We see Lily Montessori as the first school your child will go to, it's just that they'll be going with you! Lily's classes prepare your child for preschool, and teach you ways of setting your environment that encourage your child's optimal development. At the end of the program, we hope you will have more tools available to you in your parenting approach, and feel more connected to a wonderful community of parents with young children.

Yes! We offer need-based scholarships to families. Please contact us if you are interested in applying.

No way! Our classes help prepare children for all learning environments. And the parenting resources we provide are useful regardless of what school you plan to choose for your child! Equally as important, the children in our classes just love being there. It's a fun activity for them, and they learn along the way!

There are some great local Montessori schools in the area. However, any school can call themselves a Montessori school so it's important you do your homework. When looking at Montessori schools, consider asking the following questions: 1) Are all your lead teachers Montessori trained? What certification do they have? (AMS and AMI certifications, or any MACTE accredited certication, are the most reputable.) 2) Does your school have mixed age classes (a mixture of 3 to 6 year olds in each class)? 3) How long is the work cycle for your children (3 hours or more in the morning is ideal)? 4) Do the classrooms look orderly and inviting (kind of like the Lily classroom!)? Do the materials on the shelves look to be made of mostly natural materials and be high quality? And finally, most Montessori schools will let you schedule an observation in one of their classrooms. If a school is using authentic Montessori, when you observe, you should see the classroom look pretty magical!

During the hour long infant class, we will start in a circle together. We will do a hello song, and then talk about a topic of the day (for example, the importance of the spinal development and how you can help facilitate proper development for your baby). Then we will guide your baby to some appropriate educational materials/toys in the classroom, that are personalized for them depending on their age and development. During this time, we will keep you informed of what part of your baby's development the material/toy is helping to build. We may also have time for some quiet observations of our child, and also some opportunities for parents to chat and get to know each other. Then we finish the day with some songs and more circle time, which our babies and caretaker seem to really enjoy!

Yes, we offer your first infant class as a free, drop-in class so you can decide if you'd like to continue. After that, our classes work a lot like a school for babies. You commmit to the series of sessions, and can choose to renew after that. At around 8 months old, your baby will graduate into our toddler 1 class!

Yes, we love when partners or family members attend! However, we ask that you inform us beforehand, as we like to keep our visitors to 1-2 per class, and we like to make them aware of the rules in the classroom before they join us.

Due to our strict class size restrictions, we cannot offer makeup classes or give refunds for missed classes.

We see Lily as a school for babies and their parents, and we encourage you to come until your child graduates into our toddler class. While there may be some overlap in the information you receive from time to time, your child will be in a different stage of development so you will see your baby do new things and also have different questions.

Yes, the orientation is mandatory for all first time families, no exceptions will be made. Before attending our classes, it is important to understand a little bit about what the classes will look like, the rules of the classroom, and most importantly why we do what we do. During the orientation, we'll discuss the following: *What is the Montessori philosophy and why do we love it for children? *How to enter the Montessori classroom and how to act during the classes. *How to introduce materials/work (toy-play) to the child. *The meaning of observation in Montessori. *What do we mean when we talk about positive discipline.

Unfortunately, no. The orientation is parent-only. While in our classes we will inevitably have less time to talk (given we are with our busy toddlers!), the orientation is an important time to be able to focus to learn more about Montessori and the classroom. Please feel free to bring a friend or family member who you think might be interested in learning more as well.

Sorry, no. We allow a drop-in class for first-time families with infants, but the toddler classes have specific guidelines and preparation for families that they learn during a mandatory orientation.

Yes, we love when partners or family members attend! However, we ask that you inform us beforehand, as we like to keep our visitors to 1-2 per class, and we like to make them aware of the rules in the classroom before they join us.

Yes, we love when partners or family members attend! However, we ask that you inform us beforehand, as we like to keep our visitors to 1-2 per class, and we like to make them aware of the rules in the classroom before they join us.

Due to our strict class size restrictions, we cannot offer makeup classes or give refunds for missed classes. We are also mindful of the class structure for toddlers. It can be uncomfortable for children in a class to suddenly have new faces that they do not recognized.

Yes, but please make them aware of the basic rules of the classroom and let us know in advance.

Due to our growing number of classes we are on a strict schedule during the day. We ask if you'd like to chat after class that you email us in advance. We also offer weekly office hours of which you can sign up for a 20 minute slot to ask questions or get parenting advice.

We provide weekly complimentary office hours. You can sign up for a 20 minute slot to get an email answered or hop on the phone with us. You will receive an email with information about how to sign up for office hours once you sign up for the class. If you would like more time with us than what we have available with our office hours, please contact us about our consulting services.

No, we have a strict policy with regards to taking shoes off in the classroom. Cleanliness is very important to us, and we have babies who lie on our wool rugs. We provide cubbies for shoes. You can wear socks or go barefoot.

After every class, we make sure to clean and reorganized for the next class. We use method cleaning products to sanitize all of our materials and surfaces.

Thieves from young living (an essential oil blend with no harsh chemicals). I also use the method brand cleaning products for the wooden shelves and the floors.