Our History

In 1980 the Montessori Courtyard Preschool opened at the old Teachers' College site in Christchurch, with one part-time paid teacher, a voluntary part-time Principal, Binda Goldsbrough, and six children. Binda lived in the time of Dr Montessori and became fascinated with her work.

The Courtyard was the first Montessori Preschool established in Christchurch and we have grown to nearly 60 students and six teaching staff. In 1990 we moved to our current premises in Somerfield Street where we renovated a beautiful character house into a classroom and built a purpose built classroom on a large 1500 square metre site.

Being a not for profit organisation, many voluntary hours have been put into developing this site. We now have two fully equipped classrooms with access to a welcoming natural sunny garden setting.

The Montessori Courtyard Preschool is a member of the Montessori Association of New Zealand (MANZ) and is committed to meeting the needs of young children and a high standard in Montessori education.