Admissions Process

LEARN

Read through our web site, peruse the Lookbook below, explore social media, sign up for a parent tour, and join us for parent nights. We invite you to complete an inquiry form to receive a link to invitations to parent nights and group tours.

To learn more

APPLY

If you like what you see, use our online application process as it simplifies submission. Please have your credit card ready as there is a non-refundable fee of $75 for toddler and primary applications and $150 for elementary applications.

You will be notified by our registrar that your application has been received. If your child is too young to enter at the time you apply, or there are no available openings, your child’s name is placed in the waiting list.

To apply

ENROLL

Your child’s space is confirmed by a phone call by our enrollment director. We strive to provide 60-day notice before start date for toddler and primary spaces.

You will be asked to complete the enrollment paperwork to confirm your child’s enrollment.

WELCOME

Once paperwork and enrollment deposit are received, a start date is confirmed and your child’s name is added to the class roster.

You will be contacted by the teacher inviting you and your child to an orientation at Raintree. If your child is an elementary student, you will be invited to the beginning-of-the-year open houses and parent meetings. It is expected that you have read the Parent Handbook by this time.

 We see in the face of our newborn the possibilities for the future, and we begin imagining the kind of life she will have.  All our hopes and dreams, even the length of our own existence expands, and we begin to think less about our place in the world and more about hers.  What will she become?   What kind of parents will we be?

As a new parent, we begin to make plans for the future and develop our own philosophy of parenting.  Are we going to parent the way we were parented?  What kind of schools do we want our child to attend?  Public, parochial, private?  What philosophy of education best matches our family?  Waldorf, traditional, Reggio Emilia, Montessori?

The best way to find out is to tour the schools you feel most closely align with your philosophy because regardless of what kind of school you choose, education is a partnership between the home and the school.  Don’t choose a school just because your neighbor sends her children there.  Do your own research.  Visit with the heads of schools about the school’s philosophy.  Read the school’s Web site and look at the school’s Facebook page.  And then talk to friends, neighbors, colleagues.

At Raintree, we give individual tours to parents.  Some schools take groups of prospective parents on tours only a few times a year.  Since Raintree’s founding in 1978, we take only one family at a time, knowing that just as each child is unique, so is each family.  And yes, we give many tours throughout the school year.  One sees the school as it really is; we don’t orchestrate, prepare for, or choreograph the visit.  What you see is a normal school day.  But that is as it should be.  

We want you to see a true picture of what life is like at Raintree.  And when the tour is over, we answer any questions that you have. Your job is to see how closely your philosophy aligns with the tenets of Montessori.  

On the tour you will receive a list of suggested readings and links to explore.  We will even give you a list of other schools to visit because we want you to find the best match for your family and, most importantly, for your child.  

Montessori is not just a school, but, as Montessori said, “A preparation for life.”

Caution:  Even though you may have put your child’s name on the list when she was but a twinkle in your eye, toddler spots are difficult to get.  But take heart!  Although our toddler capacity is only 30, the possibilities open up exponentially once a child is 2 1/2.  Be patient.  If you don’t get a toddler spot and you have a good placement on the waiting list, rest assured your child will get a primary placement.