Admissions Information
About Us
Fulton Montessori School is a 501 3(c) nonprofit program, dedicated to providing accessible Montessori education to families with children between the ages of 16 months to 5 years. Our intentional focus is to help provide Richmond’s East End and Fulton Hill neighborhood residents access to an affordable, quality, Montessori education. However, families from anywhere seeking a quality educational program are welcome!
We maintain a 1:5 ratio (adult:child) for ages 16mo-36 months, and a 1:10 ratio for students ages 3 and older.
Hours of Operation and School Hours
Operational Hours: 8:00am - 5:30pm
Our operational hours are Monday- Friday from 8am - 5:30 pm to accommodate the need for staff to prepare a safe and sanitized work environment for our students and community.
Please note: all children under the age of 3 are required to be picked up by 5pm.
We are a full day*, year-round (12 month) program and we do not offer partial week programming. Enrollment/tuition contracts are issued for 12 months to ensure consistency in the Montessori school environment and to meet the needs of students, families, and staff.
*Tuition rates remain the same regardless of pick-up or drop-off times.
Discussion about country flag patterns with a student waiting for the attention of the adult.
Photo credit: Corey Borgman @ Montessori Science, UVa
Lunch and Snacks
Lunch Box/Home Lunch: Families choose to send their students with a lunch from home. The guidelines for healthy choices for lunch will be provided upon enrollment.
Healthy Snacks: Fresh fruit or vegetables and cracker items are provided for all students at no additional cost to families. The menu changes weekly and is posted to every student’s virtual Brightwheel account.
Student using the Broad Stair.
Our Program
We are a Montessori School that follows the authentic Montessori Method. Under the guidance of Montessori-trained teacher Ms. Felecia, our classrooms are full of supportive, experienced teachers and Montessori materials to nurture a child’s social, emotional, physical, and intellectual development.
Practical Life: Repetitive activities help children develop a sense of order and independence as well as care for self and environment through actions involved in everyday living. Examples of practical life activities might include: preparing snacks, flower arranging, sweeping, washing works, learning how to tie shoelaces, etc.
Sensorial: These materials help children classify concepts related to the senses, such as size, shape, color, sound, dimension, etc. This is the early groundwork for developing language for math, science, and musical concepts.
Math: Through the use of materials such as colored beads and three-dimensional geometric shapes, children begin to develop an early understanding of abstract mathematical concepts.
Language: Children develop reading, writing, and vocabulary skills through materials in the classroom, the teacher's guidance, and collaborating with fellow students.
*Geography and science study materials are also available in the classrooms.
Resources:
Student cleans up his workspace at the end of the day.
Please consider before you enroll your child into Children’s House (ages 3-5):
Children must begin toilet training prior to enrollment. All children over 3 must be toilet trained by the start of enrollment.
FMS operates as a preschool with hours to help working families. We are not a drop-in program and do not offer partial weeks/days/schedules.
The preschool day begins at 8:00am with the Montessori work cycle focused in between 8:00am - 11:00am. Late arrival begins at 9:00am, is limited to 10 exceptions throughout the year, and no student will be allowed to check-in after 11:00am at any time. Parents/guardians must be able to consistently arrive before 9:00 am and pick up before 5:30 pm (Children under 3 years old must be picked up by 5:00pm.) Late fees apply for any late pick-ups.
We ask families to consider an enrollment commitment of two or more years. Montessori children benefit from being in the classroom environment with their teachers and peers for a three-year cycle. This allows teachers to truly know and engage with children while offering support in a meaningful way. This also allows children to become contributing members in the classroom as learners and leaders. If your child is older and will be with us for a shorter time, our goal is to make their learning experience well-rounded and meaningful.
Enrolled families are expected to contribute at least 20 hours of volunteer work during the school each year (September - August) through a diverse range of volunteer opportunities that are posted within the FMS community. Families are asked to volunteer to help the school provide a wonderful environment for the students, foster a strong parent community, and keep tuition rates as low as possible.
Thank you for considering Fulton Montessori School.
We hope to hear from you soon!