Being accredited by the American Montessori Society means that our school is regularly evaluated by AMS ensuring a high standards of quality. Accreditation includes an intensive self-study by the school as well as an assement completed by a team of visiting consultants to determine whether the school meets AMS standards. The review team evaluates the school to see how well it is achieving its own mission and goals—whether the school is what it says it is and does what it says it does. All AMS accredited schools must maintain compliance with school accreditation standards and work toward continuous improvement. Each accredited school submits a yearly report outlining progress toward the objectives in its strategic plan.
Our classes are multi-aged groupings of children because of our strong belief in the individuality of each child's overall development. The Montessori philosophy follows the principle that children of the same chronological age do not develop identically in terms of their physical, emotional, social, and academic abilities. Multiple ages in a class allow the children to learn from each other, to have the opportunity to be and feel successful, to be appropriately challenged by the teachers in each area of their development, and to have an appropriate social as well as academic peer group.
Dr. Maria Montessori founded the first Montessori school in Rome in 1907. The first female physician in Italy, Dr. Montessori based her educational method on her extensive scientific study of how children absorb information and learn. Noting that the young child takes in all information through her senses, Dr. Montessori designed "prepared environments" filled with materials and activities she designed that were developmentally appropriate, self-directed, self-correcting, and hands-on. Over 100 years later, the Montessori approach to education has spread around the entire globe and been embraced by scientists, educators, parents and thinkers world-wide.
Neither! At the International Montessori School of Prague, our students are given a large amount of freedom with an equal amount of responsibility. Please understand that there is a great difference between "freedom" and "license": our children have the freedom to choose from an extraordinary number of fascinating and multi-layered materials designed to allow them to explore and learn about everything from self-care to mathematics in a specially prepared classroom environment. With this freedom comes the responsibility to be a part of their classroom community and follow the rules of respect: respect your self, respect others, and respect your environment. The children do not have license to be disruptive, disrespectful, or simply do as they please. Their teachers give individual and small-group lessons, following the interests and needs of each individual child. It comes as no surprise to true Montessorians that given this wonderful balance of freedom and responsibility, students at IMSP are highly motivated, excited about leaning, and working at their fullest potential!
The Montessori approach to education is based on respecting the specific needs and abilities of each child. In a Montessori school, students are given freedom within a specially prepared environment. This freedom is coupled with responsibility and respect. Teachers work one-on-one and with small groups to present most lessons, allowing children to progress at their own pace in the various academic areas of the classroom. Classes are generally multi-aged, allowing for a far more individualized educational experience.
No. IMSP is private, independent school that has no ties to any religious group. We embrace all religions and model respect and understanding for our students. Our diverse and multi-cultural community includes families from a wide variety of religious backgrounds and we encourage parents to share the traditions and holidays that are special to their families so that our students can have a better cultural understanding of their world.
Yes, incorporated into each of our Primary classrooms. In a Montessori "Primary" class such as those found at IMSP, children starting the year as 3, 4 and 5 year olds are grouped together in classrooms balanced in terms of gender and age. Children are individually guided by teachers and work independently and in small groups. In the afternoon, our Kindergarten students have a second work cycle as they continue to prepare for their transition to the Elementary classroom and first grade.
The answer is entirely dependent on the specific child. Children often move on to gymnaziums or other highly selective private, independent schools after leaving IMSP. Some families may choose to move to a public school system. No matter where they go, our students generally transition smoothly because of the extremely strong academic and social foundations established while at IMSP.
Every child is distinguished in a Montessori environment! Montessori students have gone on to do some amazing things in life. Some notable Montessori graduates include the youngest Nobel Peace Prize nominee; the youngest Rhodes Scholar; Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page; chef Julia Child; actors George Clooney, Anne Hathaway and Dakota Fanning; Amazon founder Jeff Bezos; diarist Anne Frank; Washington Post Editor Katherine Graham; novelist and Nobel Laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez; former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis; painter/architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser; violinist Joshua Bell; Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales; Princes William and Harry of Wales; music producer Sean "P. Diddy" Combs; pediatrician-author T. Berry Brazelton; Chelsea Clinton; singer Beyonce Knowles; and management guru Peter Drucker. And that's just to name a few!
At IMSP we follow the same admissions timetable that is used by most private, international schools in Prague. For the regular admissions cycle, applications are due to IMSP by February 1. Because of the international nature of our community, sometimes openings become available during the school year. We encourage you to contact us through our INQUIRY FORM if you have specific questions about openings and we will try to be of assistance.
Educators agree that the best time to enter a Montessori program is at the Toddler or Children’s House (preschool) level. Dr. Montessori called the first six years (ages 0–6) a "highly sensitive" period of learning—and the most important years of a student's life. Children who enter IMSP by preschool and stay through grade 6 reap the greatest educational benefits.
Young children who are curious, inquisitive and engaged; kind, respectful and empathetic; and responsive to adult redirection are good candidates for IMSP. In older children, we look for the same qualities, plus high academic motivation, a track record of interest and engagement, willingness to take on new challenges, and the desire to work independently with teacher support. IMSP places a high priority on identifying families who support our mission and whose values and goals for their children’s education are a close match with those of our school.