 years. He began when he was 2.5 years old and completed 2 years of his KG year. He began 1st grade virtually at a public school due to covid and by Thanksgiving I knew something had to change. He wasn’t engaged in the online classes, his love of learning was dwindling and he missed the social aspect of being with other children. I turned to Carmen and asked if he could join the children at MSSR and without hesitation Carmen agreed! She worked with another accredited Montessori elementary school to create a second and third grade curriculum for my son. Wow!

Finding Carmen at such a delicate time in our lives was such a gift. We are so fortunate to have had all those years at MSSR…I would’ve kept him there until elementary school if she would’ve let me! And if this wasn’t testament enough, my 9yo son still asks to go visit the school for the day during the summer. Most of children he knew have graduated but what continues to call him back are all experiences and loving memories he created within the school.