Authentic Montessori Education

Authentic Montessori Education

Established in 2007, we’re the first and only accredited Montessori School in South Dakota. We started with the idea of offering this 100 year old approach to the community and eighteen years later, we like to think that we’re just getting started.

About Us

Our mission is to offer an authentic Montessori education, based on the principles, methods, and activities of Maria Montessori.

Our Hope

We truly believe that our students learn how to embrace their limitless potential.

Our Story

Baan Dek offers children a singular environment to explore their interests and grow as learners.

The Classroom

The Montessori classroom, or Prepared Environment, allows children the opportunity to explore their interests in a safe and supportive environment.

“We are thankful for the unique environment Baan Dek creates for our children to work in. The staff genuinely loves our children and the mixed age classroom has helped them grow socially. Our children can explore what interests them and the process of learning is valued over the results. The best thing about Baan Dek is our children have the freedom to be who they want to be. This keeps their passion in learning and life.”

“Having both Evan and Fiona attend Baan Dek is one of our best decisions as parents. We overflow with pride when watching the two of them comfortably engage with people outside of the classroom. We’re no longer allowed to order for them at a restaurant, water the houseplants without them or to make their beds for them each morning. The confidence and independence they possess in their daily adventures is a direct result of their work in the Baan Dek classroom.”

“Since our son started with Baan Dek we have noticed wonderful and positive changes in his behavior.  The mixed-age classroom allows him to model behaviors that he sees from the older children. The Montessori approach works well with our child’s inquisitive nature.  We strongly believe that the Montessori classroom is already helping him become an even better big brother.  Our family is very excited for the day that our daughter is able to attend Baan Dek.”

“Our entire family has found the spirit of Baan Dek and its philosophy of learning to be contagious. We’ve grown as thinkers, doers and creative beings as we’ve each learned something about the Montessori approach to education. Our only regret is that Amy & I didn’t have the opportunity to be Montessori scholars like Emerson and Finn!”

“We are grateful that our children have the opportunity to be part of an educational community such as Baan Dek. We have enjoyed watching Emmeline grow from the toddler room to the primary room and embrace her creativity, independence, self-assuredness, and respect for her peers. The lessons learned at Baan Dek go beyond academic and we have confidence that they will continue to have positive influences throughout both our daughters lives.”

The Approach

What makes Montessori so relevant today, is that it prepares children for real world experiences.

See Our Classroom in Action