High Desert Montessori School

"HDMS has been a great fit for our family, and we are so grateful to be members of the community. We recently relocated to Reno from a larger city where our daughter attended a Montessori program and the transition was rather seamless. We love that the HDMS Montessori program is a charter school, available to all families across Reno. Our daughter is enrolled in the Primary program and her teachers are everything we could've hoped for-- caring, respectful, communicative, and well-educated in the Montessori pedagogy and approach. Our daughter adores them, and we deeply appreciate the positive learning environment they create for her. Beyond the amazing teachers and curriculum, we have been so impressed with the school's leadership and administrative staff-- everyone at HDMS truly cares for the children and their families (especially during this tumultuous pandemic, which they've handled very well). The principal and executive director issue thoughtful perspectives and updates weekly via the school's newsletter which also includes updates from all grades/programs, keeping families well-informed and feeling like a part of a bigger community and mission. On top of all of that, the lunch program offers freshly prepared hot lunches made with wholesome ingredients. All said, we look forward to the years ahead at HDMS!"

"Our kids have been attending HDMS’s primary program for 2 years and we absolutely love it! The teachers have been amazing, and wonderful Montessori learning is taking place. My son has fallen in love with math and because of the philosophy about independence and learning at your own pace he has been able to go so far (compared to what is typically taught in kindergarten) and has really started gaining a love for learning. My kids have also learned more kindness, patience and peaceful Interactions from this school. Plus, it’s a charter school so we are extremely thankful to have free, quality Montessori education through middle school!"

"We have been part of the Montessori community off and on from Kinder to now going into 8th grade in different states. It is just that a community that teaches the whole child, pouring over into home life. As a Lower El family we had to be fully involved with the school and home projects. I loved the dynamics of the Lower El. I was hesitant coming back into 7th grade after being in brick and mortar school for so long, but I have a student who does not follow along well while working out of structured books. He does better when he has to formulate his own inquiries about a subject. So we gave it a try and love it. He not only did well with the school year, but he learned skills on how to learn, focus, and stay on task. These are things that are not taught in other types of schools because the kids are spoon fed information and required to learn by memory. I recommend Montessori for any parent who knows that their child can not learn in that way."

"Beware of the bullying in Upper El. At first I was excited to have my 4th grader in a class with older kids as I naively thought it would be a good exposure to mentoring and a chance at leadership my child grew up in the class. But sadly the reality is the 6th graders in the class take advantage of the younger kids and bully them. I tried working with the school but after a time the staff seemed to give up on the situation. I really think the school was hoping we would just move on, and that is what we ultimately did. I had to start homeschooling as a result of removing my child mid year, but I am now so glad that happened. My child had no study skills and had had virtually learned no spelling. From what I can tell, HDMS strives to replicate the Montessori model but falls short. My student's 3 hour uninterrupted morning work period, designed to preserve concentration was constantly disrupted by the chaos of the large class. I think it's just the same story at this school as elsewhere in WCSD, which is it is an overcrowded school. We were sorry it did not work out, Lower El was quite a beautiful little school. Whole different animal across the street."

"I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS SCHOOL! My step-daughter went to this school for 5 years, and I can say it was the absolute worst thing we could have done. They do not teach properly and kids are not ready to move on to ANY other school. Most of the teachers there are disrespectful to the parents. My ex wife hates this school more than she hates me, and thats saying something. If you value you child's education, do not send them to this school."