Cedar River Montessori School
15828 SE Jones Road Renton, Washington 98058 425-271-9614
The School
Admissions
CRMS Families
(C) Cedar River Montessori School 2005
The Initial Tour
If you like what you see and want to visit the school the first step is to call the office to set up a time for a school tour. School tours are done on Thursday mornings at 10 a.m. , weekly during the enrollment period and less often at other times of year. The initial tour is for adults only. Because you will actually see children at work in all grade levels, and in order to minimize distraction, we insist that your child not come at that time. The tour starts in the Early Childhood Classrooms, goes to the Lower and finally to the Upper Elementary. We show you all the grade levels because our expectation is that you will be looking for a long-term commitment and we want you to see what a bright future is in store for your child at each level. At the end of the tour is a question and answer period. Back to top
After the Tour
After the Tour, if you decide you are interested in pursuing enrollment, the next step is to fill out an enrollment application and send it to the School Office. You can download it from this site or request a copy to be mailed to you. You are not charged an application fee so there is no cost to you at this time. Fill out the application as completely as possible. Once we receive the application we place your child on our waiting list. All new enrollments are placed on this list pending open enrollment slots and the outcome of the enrollment interview. We then schedule the enrollment interview at a mutually agreeable time but typically after 3:30 p.m. when our teachers are available. Back to top
The Enrollment Interview
Once we have determined that there is or will be an enrollment opening we schedule your family's enrollment interview. You come at the designated time, with the child you wish to enroll, and meet with the teachers and Head of School. Since we often schedule multiple interviews back-to-back, it is very important to punctual. Additionally interviews are only 20 to 30 minutes long so if you have many questions to ask there might not be enough time. It is best to study up on Montessori through books or web resources and then make your questions specific as possible at the interview.
The interview process has two parts. After introductions are over and your child is ready our teachers will take him or her to the appropriate classroom alone. You will be within visual and auditory distance but will not be present while we have your child try out various Montessori materials. We are looking for the child's ability to follow instruction, indications that the child is emotionally and developmentally ready for the demands of Montessori education and if there are any behavioral issues that might cause concern. For the child this is usually an interesting experience and most enjoy it.
While the teachers meet with the child parents meet with our Head of School who will go over some standardized questions and make certain that you are aware of the major points of Montessori education with primary emphasis on the fact that our Early Childhood Program, while licensed with the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), is not "Child Care" as normally defined but is actually "School". Additionally we stress a long-term commitment since the entire program at Cedar River Montessori School has the goal of a 6th grade graduation.
When this part of the interview is over it is your turn to ask any questions you might have. After 15 or 20 minutes your child and the teachers will join you and you can ask the teachers questions if you would like to. Your child will show off the work he or she has done and then, within the time period scheduled, the interview is over. We do not give an immediate acceptance at the end of the interview but look over the results and make a determination within one or two days. We will notify you with the results.
If we accept your child you
are given a few days to provide the enrollment deposit and any other
required fees at that time. Once we receive your deposit we guarantee an
enrollment slot for your child. If you do not provide the deposit within
the time frame requested we place your child back on our waiting list.
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