Montessori Community School

Posted: July 2, 2025

MCS has become a second family to us and our two children. It is truly a special place where kids learn independence, confidence, skills and knowledge, all while having fun and feeling a part of the community. Reading some of the other reviews, it is disappointing to hear that a couple people had negative experiences. I believe these to be very specific, isolated cases, as all the other parents we talk to absolutely love the school and administration. As parents we feel very supported by the teachers and administration. All of the teachers and staff know us and our kids. We have touchpoints with them every drop-off and pick-up and they always make themselves available if we have concerns. There is a full time counselor that is a valuable resource. If we have a concern -- even if it's a behavioral issue at home, the counselor will help support us and even do observations of the child in the classroom if it is something we want. Montessori method has also proven to be an amazing, timeless way to engage and teach children in an intuitive way. We would highly recommend this school!

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: July 2, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Great school! Now very popular this school. Hard to get in. People call “Feeding school”now. Cause after graduate MCS 85-95% students are going to Punahou&Iolani’s middle ever year!My son just graduated elementary school. He start this school when he was 3yrs. Preschool,Kinder and elementary all teachers are awesome! He is 9th grader in Punahou now! I can’t thank you enough for the school! MCS is the best Montessori school in Hawaii!

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: February 11, 2025

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

Posted: June 22, 2024

We couldn't be happier with our experience at Montessori Community School. The value of Montessori education here is outstanding. The teachers genuinely care for each child's development and well-being, and it shows in every aspect of the school. My kids never fight to go in the morning; they always go willingly and excitedly. The nurturing environment and strong sense of community make this school a wonderful place for children to grow and learn. Highly recommend!

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

Posted: June 8, 2024

We had a good experience in the tree house, but after that the next teacher was really cold with our child. She seemed disengaged with us when we tried to reach out. Is was very disappointing.

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

Posted: December 15, 2021

They have a procedure where they push parents to put their child through a pyschoeducational evaluation and pay for it out of pocket. First, they give the parents a list of evaluators that they "trust", and then the teacher tells those "trusted" evaluators in detail "what is wrong with the child" (they actually provide the evaluators with the standard diagnostic criteria for a learning disorder they think the child has), and then the evaluator runs some tests to confirm the teacher's opinions. That way, the teacher practically elicits a diagnosis from the evaluators and the parents have to pay for it. So many 7-8 year-olds at that school were attached lifelong labels like that. That way the teachers can totally deny responsibility when the child has problems and instead attribute any negative outcome to the diagnosis. It does not matter if the child is teased or bullied by other kids, needs more attention and support from the teachers, is scared of the teachers, or is just having a rough semester because he or she just moved or changed schools. They say whatever problem the child is having has nothing to do with them and there is nothing they can do about it, since the child has a diagnosis already.

I urge parents to be careful: Do not let your child go through a psychoeducational evaluation only based on one teacher's recommendation unless you see him or her consistently struggling at home as well. Also, make sure the child does not struggle academically due to some other problem, such as anxiety and depression caused by teasing and bullying at school (either by peers or by teachers). If you decide to proceed with the evaluation, make sure you know everything the teacher tells the evaluator about your child. If the teacher keeps you in the dark or is telling the evaluator things about your child that are not true, then do not proceed with the evaluation.

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: November 25, 2021

I was expecting their teachers to have better qualifications than public school teachers. It turned out that the opposite is the case (just look at the teachers' profiles on their website). My son's teacher last year was not qualified to teach at all. She had a bachelor's degree in psychology and a Master's in Social Work, but she made a career in neither. She was a stay-at-home mum and a sub-teacher in public schools for long years. Then she was a long-term sub at MCS, and when the teacher she had been subbing quit, she was given a permanent position. She did not know what she was doing and could not handle either behavioral or academic issues her students were having.

E.g., my son was bullied by a classmate for months. When we shared our concerns with the teacher, she sent us a photo him and his bully playing together. It turned out that another classmate was also consistently bullied by the same child, but the impact of being bullied on him was a lot worse. His parents later told us that it became so difficult for them to convince him to go to school in the morning. Luckily, the bully moved to the mainland in the middle of the academic year. However, my son still had nightmares of him coming back to school. Instead of dealing with the problem and working with the parents, the teacher just kept all of us in the dark for months. I am glad she retired. She should have never been an educator.

Posted: November 25, 2021

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

Posted: March 7, 2019

My three children have all gone or are going to Montessori Community School. I found the school a few years ago and loved it ever since! The teachers at MCS are amazing and have become like family! When we started, I knew very little about Montessori. The more I learn, the more I love the philosophy! It teaches children to be independent, confident and kind. Instead of learning everything on black and white pieces of paper like traditional school, Montessori materials are all hands-on and concepts are learned with real objects. My favorite part is how it helps me be a better parent at home. I wish more parents knew about Montessori because it was created based on how children learn rather than the other way around. It flows more naturally, and my kids really thrived.

Posted: February 28, 2017

The best part is the multi-age classroom where kids can observe or present work from/to others. Teachers are attentive and knowledgable. It's a truly Montessori school with Hawaii DOE curriculum in mind.

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: February 28, 2017

Posted: July 14, 2011

The school would be good if it weren't for a few things- 1) the teachers are not highly qualified, many have very little experience 2) the most devoted people in the classroom are the parent volunteers! (who are great, but I wish I could see the same level of dedication from the teachers) 3)poor communication with parents and nit-picky policies Also, while their Montessori model has many strong points, they need to step up the teaching of basic academics. A free, public school education shouldn't do a better job of teaching kids to read than such a well-reputed private school. Other private schools seem to do a much better job of giving kids a well-rounded education, and developing positive relationships with the parents.