I was told that there is a yearly contract and a 2 months deposit requirement only after paying the application fee which is non-refundable. It was a complete surprise to us. Please read the fine print.

My 4 yo loves the school. He has really thrived and taken to the Montessori method. I feel he is well challenged and learning valuable life and coping skills. I would recommend this school to anyone looking for a Montessori.

The most regretful thing in my life is that I took my child this school.

I think the school was fabulous, I like the method and theories behind their teaching very much. With such busy chaotic lives we all lead I love the organized methodical structure they have in the classroom. Mrs. Malley was very sweet and also informative. I understand why Cate is so fond of her! Loved their projects set out for them. I think the only thing to possibly improve on would be a little more direction for the parents upon arrival as to what to do with their children/projects and also hearing more about what their days are like in the classroom.

Our first daughter, now in third grade, has been at Chestnut Montessori since she was 2 and 1/2 (when the school opened). Our second daughter is now there as well. Very rare is the day when both girls arent excited to go to school.The school has amazing community events, especially at the elementary level. The elementary students have a camp-out at the school just before the school-year begins, a zoo overnight toward the end of the year, and a field-trip per month during the year. The preschoolers have activities that come to them, such as the parent/child pumpkin carving before Halloween. There are numerous of opportunities to perform for their parents at school events.The director has been in Montessori education for decades. The assistant director has been with the school since it opened, went through Montessori training while serving as the schools office manager, and has provided the school with an amazing continuity.Regarding the quality of education, we took our girls to Korea after the US school-year ended last year, and our elder daughter attended public school there for four weeks. Korea is known for being an amazingly tough academic environment. Our daughter had no problem keeping up in a public school coming from her Montessori background.The few parents weve known who werent extremely happy were had an expectation that their children would be coddled in the way that day cares do. While the teachers are very caring, it is a school, and not a daycare. Kids are expected to be fully potty trained. To learn classroom behavior, the younger kids are expected to watch the older kids and learn by example. Its amazing to observe the difference between the order of a Montessori classroom and a daycare or conventional preschool classroom.

The director of the school is very well spoken and describes the school as a dream place. You get the feeling that your child will be really loved there. Well, not so much in reality. There was one main teacher in the classroom of 17-20 children and three interns who came in for about 2 hours, changing throughout the day. The director of the school also teaches Montessori teachers. Her interns were there in training and the only teacher my child was looking to bond with was the main teacher. She was great, but she could only give very limited 1:1 attention to one child out of 20. If your child likes routine and stability, and making a connection with a caregiver, vs. changing teachers throughout the day, I would not recommend this school.

The Bellevue Arts Museum Field Trip was very enjoyable. What a fun way to talk about different art, develop an appreciation of art, and then show their own creativity in creating a cut out mask for the students.

Authentic Montessori education. Some of the most knowledgeable and caring staff. No one will love and nurture your child as much as the individuals at this school.

I had the misfortune of getting carried away with all the sweet talk from director Jeanine and enrolled my then-4 year old son here - that was 3 years ago and I still repent my decision. Things were okay in the beginning but after about a month, I spoke with Jeanine about concerns of the facility - old carpets, 100 years old building, safety in playground. Since then she seemed to have harbored a personal vendetta against me and my child. Or was she racist I cant tell! She refused to acknowledge my presence or bother to reply, she wouldnt even humanely respond to my simple Good morning!. I still kept sending my kid there since we were super busy with our new jobs - big mistake. The after school lady was an Asian with weak English. I would have ignored that had she been a kind and loving care-taker. But every evening we would be greeted with her sour face and at least 1 complaint about my boy - we were never clear what exactly he did wrong from her broken English.After a couple months of ignoring this, my fragile-statured son started complaining about an older boy (an extremely healthy 6 year old) bullying him every day, and touching at wrong places (my son still remembers that briefly). When I confronted the director about this, she responded as if my son was making up stories - which 4 year old has an imagination like that?! I started losing my trust in the facility. Once my son tripped over somebody by mistake and a blonde girl in front of him in the queue fell over - pat came a complaint from the teacher saying my son deliberately pushed the girl, without even trying to hear his story! All our correspondences were so filled with such negativity against my son, I shudder to think what effect it might have had on his mind.Things went so sour that they called us one day to show a video about my son not listening to the teacher and stubbornly lying on floor. The teacher was not even attempting to correct his behavior and just kept sitting on the floor without saying a word! A 30 year old teacher cannot control a 4 year old child - is that the childs failure or the teachers? Expecting a 4 year old child to know correct behavior without telling him what it is?! Neither did the director say anything - as she was busy recording it! They kept pushing us to show him to a psychiatrist, when our pediatrician had already confirmed my son is a totally normal 4 year old! Out of the blue one day, we got an email saying your son will be dismissed from Chestnut Montessori School if he refuses to follow the directions of teachers! That email was the last straw - I removed him myself from that horrible place that same day.We were supremely lucky with his next Montessori preschool - it was not fancy - but it was an absolute blessing for us! The teachers were truly loving, kind and super nice - without any show. We did not get even 1 complaint from them about my son. How can the same boy be so different at 2 different schools? Because his new teachers would let kids be kids - not silent robots like Jeanine and her team expects! My son blossomed under the care, love and guidance of his new teachers. 3 years since then, he is a super-smart, well-behaved and an advanced student in his class!Jeanine had once complained to me that in her 30 years in education field, she has never seen a kid like mine! All of my sons later teachers and everybody that knows him LAUGHS at that statement in disbelief! I will never forget those words!Do yourself a favor and save your child from this hell where a normal child is not allowed to blossom as an individual.

Terrible experience overall.