There is truly something special about The Montessori School at StarCreek! Every teacher is kind, welcoming, caring, and treats every student with love and respect. You can really tell that they want the best for their students, and I feel so comfortable! read more

"I cannot speak highly enough of p4 teachers. Their dedication to fostering a nurturing and engaging environment is evident in everything they do. The Montessori approach truly comes to life in their classroom, as they encourage independence, creativity, and a love for learning in each child. Their patience, warmth, and ability to connect with students on an individual level make them exceptional. I've seen incredible growth and confidence in my child since joining their class. P4 teachers truly embodies the principles of Montessori education and makes a lasting positive impact on their students. Thank you for all you do as our kids today our the future of tomorrow. read more

Do yourself a favor and avoid this place especially if you are a person of color. I called and inquired about openings at this school for my 3 year old. I was told when i called there were lots of openings for the fall for my 3 year old. Monica Cook who is the principal of this location told us before we could enroll, we would have to go through a tour. We are African American (she couldn't tell over the phone). Prior to the tour and even on the day of the tour, we were told there were lots of spots open. We completed the tour and felt like everything went great. She gave us an enrollment packet and we filled everything out and she told us we could sign up to pay tuition online when we got home. As soon as we signed up to pay the tuition online, she called us and said her last spot had been taken up. I asked her to put us on a waiting list. Every week, i would email her asking if anything had opened up, she said no. Somehow in my gut, i felt like something wasn't right. I started having my Caucasian employees and friends call and pretend they were looking for a school for their kids. I made sure they used the exact same age of our child and the same term that our child needed to start to eliminate any doubt. Sure enough, she told all of them she has a lot of available spots in the fall and that summer was full. She was looking to fill up her spots and that she could get them enrolled if they took the tour. I then realized her making people take the tour was her way of ruling out the kind of people or demographic she wants at the school. Every other preschool will let you fill out an application online or send you one. It just seemed very strange that one would have spots available prior to the tour and all of a sudden after the tour there is an imaginary waiting list. Sometimes, the people i had call called within 30 minutes of my weekly check in email and her typical response was we have no spots but we will keep you in mind if anything opens up. 30 minutes later she would be telling one of my employees on the phone, we have lots of spots available. This business is very discriminatory and racist. Do yourself a favor and avoid them at all costs. You would be dodging a big bullet if you do. read more

The Montessori School at Starcreek - Montessori Schools Near Me - Allen, Texas

Amazing school! Best decision we have even made for our kids! Personality wise, education wise my two kids keep improving and improving! We started one year ago snd couldn't be happier. Miss Vanita and Miss Roxana and Miss Snehal in P3 are amazing! P5 teachers as well Miss Canwell and Miss Pratiba, they always give so much love to my 3 years old son. During the pandemic they offered online classes for one month before they are open again on June! And it was an amazing experience! I am so thankful for them! Especially Miss Vanita P3 class that goes above and beyond her job and make sure she is providing the best quality of teaching ! Doing projects in her house to bring it to zoom to explain a lesson more clearly. My son hand written improve a lot within this month and that because of her fun way of teaching! read more

It was probably worst decision ever to join my kid at this Montessori School. My son attended 1st grade here and the class teacher had no clue what she was doing. Whenever I asked what he was doing academically, she would bring up his behaviors and brush off academics. She would get upset at my son just because he was tapping on her hand to ask a question, my husband saw this in person happening and it literally broke our heart. She threatend my son that she would call parents for tapping on her hand which would provoke his behaviors and the school would call us to come pick him up in the middle of the day. We had to run from office to pick him up and this was happening very often. School charged so much per month, but did not put in any effort to take care of this Situation. This was putting tremendous pressure on my kid and on us as a family. I am so glad I pulled my son out of this school. If you care about your kid, do not join your kid in this school. Stay away. read more

We have had a 2 of our children attend The Montessori School at StarCreek thru the years. Our children really grew both in education and as a person during their time at the school. We really liked the well rounded education they received. They learned to garden, expand their creativity in art, science, etc. We also really liked the fine arts part of the curriculum and the school plays and presentations. In terms of the Montessori work, we like the "hands on" learning. In math, our daughter really grasped the understanding of how to multiply numbers with the Montessori materials. The teachers and staff were great in communication to us and to our children. read more

Our daughter Zoe has been attending The Montessori School at Star Creek (TMS) for over 2 years. She started in Pre-K and now is in Elementary grade. We moved her to TMS after just a couple of months in a different Montessori school. The difference between the level of education and learning opportunities is enormous and clearly noticeable. We are extremely pleased with the entire staff and above all her teacher for the first 22 months Ms. Kanwal. She has helped Zoe build a solid foundation, learn how to interact with kids of different age groups, excel in her work at school at a very very young age. We believe that this is achieved by providing each child with individual attention and tailoring the teaching to fit their level and needs. We cannot be more pleased with the entire experience and the level of attention each individual child gets at this school. We are also very pleased with teaching methods of Montessori system and all the extra-curricular activities kids are involved in at TMS. There are tremendous learning opportunities and we are certain that our daughter will continue to learn more, grow, and benefit from this institution in the years to come. Eliza and Muneer Ishaque read more

We enrolled our 3 y/o at Montessori School at Starcreek beginning of March 2020. We were asked to pay tuition of $1175 (registration fee + tuition of $955 per month for 3 days per week). Besides thinking the tuition was rather steep (double the national average), I was initially taken aback when they asked us to keep our child home for two weeks citing both lead teachers being on vacation as reason. This is the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic. I later found out other kids in the classroom weren't asked to stay home, just our daughter. I am guessing because we are Asian American so presumed COVID-19 positive? I felt uneasy but did not pursue the matter and just went along with their request. Then right before our daughter's first day of school, they called and informed us school was closed with no explanations as to reason. This is before shelter in place. So after 2 weeks of waiting, we're back where we started, with no childcare. We never heard from Montessori Starcreek again, until I contacted them end of April to request withdrawal and refund. My email requests went ignored initially. When they finally responded I was informed we could do online classroom or receive $520 in refund. We decided against online classroom since that'd be rather difficult for a 3 y/o and it's really not the service we paid for. The facility continued to ignore my request for refund so I emailed them again and was told no amount will be refunded but school is reopening on June 1st and we have the option of attending summer school. We turned down the offer again as we had already made childcare arrangements by then. They couldn't reasonably expect us to go 3 months without reliable childcare and suddenly make ourselves available to attend school on demand or take a $1175 loss. The school's attitude was tough luck! Your problem. After requesting tuition refund for over a month to no avail, I informed the school via email that I would share our experience online and with friends and family. Within a few hours they got themselves an experienced attorney from a large legal firm to reach out to me. Their lawyer insisted that if we wanted our tuition refund, we sign settlement agreement (to not share about our experience online, via social media etc). Needless to say, we turned down the offer because by this point we're more than fed up with all the dishonest dealings of Montessori at Starcreek. From effectively quarantining our 3 y/o because of my child's skin color, kicking her out of school, profiting from the pandemic by charging for service never rendered, hiring a lawyer to intimidate and silence us, this is pretty terrible way for a business to treat their customer, not to mention breach of trust for an institution in charge of providing care and moral guidance to our children. Another thing that really bothered me was when I first toured the facility, I heard a teacher scream on top of her lungs at a little boy who ran out of his classroom in tears. Never heard an adult scream at a child this way in my life, no less an educator. Go to google review and you will realize this is far from an isolated incident. I wish I had paid attention to this problem before deciding to enroll my child here. We as parents rely on the honest reviews of other parents to make informed decisions about childcare. I would rather take a financial loss than send my child to a place like Montessori at Starcreek that puts profit above the wellbeing of children. Hopefully, other parents won't have to. Update: Within a few hours of me posting my review of the facility on google, 4 individuals, one claiming to be Asian (by the name of John W stating he would give the facility 10 stars) popped up. Seriously? read more

What can I not say about this school. My son has excelled in this school starting a little late in the school year to today complete change from last year in public school. His teacher has challenged him to reach his potential and he has grown so much. The front staff is wonderful always greeting parents and kids and saying good bye. We will definitely will be keeping him. Thank you Ms Monica, Ms Farrah. read more

I wish I could give 100000 stars to this place! Our daughter has always been shy and very reserved and we started her here originally part-time for mornings only in their primary class. This was a year ago. Since starting here, although it took a little while for her to open up, she is so much more social and outgoing! She will walk up to kids her age at parks and even at malls to talk and play! She is now full time extended day. Everyone there is phenomenal and very caring towards the students. And all the staff always greet us by our names and recognize us when we call. Big thanks to Monica, the principal, for always calming me when I am overly worried about my baby girl. And of course and huge thanks to Ms Peggy who has helped my baby girl blossom into an smiling assertive little girl. Thank you to all the teachers and staff!!! I cannot say enough good things about this place. read more

Love this school!! We just moved here from California and put our daughter here for one year. Miss Cindy is a fantastic teacher. The uniforms are cute and the school is extremely organized I would recommend this School to anyone. The front office staff is so welcoming and warm. I will miss them. read more

My daughter started going to this school when she was around 15 months old. She is now almost 4 and I couldn't be more pleased with our decision to send her to TMS. They say it takes a village to raise a child and these people are my village! The facility itself is beautiful and very well maintained. The janitorial staff is always there cleaning...they keep the school spotless. My daughter has progressed through 3 classes since she started going to the school and all of her teachers have been exceptional. The teachers have high expectations of the students but are extremely loving and nurturing. My daughter still asks to visit her toddler teacher Miss Ariana every day since she moved on to primary classes because she loves her so much. Miss Frances and Ariana helped me potty train my child...these teachers go way above and beyond for our children. Her current teachers Miss Samina and Miss Zulfa have taught her so much in such a short time. My daughter started reading at 3 and is so excited about learning new things. All of the children are encouraged to be independent at a very young age. I feel like they are setting my daughter up for success once she moves to kindergarten. The director and girls at the front desk keep activities and the school running smoothly. Miss Taylor is an incredible asset to the school and is my go to girl when ever I have a question. And all the kids adore her! The school also offers a wide variety of extra curricular activities throughout the day which is really nice for working parents that can't pick up their kids till after 5:00 PM. I highly recommend this school! read more

5 stars for our initial contact and enrollment process. We moved here last year when I was pregnant and now that our bouncing bundle of joy is almost 1, we toured and chose here to begin his educational journey. The teachers that we met so far seem to be extremely nice and attentive. All of the kids seem to be very happy and well taken care of. I will update this review after our son starts school here and we have a little more experience. read more

This review is for the P4 primary class at the Montessori School at StarCreek and the classroom's outstanding teachers, Ms. Semina and Ms. Katrina. During the parent/teacher conference held this week, my husband and I received direct, detailed information about our son's work, his progress, and what they expect from him over the next semester. We left with a clear picture of what is happening in the classroom- which is that really great teaching is taking place there. These two women work very well together, they respect their students and they are very kind and caring. As parents, we appreciated having both teachers in the conference, and input from both, without any hint of who was the "lead" teacher- they both lead and the children really benefit. We have been to several conferences as our son has had a Montessori education since 20 months and is now 41/2 years old- this was a truly informative meeting. Thanks to Ms. Katrina and Ms. Semina for their work and dedication! read more

When we moved to the Allen area from Chicago last summer, I knew I wanted to get our then 18-month old daughter in school very shortly after the move. I researched and called a number of Montessori schools and whittled our potential list down to 3. When we finally moved, I was able to set foot on each of the campuses, meet with teachers and administrators and have my questions answered. TMS at StarCreek was the clear choice for our daughter. TMS was the only school that takes great pains to stick as closely as possible to the Montessori method. The special courses such as science, art, music, spanish and gardening only serve to enhance the Montessori teachings. And the people at TMS have been absolutely incredible. Each of the administrators is always helpful and friendly. The teachers know all of the parents in their classrooms and maintain order (in a toddler classroom!) while conveying warmth and love to each of the students. And there is a well-thought out plan and method in place for every scenario. From day one, I have loved TMS for my daughter and wouldn't have her in any other school. Throughout the past couple of months, my appreciation for TMS has only grown as I began looking for care for my six month old son. I knew that TMS at StarCreek had an infant program but because I wasn't able to actually visit a lot of the Montessori schools in our area, I thought I should give them a chance to see what they were each like. In short, none of the schools I visited for my son even came close to meeting my goals and expectations. ONLY TMS had the very program I was hoping for. Once again, the TMS staff and administration was willing to work with me to get my son enrolled in the infant program as soon as possible. As long as we are living in an area with a TMS school, our children will attend TMS. I have been so very, very pleased. Thank you, TMS! read more

My girls started The Montessori School at Starcreek in the primary class in 2010. They are now in lower and upper elementary and we could not be happier with our decision. We were looking for a school that included kindergarten and all of the schools that we toured had a daycare feel. When we toured TMS we were so impressed because it actually looked like a school AND it went up to 6th grade. We enrolled them for the upcoming school year and never regretted our decision. They've had fabulous teachers who truly care about them and push them to succeed. The director, office staff and teachers know them by name and greet them and say goodbye everyday. Their academic performance is beyond anything we could've hoped for. They work at their ability, not at what some generic chart says, and they don't move on from a topic until they've mastered it. This approach fosters a love of learning and encourages them to be inquisitive self learners. Both of my girls are reading and completing math above their grade level and it's because of their teachers and the Montessori philosophy. We've watched the school grow over the last 5 years and we've seen people come and go. Having been a public school teacher for six years turn over is expected especially with a young staff. Women decide to continue their education, get married, have children, relocate, life happens and people leave but someone just as wonderful fills their position. We have been very pleased with how our daughters are excelling and flourishing academically and socially at TMS. We wish the school went beyond 6th grade because keeping them there would be a no brainier. read more

We have one child at TMS at StarCreek for the 2013-14 school year. We recently moved back to Texas from another state where my daughter was also enrolled in a Montessori school. Our daughter has excelled quickly and enjoys learning in the Montessori way, and moving from our other Montessori school to StarCreek was such a positive change. The school is beautiful, lots of light, clean and welcoming - but with good security and a front desk of ladies that know every face that comes through the door. This school not only excels in classroom "work cycle" teachings, but the children also have other classes such as gardening, computer, science, music and spanish to keep them challenged and not get burned out. They even have a nice gym sized to the children as well as great outdoor play. In addition to the spectacular curriculum and facilities, all the teachers are amazing. They truly care about all the kids, are patient and work hard to help kids learn. I visit the school periodically and watch the classroom - the environment is calm and children are happy doing their work. I commend the director for her hard work and dedication for creating a wonderful environment. We are so happy we chose TMS at StarCreek and would highly recommend the school to others. read more

I am so blessed to find a school that meets all mine and my daughters' needs!!! I am so impressed with the hospitality service, education, environment and most of all the Mrs. Linda. So far this school over-exceeds my expectations and looking forward to the growth. My children comes home everyday excited about their new school and what they learned - cooking, music, gardening, science, math, art, and so much more! They both shared how much they love their friends and teacher!! read more

I'll break things down by topics already addressed... The Director: Most interactions with the director (owner) have left us feeling like a meeting with a used car salesman. It has been a combination of undelivered promises, flat out lies and just a general manipulating of the facts to try and make you 'happy'. On more than one occasion she has told different parents different answers to the same question. Does she think that parents don't talk? Does she think that our kids don't tell us what is going on? Curious about how easy she is to work with, then look at the front office staff, no one has lasted more than 2 years. While it has been disappointing to see large numbers of good staff turn over, I am pleased that she also is not hesitant to make a change when the staff is not exceptional. She is obviously business savvy to promote her business, but I wish she would realize that Parents are smart enough and capable enough to handle the truth. Until she does, our default policy is 'don't trust anything she tells you.' Teachers: The staff (teachers) are generally quite good, but staff changeovers are tremendous. Each fall has started rather rocky, but things usually smooth out into a routine in a few weeks. It is hard to keep track when the school enrollments increased so quickly & the staff doubles; you lose good teachers in the process. Nonetheless, I have few concerns about the teachers and this year should be more stable. Our child has learned a tremendous amount and really blossomed under her current teachers. We have found most teachers to be very attentive, concerned, and just generally really good people to talk to and trust with our child. Since it is the staff who we deal with on a daily basis, we are happy, but have some broader concerns about training, overcrowding, and instructional access. BTW most teachers are ESL. Despite the director's promise of smaller than state mandated student:faculty ratios, you can routinely find a teacher supervising 15 or even 20 kids at a time during shift transitions, after hour care, etc. Their floater system has not been effective in the past - don t be surprised. But... as long as the director stays out of the classroom and doesn't micro-manage the teachers, we will keep our child enrolled. Facilities: we appreciate the myriad of opportunities available to our child at Star Creek. Having compared most of the private schools/daycare centers in the area, no one has the layout and design that promotes learning like this school. The music, computer, foreign language, art, and science foci are so much better than anyplace else we have looked in the area. We have definitely seen a creative spark in our child since enrolling. A lot of other schools ask for additional fees for these options, but it is all included at Star Creek (except sneaky lab fees for jumpbunch in summer - which I have heard other parents at other schools complain about the same thing). Operations: The carpool line does not work as described because they have too few staff to run it and parents routinely block the drive. Honestly, it never has worked correctly! Uniforms on toddlers/pre-K; seriously?! Thankfully, they are not extremely strict on this subject, which makes it manageable for parents and kids. Also the calendar (with various mandatory days off (non-holiday) and meeting times between 9 and 3) is not supportive for families with two full-time working parents. They also have not met promises of expanded services. Communication is a significant weakness all around, as most of the burden is placed on parents, but some things are improving. It would be nice to get more feedback weekly about our child's experiences, but conferences are good, calendars are getting more detailed, and at least the teachers and front office staff will be honest with you. Overall - great facilities & teachers, happy w/ education, not administration, but no place is perfect. read more

Our daughter began at the Montessori School of Star Creek this past August in the E1 (elementary) classroom. We truly couldn't be happier with the school, the faculty, the facility, the other students, I could go on and on. Her teacher Ms Farah is so dedicated to her students and has a wonderful open door policy. My daughter became part of the class so quickly and we still can't believe how much she learns each and every single day. The addition of Ms Sarah to the classroom has been wonderful as well. The ladies at the front desk, including Ms Caitlin and Ms Courtney, run this school beautifully. Over this short period of time they have gotten to know us and we really feel like a part of the school family. We are blown away with the things our daughter learns each day. In addition to her day to day 1st grade studies, our daughter is learning tremendous amounts in her science, gardening, computer, music and art classes. This is a wonderful, special school. We feel so very fortunate to be able to send our child here and are so thankful for the amazing education she is receiving. read more

I've waited a little while to put my review of this school online but I am hoping that as a newly relocated family this honest review will be helpful to those looking for the right school for their child. Our daughter was in the toddler program and attended the school from approximately 19 months to 24 months old. I completely agree with several of the reviews that state the director does a great job of keeping the school free from serious problems - but tends to simply smooth over, or run over, any negative feedback from parents. My husband and I are very busy working parents and for months we just assumed that our daughter was receiving excellent care in a warm and loving environment. We then unexpectedly witnessed on a few occasions teachers yelling at the children. The yelling was not witnessed with our child however, when I brought this to the attention of the director I was told that she would look into it. I explained to her that I thought Montessori taught positive re-direction and was surprised to see this type of behavior. She later called me and explained that I needed to understand that training is always required and that sometimes these things will happen. This made me uneasy and I immediately started to have a bad feeling. All I wanted to hear was that of course the behavior is unacceptable and that it would be addressed but what I got was excuses. Also, instead of our daughter having a consistent teacher throughout as it had been explained to us we found that within 6 months she had been with 4 different teachers and in the summer program she interacted with 4 different teachers throughout the day. I understand all the reasons for this (i.e., school has to have a summer break, etc.) but it was only explained to us later not up front when enrolling and making our decision. The bottom line is that for the MOST part Front staff and teachers are good, competent, and caring. However, we found that we couldn't guarantee this type of environment for our daughter on a regular basis and even though I agree second chances are worth it for some things in life...my child's care is not one of the areas I allow second chances to be given. Turnover seems to be a problem at this school and I was told several times by the director, when explaining why we had so may different teachers, that I wouldn't want high turnover so the different teachers were necessary in the summer program. What I found with the summer program however is that the different teachers were not necessarily held to a high bar for education or the Montessori values either. In general, I do agree that Most teachers seem to be doing a good job but it couldn't be guaranteed that our child would end up with these teachers on a regular basis and the ones we had issues with of course would receive more 'training' which doesn't change anything. I do agree that in general parents are routinely brushed aside and glossed over. Everything can't be perfect, but we are not stupid either. If you decide to go here make sure and stick to your points and spot-check them. You will have to ASK for communication and repeatedly, But don't take it at face value, they are good at saying what you want to hear. Get a good teacher that you can communicate with, stay on top of things, and you will probably be happy here. I will say that the building is gorgeous and they do offer a variety of activities. So, if you end up here just know that in general I do think its got a lot of positives however, you need to manage closely the care of your child and check in often. If you can't do this because of a demanding work schedule I suggest that you look elsewhere because this is not a place to leave your child without close supervision. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to know where we've moved our child to and the differences. I didn't put that here because I wanted this to be a truthful review for the Montessori School. Thank you. read more

I had seen some negative reviews on Google reviews about this school some time ago. I asked the director about them when we came in for a tour. She indicated that a disgruntled worker had left and complained to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. I asked if she had a copy of that report. She said that they are only required by the state to keep a year of reports, but that she would look for them. She did provide the original investigation report and the follow up report. However, the follow up report was missing pages and was cutoff in one section. I did not ask her about them. Instead, I just jotted down the report numbers so that I could ask the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services for the full reports. What was more odd was that, though we were told that they have plenty of room before we came in, the Director repeatedly mentioned that she would need to check if they had room after I asked for the reports. The next day, they told us that our daughter's age group had no more room. Later on that day, a friend of ours called to verify this information since she also was interested in having her son who was the same age attend this school. They told her that there was plenty of room. If you are the type of parent that likes to be stay informed about the complaints to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services that occur at the school, you may not get along with the director. read more

My two children have been at TMS - Star Creek for the last three years. It is an absolutely fantastic school. The teachers, director and front office staff are very, kind, loving and know my children so well. They expect a lot from the children, but the teachers and staff work so hard to help each child reach their potential. My kids love going to school and I am absolutely amazed at all they have learned. My two year old knows all her colors, shapes and most numbers. My four year old is in the early stages of reading. There are dedicated music, art and science teachers and the kids also have computer class almost daily. While there has been some turnover with some of the afternoon assistants (which I think is normal for any childcare facility), my two children have consistently had the same main teachers throughout the school year since they started. Their teachers have been top notch and I am enormously grateful. There is a very heavy emphasis on education and kindergarten readiness, so if you are looking for a more mother's day out kind of program, this might not be the best place for you. The belief in the children and their abilities is super high -- there is no hand holding for the kids or the parents. The school puts the focus on helping the kids become self sufficient and suceeding on their own. I highly recommend Star Creek. You will not be disappointed. read more