Montessori School International

MSI is a great school to enroll any child in. After getting a tip from a friend we decided to go for an orientation. Upon meeting the director and getting a tour of the school we immediately enrolled our child. During the orientation the set up of the classroom was very spacious and open. I did not see a single child unhappy or crying. In the older classes the children were very proud to show the director their work and were beaming with pride upon the directors approval. The staff is great and extremely helpful even if the teacher I speak to is not my child's. My baby goes to school everyday happy and eager to enter the classroom. He even talks about the teachers and his friends at home. All the teachers greet you and your child (personally by name) with a warm and heartfelt "good morning". The director is wonderful and loving; no child is afraid of her. This was the best choice for our family and our child and would highly recommend this school to anyone who wants their child to grow and learn in an enriching and highly academic environment.

I have read the negative reviews on this school and you people are extremely rude! It goes to show how dumb and ethnocentric our society is. Mrs. Paul is a disciplined, hard-working, and intelligent individual. She challenges parents to be more involved with their children, which I like, because we are the primary teachers of our kids. It's not a place where you go dump your kids and pick them up when you're done with your Starbucks Coffee and fancy-ass job. You wake up early, dress your kids in proper uniform, and train them to be disciplined, obedient, humble and intelligent (something our society needs) and the school ASSISTS you by carrying on the discipline, humility, and intelligence needed to carry out real-world tasks of the day and they do teach your kids how to overcome obstacles. My kids have gone and still go to this school. This school forms a foundation for children to continue life-long learning. One of my kids has gone on to another school. She was well prepared and mentally tough, always wanting to do things on her own.

This school is owned by Mrs. Paul. The teachers include her daughter Sherlyn, her daughter-in-law, Lanette (Caucasian female) and another daughter (a little fat). It is entirely a one family show. There is an African American teacher, who apparently lives in one of the many personal homes of the owner. The owners son apparently works above the school, and Mrs. Paul has stated that her son has a million dollar business, doing "medical stuff" upstairs. Mrs. Paul has stated that she was a "Dean" of a daycare in her native country, India. Apparently, her husband is/was a physician (?shrink) from what I have heard. Obviously, the family appears to be very wealthy from her talk. Furthermore, one of her daughters, who teaches at the school, apparently attended law school and then decided to teach kindergarten. The school is only OK for preschool, at best. There is simply no objectivity. Rote learning (i.e. memorization) is the method employed. The owner simply believes in, "my way or the highway". At times you may feel that she is so full of herself. She is "always right". There is a high teacher turnover, other than her own family mentioned above. Because some of their own children study in the same school do NOT expect them to treat you or your child in a fair manner should your child rub shoulders with their kids. The classes are lumped together, and grades 2 thru 5, all sit in one room. There was an incident of bullying involving the owners grandchildren. To instill discipline, the teacher (the slightly fat Indian lady) punished kids by NOT allowing them to wash their hands before lunch. Apparently, the school does not hire professional cleaners, they use the kids to clean the classrooms, under the guise of teaching them how to clean; those who are not good enough get punished as stated above. The school does NOT encourage parents to interact among themselves. Mrs. Paul apparently instills fear in her non-family teachers, that is why so many have left over the years. I have personally witnessed her talking down to parents in front of the classroom. She sits on a desk right in front of the semi-divided classrooms. She touts the fact that she knows whatever is going on in all her classes even though one classroom is a stand alone room next to the kitchen area. In a nutshell, go with your heart. Our experience with this school was not positive. Our child was there for over a year. Apparently, they can refuse to give you transcripts if you want to transfer out. Being a private school, they can do what they want.They did this with a parent. Texas has essentially no laws protecting kids in private school. So be careful. The longer your child studies there, the more you may need transcripts to transfer out. This is NOT a typical Montessori school. I feel they are misusing the term "Montessori" to grab your attention. They charge a fee, around $25, to see the school. Think of how Bernie Madoff attracted his clients, by pretending to be too busy to see you, unless you met him at an expensive golf club or some similar tactic.

first of all, this school is the most outstanding place for children ages 18 months thru 5 th grade. The staff are experts in child development--wait until you read a report card. ( 10 pages of observations about your child) The teachers are very caring and excellent. All employed there for 20 years-no turnover. Yes, they do provide structure, expect respect for themselves and others, & will instill a love of learning in your child. This is priceless and worth any perceived arrogance you may think the director has. She is loved by the children. Go see for yourself. She also deserves respect for her life has been dedicated to excellence in her chosen field. Her staff do not talk on cell phones, text, or chat among themselves on playground. They must focus on the children or be fired. A safe and nurturing place by any standard. Go pay the $25 and spend an hour with the director and judge for yourself. Update after 4 years: Our daughter left here is 2nd grade and now is in 6h grade. She still talks about the Director with fond memories. My daughter felt loved there and it has remained in her heart. She loves Mrs. Paul and all the teachers there. Great job! Oh and my daughter has tested highest in her class for all the years since her attendance at MSI. It was and is a very unique place.

Forget Janitors! In This School, the Students Clean Up. In addition, school philosophy is, " we don’t have to answer to nobody". Owner arrogant. Teachers, who are relatives of the owner, are biased. Unfortunately, owner was apparently abused in her childhood and hence appears to be paranoid towards male adults mostly. Lacks objectivity, no PTA. They are usually unwilling to listen to parents ."My way or the highway," so to speak. Not worth it beyond preschool. They simply do not have enough kids to make elementary meaningful, as kids need a minimum number of peers to interact with. Computers outdated. Playground poor. Emphasis appears to memorize facts as opposed to understanding. No outside learning trips whatsoever. Certainly lacks international flavor and lacks international courtesies/etiquette. Name of school is misleading. Maybe OK for kids who cannot handle public school, or for parents who have no other choices due to work in medical center. Review based on interaction with many families who attended this school and first hand experience. They do not want you to get to know other parents at the school so it was very difficult to get an independent review. Some reviews (eg, Tim W is a local loan shark), are people who do business with the school so they write good reviews to help out each other. Very few genuine reviews.