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August 2026

  /    /  August

Empowering Families with Clear Information for the 2026–2027 School Year As a parent or caregiver in California, you want the very best start for your young child. With the continued expansion of Transitional Kindergarten (TK) in public schools, many families feel overwhelmed by mixed messages, enrollment deadlines, and questions about what truly supports healthy development at ages 3–6. This is the first in a monthly series designed to help you cut through the noise. We’ll explore the realities of public TK programs alongside the proven benefits of a full-day Montessori 3–6

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Ask many MSOSV families how they found us, and the answer rarely starts with an online search. It starts with a conversation. A neighbor mentioned it. A coworker's child loved it. A friend at a birthday party could not stop talking about it. That is how this community has grown, campus by campus and family by family. Many new families arrive with a familiar face already in their corner, and their children often have a friend on day one. Our Caring Connections Referral Program exists to celebrate that. When you refer a

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At Montessori School of Silicon Valley, we are honored to support families through many meaningful stages of early childhood, from infancy through the Primary years. This week, we are delighted to spotlight Elias and Ezekiel Ayala and their family from Peak Ave Montessori. Elias began his Montessori journey in our Lupine Community at Peak Ave Montessori in January 2026 when he was three years old. Since joining, his family has watched him grow, learn, and become genuinely excited to come to school each day. His younger brother, Ezekiel, also began at Peak

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Reflections by Colleen Noll. Hey there, fellow parents, guardians, and professional snack distributors! I’m Colleen Noll; founder of MSOSV, Montessori lover since 1992, and the slightly sleep-deprived mom who opened her first school in 2000 when my oldest was still in diapers and I clearly had no idea what I was getting myself into. Since then I’ve opened five schools across the Bay Area and Austin, Texas, and teamed up with my partner Michael Harding (who jumped on this crazy train in 2016). Together we’re raising our blended crew of two

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On Friday, August 14th, our campuses closed for a Staff Development Day, a classroom prep day that got every campus ready for the new school year. Because MSOSV is a full day, full year program, our guides spend their entire day with the same group of children. That kind of consistency is one of the things families count on, but it also means our teaching teams rarely get uninterrupted time together. Staff Development Days are the exception. With children out of the classroom for the day, our teams held an all hands

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Every year, the first day of school marks a return to rhythm. Children step into their classroom, find their favorite work on the shelf, and settle back into a routine built around their own pace and curiosity. This year, our first day of school is Monday, August 17th. It also brings back one of the things families love most: your window into the classroom. Lessons return to Transparent Classroom that week, so you can follow along with what your child is discovering each day. Progress reports will run from the first

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At Montessori School of Silicon Valley, we are honored to support families as each child grows through their own unique Montessori journey. This week, we are delighted to spotlight Zoey and Logan Ryan and their family from Peak Ave Montessori. Zoey began her Montessori journey in our Lupine Community at Peak Ave Montessori when she was four years old. Her younger brother, Logan, began in our Poppy Community when he was two years old and will be transitioning into our Lupine Community this fall for the 2026-2027 school year. For the Ryan

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Kindergarten in our Montessori classrooms looks different from a typical kindergarten year, and we want every incoming family to appreciate that difference firsthand. Each kindergartner has their own designated space in the classroom, complete with a pencil box of tools built for their work period. This is where independence takes root: children choose their work, return their materials, and move through their day with a sense of ownership over their own learning. Families who attend Kinder Orientation will see that space in person, along with the kindergarten field trip shirt, kinder journal,

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Every summer at MSOSV, our curriculum takes children somewhere new. This year, that somewhere was four habitats: forest, ocean, desert, and rainforest. Each two week session gave our children hands-on materials, stories, and activities built around a single habitat. Children gathered leaves and sticks to create art, learned how animals survive desert heat, and explored what makes a rain forest so full of life. Weekly messages from our lead guides also offered families ways to continue the learning at home, from neighborhood nature walks to color matching games outdoors. This kind of

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At Montessori School of Silicon Valley, we love celebrating the growth that happens when children feel safe, supported, and inspired in their classroom community. This week, we are delighted to spotlight Kaiden Akhbari and his family from Peak Ave Montessori. Kaiden began his Montessori journey in our Poppy Community at Peak Ave Montessori when he was two years old before transitioning recently into the Lupine Primary Community. He started during the first week of 2026, and in a short time, his family has already seen tremendous growth in his independence, language

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