Practical, honest guidance for New York City Montessori parents — how to tour a school, verify what it claims, decode the real cost, and tell substance from branding. New pieces added regularly.
NYC permits authorise about one under-two place for every nine preschool places — and schools decide by birthdate, not milestones. What they actually require, and what to ask.
Read → VERIFYING CLAIMSNine things the website should disclose — named teachers, checkable credentials, real accreditation language, prices, a permit you can look up — and the free check that settles each one.
Read → VERIFYING CLAIMSWe audited our own directory against the AMS register and were wrong in nine places. The five ways claims drift — and the three-minute check that settles any of them.
Read → INVESTIGATIONSListing sites still show them open; one became eight houses. A worked investigation — and the free public lookups that check any school's existence in minutes.
Read → ADMISSIONSThe official 2027–28 notification dates, why each school’s own deadline is the one that binds you, and why Montessori entry happens at 2 or 3 — not at kindergarten.
Read → TOURINGEach question paired with what a reassuring answer sounds like — and the red-flag version — so you know what you're really hearing.
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