Thread: looking montessori in portsmouth

Moving to Portsmouth in the new year and I'm looking for a Montessori in the local area but can't find anything.

Not being from the UK how long would it take me to drive to Fareham from Portsmouth??

It depends on where in Portsmouth you are going from and where in fareham you are going to, but to be honest Fareham is no more than 20 minutes from Portsmouth.

Samm's right. Portsmouth is sprawling, so it depends where you are in Portsmouth which nursery would be closest but there is a Montessori in Purbrook (which is on the outskirts of Portsmouth). It is called Rocking Horse. The number is: 02392 231588.

I am glad Heli knew what you were on about, I've never heard of Montessori.

Rocking Horse Montessori School

Originally Posted by samm1551

I am glad Heli knew what you were on about, I've never heard of Montessori.

Here you go , Sammi. I have a friend who has his children in Montessori schools and they're pretty amazing kids - by the age of 6, his daughter speaks 3 languages (parents speak German, Spanish and English anyway) and learned Italian and French too. Unreal!

Montessori Method of schooling - very popular with some groups

* Recognising sensitive periods to learning
* Children are natural learners
* It is the processes not results that count
* Above all – learning should be FUN!

Maria Montessori observed that the children in her care all went through periods of particular sensitivity. During these periods children were able to learn by absorbing at an intense rate and that such learning appears to come very easily. These sensitive periods of learning include: - movement and walking, order, language acquisition, interest in small objects, refinement of the senses and involvement in social life.

Children are natural learners, who, if left to follow their natural instincts, will want to constantly explore their world. Often what stops children enjoying this natural curiosity are external demands that don’t fit with their individual needs.

The only results young children are interested in are the ones that make them feel good about themselves and their abilities. When they learn instead that there are unacceptable results that make them feel bad about themselves they start to fear the processes. That fear can cut them off from the joy of learning forever.

We therefore encourage each child at their own pace, they are not in competition with each other and we will preserve the rights of each child, from undue pressure.

* A place for everything and everything in its place.
* Freedom to choose and freedom to move

Order plays a very important part in the lives of young children.

Great emphasis is therefore put on order within the Montessori classroom.

Everything has it’s place and the environment is designed to be as accessible as possible to the children, giving them maximum freedom to move and develop.

The two montessori's we are lookng at, are The Childrens House Montessori, Knowle Village Fareham and Wickham montessori in Wickham.

Not sure where we will be living at this point.

I'm afraid a journey from Fareham to Portsmouth can take 20 minutes or an hour and 20 minutes.

The peak times - 0700-0930 and 1600-1800 are to be avoided on the roads as traffic is terrible. That's when the journey between Fareham and Portsmouth can take about an hour.

I regularly drive from Wickham to Portsmouth city centre on a Sunday afternoon and it takes around 20 minutes.

Hope this helps a little!

Ooooh E_A I like the look of that. Shame I am n ow 2200 miles away .. lol

W_R is right, it can take an hour and twenty at peak times.

wickham is probably geographically closer to portsmouth than knowle, the traffic around there is pretty horrendous at peak times ....as an example hubby used to leave earlier to travel from gosport to portsmouth for work than he presently does to drive from gosport to bordon! you can get to wickham over the back roads to save a little time ....and wickham has a lovely tearoom

So i should go for the one at wickham?

What are the houses like in portsmouth, are most naval houses in portsmouth (city) or in surrounding cities??

My husband is in the Army pegasus so I am no expert on Navy MQ - but I do know the Portsmouth area quite well as my husband comes from there, and I really think you should wait until you are assigned MQ before you make a decision if distance is a priority.

You could find yourself in MQ in say Eastney, which is the far end of Southsea -closest to the Purbrook nursery I mentioned - but having to travel a substantial distance to reach the nursery you have chosen beforehand, which employs exactly the same ethos as one considerably closer.

The Navy wives may correct me, but my impression of the navy MQ in the Portsmouth area is that they are spread over a wide area which encompasses Gosport, Southsea, Eastney and beyond, and as asbas said the travelling times, particularly in the Tourist season can be very long to travel a short distance.

we understand that there is one just in purbrook, but I haven't heard great things about it So that is why we are looking else where.

Really? Their last Ofsted report gave RH Purbrook the highest possible grade of 'outstanding!'

https://www.ofsted.gov.uk/oxcare_reports/display/(id)/261309

maybe its worth requesting a qtr in fareham area rather than portsmouth? of course only you can make the decisions regarding your childs schooling .........there are qtrs in paulsgrove which are on the borders of porchester, but to be honest I wouldn't reccommend a qtr there ....they were enough to persuade us into buying our own home!! however others may have a different opinion

Fareham is nice enough, decent town, good motorway access, leisure centre, close enough to portsmouth and (imho the nicer) southampton.

I'm really worried now, my daughter is on the waiting list for Rocking Horse Montessori and it seemed nice when we looked around. What is it you've heard?

not sure if this is too late but there is a brilliant montessori school in Wickham, about 20 mins from Portsmouth. both of my children went ther and they are now offering extended hours and take children from 6 months old there phone number is 07860805752

Originally Posted by lavenderpegasus

Moving to Portsmouth in the new year and I'm looking for a Montessori in the local area but can't find anything.

Not being from the UK how long would it take me to drive to Fareham from Portsmouth??