Lake Murray Montessori School

Reviews

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  After hearing great things about this school and the owner, Mrs Lee, I was very excited to have my child go to this school. He turned two in September and started school the Monday after. I liked the fact that I could bring him in a few times for a few minutes before school started, so he was acquainted with the teacher and class. At first he was very excited to go there but then he didn't want to go anymore. I dismissed his behavior to "him just being too attached" and didn't think much of it... until Tuesday before Thanksgiving-break ..when I went in to bring food for the Thanksgiving Feast ... There were two rows of square tables with kids socializing and communicating and I thought that all the kids sat there, only to find out that there was another round table further away with 4-5 kids and then one round table more a bit further away from them with only two kids - it looked like the "time-out-table" to me. I was really shocked to see that my child, together with another one, was excluded from the rest of the class. While everyone else was socializing, these two were just sliding on and off their chairs. When I asked the teacher why that was the case she responded "no reason! We just didn't have enough new kids". I was like you have on these rows on both ends kids, why didn't you just take those 4 and add them to the round table ... then I saw that she also had him excluded from the rest of the group in the nap-time arrangement and I just couldn't take it. I tried to talk to the teacher and to the owner and they both tried to tell me that it is I who was making something out of nothing. Now, this wasn't my first child and I had already experienced daycare, schools etc with my first one... normally, if I ever voiced any concern, the teacher and/or principle would always take care of the issue and we would move on but Mrs Lee and the teacher refused to move my child to a table with the other children, making me feel very concerned about the environment that I was leaving my child in. For the 7 weeks that he attended, I received a daily report stating that "he had a wonderful day". Not once did it say that he was being problematic and he had only one incident where he pushed another child. I feel like he was being isolated on purpose... almost like a social experiment. I do know that in some cultures isolation is a way of punishment but I am certainly not going to subject my child to anything like that in USA. After Thanksgiving, I brought him in one more time to see, if they would move him somewhere else. Mrs Lee and the teacher refused to move him to where he would not be sitting alone and insisted that it was me making a deal out of nothing. I took him the same day out and decided that I would rather suffer in my career than have my child experience isolation. I never received a refund for the remaining days that I had paid. I wasn't going to post a review immediately because I wanted to see how my child reacted to the change and I must say that IT WAS THE BEST DECISION TO TAKE HIM OUT! He is thriving and happy again. So, yes out of 18 kids only two were isolated and 16 other parents are super happy with the school, but if you have your kid there or if you are going to bring your child there, go unannounced and make sure that your child is not being isolated. If your child suddenly doesn't want to go there anymore, don't dismiss it but go and check unannounced how he is being treated. I am so glad that a year didn't go by before my finding out!
  By Merita Mehanja Gillard, May 28, 2017

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