Private Montessori School in Toledo, OH

Westside Montessori Center, Toledo:
With three campuses in Toledo and Perrysburg, within the Great Lakes Region in Lucas County in northern Ohio, West Side Montessori Center is a private school for children thirteen months through eighth grade serving the communities of Toledo, Sylvania, Perrysburg, Southeast Michigan, and surrounding areas. The Montessori method uses a hands-on approach that follows the child’s natural development. The curriculum is based upon the methodology by Dr. Maria Montessori and combines a rich academic program with life skills that focus on the development of the whole child.

Independence, responsibility and respect, valuing diversity, problem solving, and understanding the interconnectedness of the world are skills practiced daily in the classroom. West Side Montessori Center is recognized by the American Montessori Society as one of the best Montessori schools nationwide. The school has been encouraging academic excellence in a nurturing, child-centered environment for over 30 years.

We are accredited by the American Montessori Society and NCA/CITA and meet all State of Ohio curriculum requirements for K-8.

Philosophy:
• The goal of Montessori education is to foster autonomous, competent, responsible, adaptive citizens who are lifelong learners and problem solvers.
• The individual is considered as a whole. The physical, emotional, social, aesthetic, and cognitive needs and interests are inseparable and equally important.
• Respect for oneself, others, the environment, and life is necessary to develop a caring attitude toward all people and the planet.
• Learning occurs in an inquisitive, cooperative and nurturing atmosphere. Students increase their own knowledge through self- and teacher-initiated experiences.
• Learning takes place through the senses. Students learn through repeated use of hands-on materials and by interacting with others. These experiences are precursors to the abstract understanding of ideas.

• A sense of community is fostered in classrooms composed of mixed-age groupings.
• There is a balance of freedom and responsibility in the classroom.
• Classrooms are child-centered.
• Materials and classrooms are structured to help develop a sense of order, concentration, coordination, and independence.
• There is an abundance of materials to meet the needs of many developmental levels.
• The materials are sequenced from simple to complex and are presented in the classroom in a logical order throughout the year.
• There is a quiet busy tone.

- Programs for toddlers through 8th grade
- Little House Porgram (13 months to 3 years)
- Pre-Primary Program (3 to 6 years)
- Lower Elementary School (Grades 1 to 3)
- Upper Elementary School (Grades 4 to 6)
- Middle School (Grades 7 and 8)
- Subjects include math, English, science, social studies, foreogn languages, music, P.E.
- After School Program with flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet lessons or involvment in band
- Child Care available on a regular or as needed basis between 7:00 am and 6:00 pm

West Side students spend two to three years with the same teacher, giving teachers multiple years to observe each child’s emerging personality and learning styles, to encourage natural abilities, and to address the needs of the whole child.

Two teachers are present in every classroom with at least one teacher certified in Montessori methods in addition to meeting the state’s required certification. In most classrooms both teachers are Montessori certified, predominantly by the American Montessori Society.