Family Tides
By Madison Russ
Kylie Raab, owner of Raab Montessori Academy (RMA) in Ocean City, has a passion for her students and the Montessori method that’s hard to miss: it shines through in every conversation and every corner of the school she’s built.
“It’s my life. It’s everything to me,” said the Ocean City native — and it shows.
In just five years, RMA has grown from 10 students to nearly 100, standing out as one of the area’s only authentic Montessori schools for children 18 months through third grade. Its child-centered approach nurtures independence, curiosity and a lifelong love of learning.
In Raab’s classrooms, small tables replace traditional desks, and materials are always within a child’s reach. There’s no teacher’s desk to be found, and the atmosphere can appear strikingly harmonious with children — toddlers included — deeply focused on their work.
“It is their environment that we’re sort of welcomed into as the guide, but the classrooms are for them,” she said. “They dictate their own path, and they navigate their own educational journey.”
Each student follows a unique path tailored to their skills, areas for improvement and interests
Though not play based, students move freely and collaborate, choosing what they want to work on and who they want to work with, though Raab notes there’s “freedom within limits” and guidelines.
“They have a lot of autonomy in the classroom and a lot of choice,” said Raab. “It’s very academic based, but it’s very free-flowing and allows children to experience academics in a way that makes sense and in a way that’s accessible to them and allows them to really thrive.”
Classrooms also mix age groups, allowing older children to become leaders and younger children to learn from their peers.
Notably, Montessori takes an individualized approach. It’s also one of the only educational methods that is across every continent, Raab explained.
“With Montessori, you can go as far as you want. There is no limit. It’s a limitless curriculum. So as much as you’re ready for and as much as you’re interested in, is as much as I can teach you. Also, if you’re in an area of improvement, as I call it, I can show you that specific skill in a million different ways,” said Raab.
The curriculum combines practical life skills that promote independence, like self-care and cooking, with academics, including math, sensorial, peace and character education, language and culture. Cultural work spans geography, science and learning about people, creatures and places around the globe.
Elementary students cook together weekly, following recipes and working independently from teachers to read instructions, measure ingredients, and serve a food item. Primary and toddler students also cook together for group breakfast, making dishes from the continent they’re studying.
Students also practice both yoga and soccer once a week, with additional after-school sports offered.
Students enjoy regular hands-on presentations that bring lessons to life, like meeting a macaw during their South America unit or insects when studying invertebrates. Field trips for kindergartners and elementary students, such as visiting the planetarium at Rutgers University, further enrich their learning.
The curriculum also allows for creativity, such as when a group of kindergartners recently chose to do a presentation on the Amazon rainforest, researching, selecting materials online and designing a poster. They even handed out homemade cacao bars (with a little help from Raab to heat the cacao).
“This presentation was incredible; it’s something that kids would be doing in maybe middle school,” said Raab. “Truly, I did nothing. And that kind of creativity in kindergarten, I was just blown away. That really to me was like the beauty and the power of Montessori.”
These memorable moments reflect the deeper purpose behind RMA — a vision Raab had been shaping for years.
Raab studied early childhood education and minored in business at Saint Joseph’s University, then earned a master’s in education and Montessori certification at Chestnut Hill College. After years of teaching, she set her sights on opening her own school.
Despite the challenges of launching during COVID-19, she moved forward in September 2020, driven by a desire to offer a quality Montessori education to her nephews and local families.
“I knew that if I wanted them to have the best, I’m going to have to be the one to give it to them,” said Raab of her nephews.
Growing enthusiasm from students and families led to expanding through third grade this year. Raab hired a Montessori-trained teacher with international experience to launch the lower elementary program, which is expected to grow from eight students to 20 next year.
The school is also exploring new opportunities for its growing elementary program, such as enrolling eligible students next year in the Montessori Model United Nations, where students ages 9 to 16 work together to create solutions to global problems and collaborate with peers from around the world.
The school purchased the building next door with the hopes of using it for the elementary program. Plans are underway to expand to fourth grade for the 2026-27 school year, with the potential for going up to eighth grade.
“Any child that goes through our school is getting the same quality of education and the same attentiveness and same love and nurturing that I was giving the students when I only had 10 of them,” she said. “It’s powerful to be able to grow so much and still maintain that integrity of what you set out to do.”
Raab hopes to continue expanding, but she’s focused less on numbers and more on impact — mainly that students and families remain as happy as they are now.
“I don’t care if we expand in numbers. I don’t care if we make more money as long as we’re continuing to be able to do exactly what we’re doing now, which is just to provide the best education,” said Raab. “My expansion is always to benefit the kids.”
Photos courtesy of Kylie Raab
Madison Russ is an award-winning journalist, copy editor and adjunct professor of communication based in Atlantic County. An Ocean City native, Madison is passionate about telling stories that matter to locals, often spotlighting nonprofits and exploring the area’s vibrant arts scene.
