Gain exclusive insight into life at Central Montessori Schools from our carefully curated video and written reviews, including roundtable Q&As, that deliver in-depth insider info from parents, alumni and students.
Our Perspective on Central Montessori Schools
Since it was founded in 1995, CMS has grown to include five locations in the GTA. The program is founded on the core ideals that Maria Montessori promoted in her work, those of respect, community, purposeful engagement, and self-directed learning. That said, Montessori didn't create her program as a museum piece, but rather as a starting point, and that's a spirit that CMS upholds as well. Dr. Montessori, as has been said, "adjusted and adapted her educational system to better serve children's needs, and well-functioning Montessori classrooms typically share many features reflecting those adjustments." One of which was, of course, a willingness to adjust and adapt. As such, the CMS program includes, as at the Maplehurst location, a computer lab, a library, and a music room. In all, the focus is very clearly on the child, and supporting child development, which is just as it should be.
Video reviews
Get crucial behind-the-scenes information about Central Montessori Schools from video interviews with probing questions that we recorded live with parents, current students, and recent alumni.
Watch our Central Montessori Schools Q&A discussion with Dia (Alum), Colleen (Parent), Masa (Parent), Diana (Parent) to gain fresh insight into the school’s culture, values, and strengths.
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Written reviews
Dive deeply into the real culture of Central Montessori Schools with reviews we’ve structured to highlight only the most valuable insights and opinions submitted by parents, students, and alumni.
My kid started in this school (different campuses) when she was two. Now she is in grade 6.
Wh...
At the school level, there are weekly newsletters to keep parents informed.
Each term, there is a parent's night, where school heads meet parents in person to formally explain what is happening at school. They also respond to...
Both my kid and I like the Montessori style, especially for younger people. It is nice to see teachers help kids to develop interest. She had many teachers since she had been there from toddler to Grade 6. Teachers are knowled...
I can see my kid is indeed interested in reading, writing and math. I knew she was doing well at this school, but it was hard to compare with other schools until she took the CAT in Grade 3 and SSAT exam recently in Grade 6. I...
There are over 10 extracurriculars for students to choose from each term, including chess, Dance, Yoga, Taekwondo, computer, and foreign language, etc. Some are free and the majority of them charge a small fee. My kid joins 1 ...
They have a house system, which encourages students to work with different grades. Some projects are assigned to a group of students that helps students work together.
They organized Science Fairs each year before COVID. It w...
My kid is happy at school. When she was little, sometimes she asked to play there a litter longer when I picked her up, so I waited a bit more and watch her playing. She made several good friends there.
I was really surpri...
I LOVE Montessori week. Before COVID, each year, I could schedule and go into the class for about 1.5 hours during that week, so I could see exactly what my kid, teachers and other students did in the class. I also took the ch...
The campus my kid is studying now is very near Sheppard East, but not on Sheppard. This means it's convenient but at the same time not noisy and has better air quality. Before COVID days, sometimes they go to parks nearby. Not...
My daughter has been going to CMS since she was four years old. She is 10 now and in grade 5 at...
The teachers of the school build up self-assurance and independence in the children from a very early age so that they can try to address issues with confidence themselves and approach the teachers when needed. The school lea...
The teachers here are very supportive and approachable. Teachers are very experienced to identify the strengths and weaknesses of individual students and thereby create a specific study plan. My daughter has always been encour...
Within the structural curriculum of the school, each student has his or her own study plan based on the strengths and weaknesses identified by the teachers. So the students can finish their course plan at their own pace. Advan...
More competitions can be arranged within the school for students to take part to encourage their extracurricular activities. Students can also be encouraged to arrange fun projects under the competition. There is a weekly new...
There are four houses in CMS. Students who are interested to be house captains and vice-captains are asked to give a speech to introduce themselves. The house captains and vice-captains are elected by all the students in the s...
My daughter loves to go to her school. She has been trained to be very disciplined and focused on her studies by the teachers. She loves the fact that the teachers and staff here are welcoming. She is also taught to be organiz...
The school offers some online sessions for the parents in order to familiarize themselves with Montessori materials. There is a weekly newsletter that goes out describing students' achievements to parents. The newsletter also ...
The school premises are very well protected. It is located in a very secured area by the main road. My daughter has taken part in several fire drills at the tests at the school. Students are allowed to leave the school boundar...
My daughter loves CMS and her teachers. It is a second home for our child and everyone in the s...
Communications are considered very important in CMS. As a parent, I always had the confidence that my child can reach out to anyone in the school when she needs. And same for me as a parent. Concerns are addressed immediately ...
The academic growth of my child in CMS has set a high standard and expectation for us to look for in other Montessori schools. The standard of education is amazing. With experienced teachers, we love the level of learning and ...
Montessori practice lets the child learn at their own pace. With encouragement from experienced teachers at CMS, my child is so proud of the challenges she could meet. The quality of writing, reading, vocabulary and arithmetic...
Yes CMS has good gym lessons and lots of extracurricular class available for children to take part in. Both mandatory gym activities and optional after-hours classes are available. All the teachers and extracurricular activity...
Children at CMS are very respectful towards others. These social skills are taught to them in a kind, loving fashion. Mixed-age class sizes in CMS help children learn leadership at a very young age. Though it is surprising for...
My daughter loves going to school every day. As they grow, they are made aware of the schedule for the day by teachers, and in elementary children work with their teachers to set up their weekly goals. There is the perfect amo...
I got most of my friends in Toronto through my child, as they are fellow parents from my kid's classroom. Most parents I met over the year are very nice and have active participation in their child's education. I wish there we...
CMS has multiple locations in North York. Very convenient wherever we are located in North York. Hopefully, they will expand it further around the York region in the future. Outdoor infrastructure in a few locations in hot spo...
We've been with CMS since 2015, and we can tell that our kids enjoy going to school as they com...
CMS has adapted to Covid pandemic school life very well this year. Along with PPE for the staff, the school has empowered/armed the teachers with the skills and tools needed to bring online the numerous Montessori materials as...
Most of the teachers our children have had, have been with CMS for many years. We have found them to be passionate, knowledgeable, and patient.
With the mixed grade classes there is greater opportunity to learn from each oth...
CMS and the Montessori philosophy allow the children to develop and learn at their pace. They are exposed to many materials and curriculum early on, I recall my 3 year old working on phonics, and singing french songs.
The cu...
There are a breadth of extracurricular's offered from hip hop, ballet, learning piano, chess, learning a language or robotics. There's likely something of interest for your child, all offered at the school which is convenient....
In pre-covid times, it could take quite a few minutes to make it out of the school with the kids saying numerous good byes to their friends and teachers.
The elementary students belong to different coloured 'houses' and th...
My children enjoy the experiments, lessons, projects as well as the sports offered with their friends. Their gym program includes many different types of sports and games that help develop their teamwork and leadership skills...
We have met many parents over the years, and made some good friends. It's quite a large school community and have been able to happily arrange play dates with and without kids. There have been dinner's and Mom's nights out ove...
Central Montessori at Leslie and York Mills is at a central location close to both the DVP and 401. Pre-covid when grandparents would attend the holiday concerts this location has been accessible. Many of the students and fri...
When enrolling our kids to a private school, we chose the Montessori method of teaching because...
CMS fosters a very open and transparent approach to engaging with parents. In the midst of COVID-19, the school and administration was able to pivot to an online curriculum quickly and seamlessly. Our children, both in Casa a...
In our experience, and we have two children at CMS that have been at the school since they were both toddlers, has been excellent. Our children are far above the provincial standards in reading, writing, math and general probl...
Academic is a strong focus at CMS, which is often demonstrated in the students CAT scores (a provincial test given to both public and private school children). CMS consistently ranks in the top decile of schools, a tradition ...
CMS offers a number of extracurricular activities. Of course we're speaking of a more normal non-pandemic environment. Our children have taken a number of great extra-curricular classes, from when they were toddlers (ex. mon...
When selecting a school for our children, it was important that the school we selected was not elitist, and though private - was a school that demonstrated more egalitarian principles in both its student body and faculty make ...
Our children absolutely love going to CMS. They have a fondness for their teachers to the point where they are considered extended family, and they love their friends. In fact, we have managed to broaden our own social circl...
As I mentioned above, the parent community within CMS tends to unite. Our social networks and friends communities have grown to include the parents of our children's friends. We have quite an active group of parents now that...
Given the location of the CMS schools, as the name implies, they are quite central. Right in the middle of the city between Bayview and Don Mills - along the 401 or Sheppard. The proximity of the schools to highways, major a...
