Montessori Kiwi · New Zealand
Montessori Homeschool NZ: Home Education Support for Ages 5–13
A personalised Montessori homeschool programme for New Zealand families who want the freedom of independent home education with professional teacher support.
Designed for children approximately 5–13 years old, Montessori Kiwi provides a structured, low-screen Montessori homeschool curriculum with personalised mathematics and literacy, individual feedback on submitted work, and optional one-to-one support from a Montessori-trained New Zealand registered teacher.
Programme planning and active teacher support follow the four New Zealand school terms, while families remain free to organise their own homeschool days and learning schedule.
Personalised learning. Low-screen days. Professional Montessori support.
Independent home education with support
You can homeschool independently without having to plan every part of your child's education alone
Montessori Kiwi is designed for families who want the freedom of home education but also value structure, curriculum guidance and access to an experienced Montessori teacher.
Home education gives children flexibility, time and space to learn differently. It can also leave parents carrying a large number of educational decisions: what to teach next, whether the work is at the right level, whether progress is happening, and how to provide enough breadth without recreating school at home.
Montessori Kiwi gives families a structured Montessori programme while keeping parents firmly in control of their own homeschool.
- Keep control of your homeschool schedule.
- Follow your child's readiness rather than a rigid year level.
- Receive professional support without school enrolment.
- Use Montessori principles in a realistic home environment.
- Reduce the amount of curriculum planning you carry alone.
- Have an experienced teacher available for guidance.
Why Montessori Kiwi is different
Not just curriculum access. A Montessori teacher behind your homeschool.
Your child is not simply handed a collection of worksheets or online lessons.
Personalised maths
Mathematics is adjusted to what your child understands now and what they are ready to learn next.
Personalised literacy
Reading, spelling and written language can be adapted to your child's actual level and progress.
Individual feedback
Children can submit work through Google Classroom and receive individual teacher feedback.
Teacher support
Optional 15–30 minute individual teacher check-ins are available when needed, up to once weekly during active programme terms.
Genuinely Montessori-led
Montessori is not an add-on. It is the foundation.
Montessori Kiwi is designed and supported by a Montessori-trained teacher rather than simply borrowing a few Montessori ideas.
The programme draws on Montessori principles including independence, developmental readiness, concrete-to-abstract learning, purposeful activity, Cosmic Education and respect for each child's individual pace.
You do not need to become a Montessori teacher yourself. The professional Montessori knowledge sits behind the programme.
Montessori at home can still be practical
You do not need a complete classroom, shelves full of every Montessori material or a rigid daily routine.
The goal is to use Montessori principles meaningfully within the reality of family life.
A different kind of online programme
Montessori at home, not school on a screen
Online support should not mean an online childhood.
Technology is used where it helps: accessing resources, Google Classroom, submitting work, short presentations and communication.
Much of the actual learning happens through books, writing, discussion, Montessori materials, experiments, practical activity, research, projects and the real world.
Your child might spend their day...
- Reading real books
- Writing stories and reports
- Working with hands-on mathematics
- Conducting science experiments
- Creating maps and timelines
- Cooking and measuring
- Researching areas of interest
- Learning outdoors
Structured and personalised
Montessori Homeschool Curriculum for New Zealand Families
Families get the security of a carefully structured programme without forcing every child through exactly the same learning path.
Mathematics and literacy are personalised according to your child's current understanding and next learning steps. The wider Montessori curriculum provides meaningful breadth across science, history, geography, culture and Cosmic Studies.
Mathematics
Number, operations, fractions, decimals, geometry, measurement, patterns and problem-solving, adjusted according to your child's readiness.
Literacy
Reading, comprehension, spelling, grammar, handwriting, creative writing, factual writing, research and oral language.
Science, history & geography
Montessori Cosmic Education connects learning through stories, experiments, timelines, research and big questions.
Practical life & interests
Cooking, gardening, art, design, physical activity, personal projects and practical skills can all become meaningful learning.
A rich Montessori curriculum
Strong academics and a much bigger view of education
Montessori education is not limited to isolated worksheets or a sequence of disconnected subjects.
Children are encouraged to see connections between ideas, investigate questions deeply and develop the independence needed to become active learners.
Cosmic Education provides a framework for exploring the natural world, human history, science, geography and culture while giving children opportunities to follow meaningful interests.
Hands-on Montessori Cosmic Education can connect science, history, geography and research.
Physical Montessori materials
Families source their own physical Montessori materials
Physical Montessori materials are not included in the programme fee.
Families are responsible for purchasing, borrowing, making or otherwise sourcing Montessori materials, books, stationery, science supplies and other hands-on resources used at home.
You do not need to recreate an entire Montessori classroom.
Guidance can be provided about which materials are most useful for your child's stage of learning.
Use what genuinely supports the learning
Some Montessori materials are particularly valuable when children are moving from concrete understanding towards abstraction.
The aim is not to own everything. It is to have the right tools when they are genuinely useful.
How it works
Professional support without giving up your independence as a homeschool family
Your family stays in control of home education while the programme provides structure, personalisation and professional support behind the scenes.
We get to know your child
We begin with their current level, strengths, interests and areas where they may need additional support or challenge.
Maths and literacy are personalised
Core learning responds to your child rather than simply assigning work according to age.
The wider curriculum is ready
Families receive structured learning across science, history, geography, culture and Montessori Cosmic Studies.
Your child can submit work
Work can be submitted through Google Classroom where it can be reviewed and individual feedback provided.
Talk when you need to
An optional 15–30 minute individual teacher check-in is available when needed, up to once each week during active programme terms.
A teacher behind the programme
Montessori home education with real teacher involvement
Montessori Kiwi is more than access to resources. There is an experienced Montessori teacher actively supporting the programme.
Teacher review
Submitted work can be reviewed so children receive individual comments and meaningful feedback.
Individual check-ins
Optional 15–30 minute one-to-one teacher check-ins are available when needed, up to once each week during active programme terms.
Next-step guidance
Families can ask for guidance about progression, materials and sensible next steps rather than making every educational decision alone.
Who is responsible for what?
You remain the homeschooler. Montessori Kiwi provides professional support behind you.
Montessori Kiwi supports independent home education. It does not transfer responsibility for your child's education to a school.
Your responsibility
- Obtaining and maintaining any required home education exemption.
- Remaining responsible for your child's home education.
- Deciding how and when learning happens.
- Monitoring overall progress.
- Carrying out or arranging assessment where needed.
- Sourcing physical Montessori materials and resources.
Montessori Kiwi provides
- A structured Montessori curriculum.
- Personalised mathematics.
- Personalised literacy.
- Feedback on submitted work.
- Guidance about appropriate next steps.
- Optional individual teacher check-ins.
Not one-size-fits-all
For children who do not fit neatly into a box
Montessori Kiwi may suit children who benefit from greater flexibility, individual pacing or a quieter and more responsive approach to education.
- Advanced in particular subjects.
- Needing more time in other areas.
- Uneven learning profiles.
- Neurodivergent learners.
- Children who need movement and flexibility.
- Children with strong individual interests.
- Children disengaged from conventional schooling.
- Families needing learning to fit around real life.
Meet the founder
I've been the teacher and I've been the homeschooling parent
Lisa Dei Gratia is a Montessori-trained teacher, New Zealand registered teacher, Montessori school founder and parent with firsthand homeschooling experience.
Lisa founded Porirua Montessori Primary School and has also supported and mentored trainee Montessori teachers.
Montessori Kiwi has been created specifically for families who have chosen independent home education but want professional Montessori curriculum and teacher support behind them.
Home education in New Zealand
Independent home education with professional Montessori support behind you
Montessori Kiwi is a private curriculum and educational support service. It is not a registered New Zealand school and joining Montessori Kiwi is not school enrolment.
What this means for your family
Parents or legal guardians remain responsible for their child's home education and for meeting New Zealand home education requirements.
Montessori Kiwi provides curriculum, personalised core learning, feedback and professional guidance for families to use within their own home education programme.
Assessment of the overall home education programme remains the responsibility of the parent or legal guardian.
Home education exemption support
Optional Montessori-style home education application support is available for families who want assistance preparing their New Zealand home education exemption application.
NZ$60 + GST
NZ$69 including GST
This is a separate optional service. Montessori Kiwi does not issue home education exemptions or guarantee Ministry of Education approval.
Programme fees
Personalised Montessori education with real teacher involvement
You are not simply paying for access to lessons. Your child receives a structured Montessori programme alongside personalised core learning, teacher review of submitted work and access to individual professional support.
Founding New Zealand families
Founding-family programme rate
NZ$600
per child, per New Zealand school term
NZ$2,400 across four school terms.
- Montessori-trained teacher behind the programme.
- Pre-planned Montessori curriculum.
- Flexible learning pathways and activity choices.
- Personalised mathematics.
- Personalised literacy.
- Google Classroom for submitting work.
- Individual teacher comments and feedback.
- Optional 15–30 minute teacher check-ins.
Standard programme rate
Standard term fee
NZ$695
per child, per school term
NZ$2,780 across four school terms.
Application fee
A separate NZ$50 non-refundable application fee is payable when you apply.
The application fee is additional to the programme fee and is not deducted from the first-term programme fee.
Once a term programme fee has been charged, that term fee is non-refundable.
Initial payment
Founding families pay NZ$650 when beginning: the NZ$50 application fee plus NZ$600 for the first term.
At the standard programme rate, the initial amount is NZ$745: the NZ$50 application fee plus NZ$695 for the first term.
Physical Montessori materials and other physical learning resources are not included.
Questions parents ask
Montessori Homeschool NZ Frequently Asked Questions
Can I homeschool using Montessori in New Zealand?
Yes. Montessori can be used as the educational approach within an independent home education programme. Families remain responsible for meeting New Zealand home education requirements and maintaining any required exemption.
Do I have to follow the New Zealand Curriculum when homeschooling?
Independent home educators in New Zealand do not have to recreate a school classroom or teach from the New Zealand Curriculum in exactly the same way as a registered school.
What does the Montessori homeschool curriculum include?
The programme includes personalised mathematics and literacy together with a wider Montessori curriculum covering science, history, geography, culture and Cosmic Studies.
What ages is Montessori Kiwi suitable for?
Montessori Kiwi is designed for children approximately 5–13 years old.
Is Montessori Kiwi a school?
No. Montessori Kiwi is a private home education curriculum and educational support service. Joining Montessori Kiwi does not enrol your child in a school.
Is this genuinely Montessori?
Yes. Montessori Kiwi is developed and supported by a Montessori-trained teacher.
Who is responsible for assessment?
Assessment of your child's overall home education programme remains the parent's responsibility. Montessori Kiwi provides feedback on submitted work.
Does Montessori Kiwi give us a home education exemption?
No. Families apply separately to the Ministry of Education. Montessori Kiwi does not issue exemptions and cannot guarantee approval.
Can you help with the home education application?
Yes. Separate Montessori-style home education application support is available for NZ$60 plus GST, which is NZ$69 including GST.
Are Montessori materials included?
No. Families are responsible for sourcing physical Montessori materials, books, stationery, science supplies and other practical resources.
Is this screen-based learning?
No. Technology supports communication and submitting work, while much of the actual learning happens through books, writing, hands-on materials, experiments and practical activity.
Start the conversation
You homeschool. You do not have to carry the whole educational load alone.
Keep the freedom and independence of home education while having an experienced Montessori teacher behind you with curriculum, personalisation, feedback and support.
Founding-family rate: NZ$600 per child, per term.
NZ$50 non-refundable programme application fee applies in addition to the term fee.