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Cabrillo

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Childhood is filled with meaningful moments that can be easy to miss in the rhythm of everyday life. Picture Day gives us an opportunity to pause and capture one of those moments, preserving a glimpse of who each child is right now. This fall, our photographer will visit our three California campuses: Cabrillo Montessori, Crescent Montessori, and Peak Ave Montessori. Individual portraits and classroom photos will be taken throughout the morning while our guides preserve the familiar rhythm of the children’s day. In Montessori, we recognize and respect the individuality of every

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Exploring How California’s Public TK Has Evolved and Why Montessori’s Proven Approach Offers Consistency for Young Learners Welcome back to our monthly series on early learning choices in California. Last month we covered the big picture: TK is optional, full of potential, and one of several good paths available to families. This month, we take a closer look at the heart of any program, the curriculum, and how it supports (or sometimes challenges) the natural development of 4 and 5 year-olds. Our goal remains the same: to share clear, respectful information so

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A Blog by Colleen Noll Hey Parents, After surviving the first big “No iPad!” meltdown, the next question I always hear is: “Okay Colleen… so what are the rules supposed to be?” Great question. Because vague ideas like “less screen time” sound nice until you’re standing in the kitchen at 7:15 a.m. with a tired toddler and a phone in your hand. I’m not here to hand you a rigid rulebook written by people who’ve never met your child. I’m here to share simple, age-appropriate guidelines that actually stick; the kind that work in real

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Walk into any of our classrooms this month and you will find children practicing how to push in a chair. That small moment is one of the first lessons we give, and one of the ones we care about most. Grace and courtesy is the part of our Montessori curriculum where children learn how to move through a room and how to treat the people in it. Our guides give lessons on sitting at circle time, pushing in a chair, carrying a water pitcher down the hall without spilling a drop, and

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(For parents of young children who are currently living through the great screen standoff) A blog by Colleen Noll Hey Parents, We have all been there. You’re in the car. The morning is already running five minutes behind. Your two-year-old is strapped in, and the second the engine starts, they ask, “Phone? Cartoon?” in that sweet little voice that somehow carries the weight of a full courtroom demand. Or worse… you’re walking into school, and that same tiny human has their face buried in your phone, eyes glued to a cartoon, completely missing

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Our California kindergarteners spent Friday morning at San Jose Fire Station 16 with the C Shift Crew. They arrived at 10:00 AM in their field trip shirts and the most excited look on their faces. The crew was waiting at the open bay door. Our children got close to the engine and looked over the gear that hangs ready beside it. Why This Trip, and Why Now August on our cultural calendar belongs to "Me and My Community," our geography topic for the month. Right now the concept of community helpers is fresh

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Hey parents, welcome to the conversation we all secretly dread (and then secretly love). You know the moment. The one where your child looks at you like you just canceled Christmas, birthday, and ice cream for the rest of their life combined: “What? No iPad?!” Cue the dramatic sigh, the floppy dramatic collapse onto the floor, and the Oscar-worthy performance of “I’m so bored I might actually die.” In this topic series, we’re going to laugh our way through one of the biggest modern parenting battles, screens; while keeping it real, light, and

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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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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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