LMom wrote that homeschooling would be a different story, but there are places mentioned about skipping kindergarten, so the education starts at preschool. Montessori is strict about rules, and they showed us a tape of a 18 month old child. He gets himself up, changes, goes potty, gets his breakfast. All himself. Everything is low so he can reach. Is that hothousing? Pushing the early development of independence? If you say yes, then those people might say the same thing about taking kids to the museum at 3.

Like Ruf's book, limited thesis, no methodology and no solid outcome but to say if you are smart, you probably have smart kids. This is all relative. Our opinion.

I push DD3 to eat vegetables, I force her to have fruit every morning. I can defend that with a colitis worry, but many people would let her eat pop tarts.

Back to comment re: Peter and the Wolf (this does relate) at Carnegie Hall last month. John Lithgow read, in English, then in Spanish. By the time the music started again the children were so distracted they didn't know which concert they were at. Why couldn't they keep it simple?

We don't keep anything simple anymore it seems.

Ren