Every winter, families ask us some version of the same question: "Should we move on to a 3K or pre-k program next year?" It's a fair question, and we understand the pull. Our answer, almost always, is to stay for the full three-year cycle.
In this post we explain what the three-year cycle is, where the idea comes from in Montessori philosophy, how it works at wBees, and why we believe those three years prepare children so well for kindergarten and the larger schools that come after.
Where the three-year cycle comes from
Maria Montessori observed that children grow in broad stages she called the planes of development, each lasting about six years. The first plane, from birth to around age six, is when children build the foundations of who they will become: language, movement, independence, concentration, and a sense of how to be with other people. She described the young child as having an "absorbent mind," taking in the world around them with very little effort.
Montessori classrooms are organized around these stages, which is why they group children in three-year spans. A three-year cycle gives a child enough time to arrive as a newcomer, settle in and practice, and then finish as one of the most experienced children in the room. Each year builds on the one before, and the full benefit shows up when a child completes all three.
How the three years look at wBees
There are two ways children complete the cycle with us, depending on when they join and when their birthday falls.
1 Year in Seedlings + 2 Years in Primary: This is common for children who begin in Seedlings in their 2’s year and stay for their 3’s and 4’s year in the Primary classrooms.
Starting in Seedlings. Our Seedlings class is for two-year-olds and children who turn three during the year. With 10 children and three teachers, it's a calm, close-knit first school experience. Children develop at very different rates at this age, so the room already has a range of stages in it, and our teachers follow where each child is rather than what their age says they should be doing. When children move up, the Seedlings teachers meet with the Primary teachers to share a detailed profile of each child, and the children already know the Primary teachers from shared time at the park.
3 Full Years in Primary: For students whose birthdays fall in the winter or spring and begin as the youngest in primary, they get a different experience of being in the same primary class for all three years.
Starting in Primary. Our two Primary classrooms serve children from about two and three-quarters to four, along with a few five-year-olds. Children with winter birthdays often spend all three years here. Each Primary room has 15 children and three teachers, and children loop with the same teachers and many of the same classmates from year to year.
Whichever path a child takes, the goal is the same: three years in a consistent Montessori environment, with time to move from newcomer to leader. Both trajectories prepare the child for life beyond our small, close-knit school, so they can confidently move into Kindergarten and their academic careers beyond.
Why the third year matters most
In the first year, a child is learning how the classroom works: how to choose work, use materials with care, put them back, and get along in a group. In the second year, they practice, repeat and gain confidence. The third year is when it all comes together, and it's the year families most often miss when they leave early.
Third-year children are the oldest and most experienced in the room. They give lessons to younger friends, help them find materials, and model how to behave in the classroom. Teaching others helps them understand what they know more deeply, a finding researchers call the protégé effect (Nestojko et al., 2014). It also gives them a real sense of responsibility and pride.
The third year is also when much of the earlier work starts to pay off academically. A child who spent two years with sandpaper letters, sound games and the moveable alphabet may begin reading and writing words. A child who has handled the golden beads for years may start to understand place value. These materials were built to lead somewhere, and the third year is where children get there.
Because our Primary teachers have known a third-year child for at least a year already, they can plan precisely for that child. They know which challenges to offer, which skills need more practice, and what will keep the child engaged.
Preparing for kindergarten and beyond
When families think about kindergarten readiness, they often think of letters and numbers. Those matter, and our children get plenty of both. The skills that matter most when a five-year-old walks into a class of 20 or more children with one teacher, though, are social, emotional and self-regulation skills.
Social-emotional skills
Over three years in our classrooms, children practice the skills that help them get along in a group. They learn to wait for a turn with a material, use words to solve a disagreement, notice when a friend is upset, ask for help, and offer it. Older children practice patience and kindness with younger ones every day.
These skills last a lifetime. Year after year, alumni families tell us that their children's new teachers are amazed at how well their wBees graduates ask for help, work through big feelings, and know what they need to feel calm and regulated. Teachers also notice how readily they show empathy and solve problems on their own, skills that many children starting school for the first time are only beginning to learn. Because of this, our alumni often become leaders in their new classrooms, supporting classmates who are new to school or still building these skills.
Executive function skills
Executive function is the set of mental skills children use to plan, focus, remember instructions, control impulses and switch between tasks. In a larger school, children need these skills to follow multi-step directions, work independently while the teacher helps someone else, and recover from frustration.
The Montessori classroom exercises these skills all day. Children choose their own work, which means planning and making decisions. They carry a material to a mat, complete a sequence of steps, and return it to the shelf ready for the next person, which builds focus and working memory. They wait for a lesson or for a material another child is using, which builds self-control. Over three years, this practice adds up.
In a review published in Science, developmental neuroscientist Adele Diamond identified Montessori as one of the school programs with evidence of improving children's executive functions, and noted that children who start with weaker executive function tend to benefit most (Diamond & Lee, 2011).
What families can expect
By the end of a three-year cycle at wBees, our goals are for your child to grow, at their own pace and in their own way, in:
A sense of belonging and trust in the adults and friends around them
Awareness of their feelings, and strategies that help them work through big feelings
Confidence to ask for help and share what they need, in whatever way works for them
Care and empathy for others, including younger friends
Independence in caring for themselves, their materials and their classroom
Willingness to try new things, and patience with themselves while they learn
Curiosity and a love of learning that grows from following their own interests
These are the skills that help a child settle into kindergarten, make friends, and learn in a bigger classroom with less one-on-one attention.
If you're deciding whether to stay for another year, we'd love to talk with you about your child. Our teachers know each child well, and we're happy to share what we've seen this year and what we hope the next year will bring.
