Montessori preschool18 months to 6East side, Madison
A small school in a 1920s brick schoolhouse near Lake Monona. Children pour their own water, choose their own work and spend part of every day outside under a very old bur oak.
The philosophy
Maria Montessori opened her first classroom in Rome in 1907. More than a century later, it still comes down to six ideas, stacked one on another. Here they are without the jargon.
Low shelves, real glass, child-sized brooms. Everything has a place and everything is within reach, so a child can start their own work without waiting for a grown-up.
In a three-hour morning, each child picks what to do and how long to do it. Guides watch closely and give the next lesson when a child is ready, not when the calendar says so.
Children carry a thousand golden beads before they write 1,000, and trace sandpaper letters before they hold a pencil. The hand teaches the mind.
Walk inside. Use it, then put it back. Don't interrupt a friend who's working. A handful of rules, kept every single time, is what makes the freedom feel safe.
Three-, four- and five-year-olds share one room for three years. The youngest learn by watching. The oldest learn by teaching, and grow tall doing it.
A child may polish the same brass bell for twenty minutes. That's concentration, and we protect it. Every oak on our street was an acorn once, and none of them rushed.
A day at Little Acorn
A full school day in the Sapling Room, hour by hour, while the sun keeps time. Half days end after lunch at 12:00; extended day runs on until 5:30.
A guide meets every child at the blue gate with a handshake and their name. Coats go on low hooks, outdoor shoes come off, slippers go on. Goodbyes are short and warm, and we text you a photo by 9:00 once they've settled.
Three unbroken hours. Children choose from the open shelves: pouring water, polishing brass, the pink tower, sandpaper letters, the bead chains. Guides give small lessons to one or two children at a time.
A two-seat snack table stays open all morning. Children wash an apple, slice it on a wooden board, eat with a friend and wash their own plate. Today: apples, sharp cheddar and oat crackers.
Every day, in nearly every weather. The garden beds, the sand kitchen, the hill for rolling down and the bur oak for sitting under. Snow pants live in the cubbies from November to March.
Children lay out real plates, glass cups and cloth napkins, pass the water pitcher and talk. Lunch comes from home, and we're a nut-free school.
Younger children nap on low cots with a blanket from home. Older ones read in the book nook, draw or do quiet work while soft music plays and the blinds come halfway down.
Watercolor on Mondays, Callum's ukulele on Wednesdays, the worm bin on Fridays. Five-year-olds head to the Oak Room for reading and big math.
Watering the beds, feeding the worms, sweeping the porch. Then something from the garden, sliced by whoever's turn it is.
Collect your child at the garden gate. You'll get a short note about what they worked on, what they ate and how long they slept. Extended day carries on until 5:30.
Classrooms by age
Montessori groups children in three-year spans, so a child spends years in one room with the same guides. Most families start in the Acorn Room and leave us ready for first grade.
1½–3
Toddler community, 18 months to 3For walkers and new talkers
A room built at knee height. Acorns practice the big daily things: pouring a drink, pulling on their own shoes, using the toilet, asking a friend for a turn. Three guides, a lot of patience and a sink they can reach.
3–6
PrimaryThe heart of the school
Twenty-four children of three ages in one long, sunny room. Shelves hold practical life trays, sensorial materials, language and math, the puzzle maps and a nature table. The threes watch, the fours try, the fives show how.
5–6
Kindergarten yearAfternoons for the oldest
Mornings, the five-year-olds stay in the Sapling Room as its leaders. Afternoons, they come here for the work they've watched for two years: reading real books, adding into the thousands with golden beads, the hundred board and the long bead chains.
The teachers
In Montessori, teachers are called guides. Ours hold Montessori diplomas, first-aid and CPR certificates, and an average of fourteen years with young children. Most have been here longer than our oldest shelf.
Founder and head of school
Opened Little Acorn in 2009 in a church basement with six children and one shelf. Still gives a Sapling Room lesson every morning.
AMI Primary diploma · 26 years
Lead guide, Acorn Room
A pediatric nurse before she trained in Montessori. Toddlers trust her within a week; their parents take about two.
AMI Assistants to Infancy · 11 years
Lead guide, Sapling Room
A former cabinetmaker who built half our shelves. Plays the ukulele on Wednesdays, slightly out of tune, on purpose.
AMS Early Childhood · 9 years
Guide, Oak Room
Grew up in Milwaukee and teaches the kindergarten year in English and Spanish. Her class has read 412 books together so far.
AMI Primary diploma · 14 years
Assistant and garden lead
Runs the garden, the worm bin and the snow-pants operation. Knows which child needs a quiet minute before they do.
Montessori assistant certificate · 6 years
Tuition and schedules · 2027–28
Monthly tuition for the school year, September to June, paid in ten installments. Pick a room and a schedule to see your price. Snacks, materials and conferences are all included.
| Monthly, 2027–28 | Half day8:00–12:00 | School day8:00–3:30 | Extended7:30–5:30 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acorn Room, 5 days18 months–3 | $1,290 | $1,640 | $1,890 |
| Acorn Room, 3 days | $860 | $1,090 | $1,260 |
| Sapling Room, 5 days3–6 | $1,040 | $1,380 | $1,610 |
| Sapling Room, 3 days | $690 | $920 | $1,070 |
| Kindergarten year5 days, Sapling + Oak Room | n/a | $1,380 | $1,610 |
Ten monthly payments by bank transfer, or the whole year in August with 3% off. Receipts work for dependent care FSAs.
We accept Wisconsin Shares and keep six tuition-assistance places each year. Ask Margit; it's a private conversation.
School runs Sept. 1, 2027 to June 9, 2028, with most of the city's school breaks. Garden Camp fills six weeks of summer.
Book a tour
Tours happen while class is in session, so you see the real thing: forty-five minutes, a quiet walk through all three rooms, then questions with Margit over coffee in the office. Children are welcome at the Saturday open house.
"After his first week, our son asked why our cups were on a shelf he couldn't reach. They're on a low one now."
Gideon A., Sapling Room parent
Questions parents ask
Anything else, call the office at (555) 016-2208 between 8:00 and 4:00. A real person answers, usually Margit.
Not for the Acorn Room. Toileting is part of the toddler curriculum, and we work on it alongside you. For the Sapling Room we ask that children be mostly out of diapers. Accidents are fine and expected.
Many do, for a week or two. The goodbye stays short, a guide stays close, and we send you a photo by 9:00 once they've settled. It nearly always passes faster than parents expect.
The structure lives in the room rather than the timetable. Every material teaches one thing, in a set order, and guides keep careful records of each child's lessons. Children choose freely, but from work they've been shown how to do.
If there's a space, yes. Toddlers can start in any month once they're walking. Most Sapling places open in September, with a few in January.
Apply any time with the $75 fee. We offer September places in February, in this order: siblings of current children, staff children, then by application date. We'll always tell you honestly where you stand.
Lunch comes from home in a labeled lunchbox. Morning and afternoon snacks are ours: fruit, cheese, crackers and vegetables from the garden in season. We're a nut-free school and keep an allergy plan for every child who needs one.
Not in the classrooms. You'll get a written note and a few photos each week through our parent app. That's the only screen involved, and it's yours.