The Montessori Institute Denver, CO USA

“Erin Smith changed the whole trajectory of my Montessori path.”

That’s how Teeter Sperber described her experience at TMI.

At one point, Teeter was questioning whether Montessori was still the right fit for her. Then she met Erin.

"I was one foot out the door until she showed me Montessorians like her existed. She's inclusive, inspiring, and she taught me the work can be rigorous, joyful, and fun all at once."

At TMI, we believe the people guiding the training matter deeply. When a trainer truly lives the philosophy, the learning becomes more than academic. It becomes grounded, energizing, and deeply human.

Our faculty bring knowledge, warmth, authenticity, and care into every training space. And again and again, students tell us those relationships become one of the most meaningful parts of their experience.

Teeter’s message to TMI was simple:
“Thank you for putting her in my path.”

We’re grateful for educators like Teeter, and for the community that continues to grow around this work.

🌱 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

At TMI, we count the days until the students join us here in Denver for the summer.

Some of them are flying in from across the country. Some are driving in from down the road. All of them have been doing this work from a distance, and now they get to do it in person. With Erin. With each other. In our new space.

If you've ever been part of a cohort that only sees each other a few times a year, you know what this feels like. It's not just a class. It's a reunion. It's the part of training where everything clicks because you're finally in the same room.

We cleaned everything twice. Not because it needed it. Because we're excited.

See you soon.

🌿 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

You can read the theory from anywhere.

You can watch lectures from your couch. You can complete assignments at your kitchen table. You can study Montessori philosophy in your pajamas at midnight while your kids sleep. (Most of our students have done exactly that.)

But there's a reason you come to Denver.

It's the moment Erin picks up a material and shows you something you've read about fifty times but never actually understood until right now.

It's your cohort. The people who have been names on a screen for months, suddenly in the same room, and somehow it feels like you've known them forever.

It's the Greek Dance on Friday. Outside. Together. In the sun or the cold or whatever Denver decides to throw at you that day. You dance anyway. Because that's what TMI does.

It's Curtis Park. The coffee shops that become your second classroom. The murals you walk past every morning. The neighborhood that wraps around you and says, "You belong here."

It's Erin, face to face. Not through a screen. In the room. Answering your questions with a depth and warmth that changes how you think about this work.

The hybrid format is designed for real life. But the on-site block? That's where the training becomes something you carry in your bones.

🌱 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

"If you are looking to complete your 0-3 training, go to Denver."

That's Sara Elledge. Class of 2025. And she didn't say that because we asked her to.
Sara came to TMI and found something she wasn't expecting: a close-knit community that she believes every AMI training center should seek to emulate.

But working with Erin shifted something for her.

"Erin combines Montessori theory with humanity in a way that I had never experienced before. Having her as my trainer has not only given me a revived confidence in my practice but also a newfound belief in myself and the work that I do."

Read that again. Not just renewed confidence in her practice, but in herself and her work.

That's what happens when your trainer sees the educator and the human.

Sara also had this to say about Denver: "The city is exquisite." And about TMI: "I feel lucky to be an alumni."

We feel lucky she chose us.

🌿 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

Training ends around 5:30.

And then Curtis Park wakes up in a different way.

The patios fill up. The restaurants start buzzing. The murals you walked past this morning look completely different under string lights. The neighborhood that held you all day in deep Montessori theory and practicum work suddenly turns into the best evening you've had in months.

Our students grab dinner together. They find spots they'll come back to every on-site block for the rest of their training. They have conversations about the work that started in the training center and keep those discussions going over dinner with live music.

This is the part of training nobody puts in the brochure.

The neighborhood doesn't just support the learning. It extends it. Into the evening. Into the friendships. Into the kind of memories that make you text your cohort, "Remember that place on Larimer?" three years later.

Curtis Park after dark. Come see for yourself.

📍 Curtis Park, Denver | Home of TMI
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

"My time at TMI didn't just share the beauty of Montessori pedagogy with me. Through modeling, community, flexibility, hands-on practice, and the experience of collaborating with people from all walks of life, I was absorbing Montessori education in the most holistic way possible."

That's Abigail Denton. Class of 2025.

She came to TMI to develop her knowledge as a guide. She left with something she didn't expect: a completely transformed way of learning, observing, and connecting with the world.

That's the thing about this training. It changes the way you work with children, yes. But it also changes the way you see everything else.

Abigail said it better than we could:
"I had no idea it would go beyond developing my knowledge as a guide and deeply transform the way I learn, observe, and connect with the world. I am so proud of and grateful for all the tools, memories, and friends I've taken away from this experience."

Oh, and one more thing from Abigail: "The mountains rocked too!" 🏔️

Fair point.

🌱 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

Let's talk about money. Because $10-13K is a real number and you deserve a real conversation about it, not a sales pitch.

Here's what that tuition actually covers: the full AMI certified training, exam fees, support with practicum, individualized support, personal instruction from Erin Smith, and your AMI certification upon completion. That's not a course fee with hidden add-ons.

That's everything.

Now here's what most people don't realize.

You don't have to pay it all at once. Payment plans are available. You spread it out over the course of your training in a way that works for your budget.

Your school might pay for the whole thing. Montessori schools are so desperate for trained 0-3 guides that many of them will sponsor an employee's entire tuition in exchange for a multi-year commitment. We'll even help you have that conversation with your director.

Your training counts toward a Bachelor's degree. Through our university partnership, your TMI coursework applies toward a college degree.

And then there's the salary shift. The average daycare teacher earns $28-34K. AMI-trained 0-3 guides earn $42-52K. The training doesn't just pay for itself. It pays you back, every year, for the rest of your career.

You're not spending $10-13K. You're making the single highest-ROI (return on investment) available in early childhood education.

The question was never whether you can afford TMI. The question is whether you can afford another decade in a $28K job that's draining you.

🌿 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio

This is the part where the math changes.

TMI's training counts toward a Bachelor's degree through our university partnership.

Read that again.

Your Montessori certification, the most respected credential in early childhood education, can also count toward your college degree.

You're not choosing between training and a degree. Your training is a part of your degree.

🌿 The Montessori Institute | Denver, CO
🔗 Learn more → link in bio