People come to Montessori from different places, as parents, as working assistants, or as educators ready to go deeper, and our courses give each of them a clear way to start.
This is the complete credential for anyone who wants to run their own Montessori classroom as a certified guide.
Built for busy adults, this course prepares parents, educators, and aspiring assistants to work confidently alongside a lead guide.
Short, practical sessions that help families, school teams, and educators bring Montessori into everyday life.
Start by comparing the programs, their pricing, and their schedules. If anything is unclear, message our team and we will help you choose the right format for your life.
Applying takes only a few minutes online, whether you are joining an assistant course, a diploma program, or a workshop.
Once you are in, you study on your own time, with coursework designed for people who are already working.
Our diploma training carries accreditation from AMI and MACTE, the standard Montessori schools look for worldwide, and it can open the door to a master's degree pathway for graduates who want to go further. Request full details to see how that works.
You learn from AMI trainers who have spent years in real Montessori classrooms, following a curriculum refined over decades of practice.
Because the assistant course is online and blended and the institute teaches in English as well as Spanish, more people can train in real Montessori without stepping away from work or family.
Montessori Stoppani has trained Montessori educators since 2019 with one clear focus: authentic AMI preparation. Assistants, career-changers, and working teachers learn from the same AMI trainers, seasoned in real classrooms, who lead the institute’s diploma programs from its San Diego base. The assistant course runs online and blended, tuition is kept accessible, and courses are offered in English and in Spanish, so cost, language, and location rarely have to stand in the way.
The programs are also built to connect. Many people begin with the assistant course, then go on to the full AMI Diploma, whose hybrid format brings students to San Diego for two summers. Diploma graduates can take it one step further and pursue a master’s degree through the Loyola pathway; request full details. Whether you finish with the assistant certification or keep going, the next step is always laid out for you.
Our team of world-class AMI trainers are internationally recognized.
Alejandra Rosas is an AMI Infant and Nest Community Trainer and Training Director at Montessori Stoppani Institute with more than 25 years of Montessori experience. She received her AMI 3 to 6 diploma in Italy and her 0 to 3 diploma in San Diego under the direction of renowned Montessori educator Dr. Silvana Montanaro. Alejandra has dedicated her career to supporting young children, families, and future Montessori guides through internationally respected AMI training, workshops, consulting, and classroom leadership.
Cristina A. De León holds advanced degrees in Clinical Psychology, Pedagogy, and Education and has more than 25 years of experience working with children in Montessori and traditional educational environments. She received her AMI diplomas in Early Childhood and Elementary Education through the Montessori Institute of San Diego and currently serves as a Casa de Niños AMI Trainer and Examiner. Cristina has guided Montessori educators internationally throughout the United States, Argentina, Costa Rica, Taiwan, and Spain, bringing deep educational experience and a global Montessori perspective to her training work.
Gabriela Velázquez began her Montessori journey at an early age, first as a Montessori student and later as an assistant in the same school where her mother worked as a Montessori guide. She earned a degree in Early Childhood Education, her AMI Nido and Infant Community diploma, and a master’s degree in education before spending more than 20 years working in Montessori schools throughout Mexico and the United States. Today, Gabriela serves internationally as an AMI 0 to 3 trainer, examiner, consultant, and speaker, helping future Montessori guides deepen their understanding of early childhood development.
Emily Hansen is an AMI 0 to 3 Trainer with more than 21 years of Montessori classroom experience across Toddler and Primary communities. She holds degrees in Psychology, Sociology, and Montessori Education, along with AMI diplomas at both the 0 to 3 and 3 to 6 levels. Emily combines deep Montessori expertise with a warm and practical approach to education, bringing years of experience supporting children, families, and future Montessori educators through her training work.
Dr. Mario Salguero is a physician, researcher, and educator specializing in personalized medicine, psychiatry, nutrition, and integrative health. After graduating from the University of Guadalajara School of Medicine, he completed advanced studies in Clinical Nutrition and earned a PhD in Molecular Biology in Medicine before completing his Psychiatry Residency at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Salguero combines scientific research, medical education, and a compassionate approach to child and human development as part of the Montessori Stoppani training team.
Still weighing your options? These are the questions we hear most from people considering the assistant course, with straight answers on format, cost, and enrollment.
Yes. The assistant course leads to an AMI-recognized certification, and AMI is respected by Montessori schools everywhere. It prepares you to support an authentic Montessori environment as a knowledgeable classroom assistant.
The assistant course is offered fully online and in a blended format, so you can study around your job and your family. There is no need to relocate to earn your certification.
Pricing depends on the level and format you pick, and Montessori Stoppani keeps its training accessible. Ask for the free Program Details and Pricing Guide to see current tuition, start dates, and the plans available, with instant access.
No. What you earn is a professional AMI qualification, not transferable college credit. If your goal is a graduate degree, the way to get there is the master’s pathway offered through Loyola, and our program details spell out how it works.
Think of them as two roles that work side by side. The lead guide, trained through the full AMI Diploma, designs and runs the classroom. The assistant keeps that space calm, prepared, and protected so the guide and the children can do their work. Because the assistant role is narrower, its course is shorter and easier to fit around real life, which is why many people start there.
AMI stands for the Association Montessori Internationale, the organization Maria Montessori created to protect her method exactly as she intended. Training that carries the AMI name signals the real thing: rigorous preparation and authentic standards that schools trust when they hire.
The diploma is accredited by both AMI and MACTE, while the assistant course is AMI-recognized. Either way, what you learn follows genuine Montessori standards under trainers who teach it for a living.
It can, though this pathway is for diploma graduates rather than assistant students. After the Diploma, there is a pathway to a master’s degree through Loyola. The exact requirements shift by program, so it is worth asking for the full program details before you plan around it.
The first step is to request the free Program Details and Pricing Guide, which shows the assistant course levels, start dates, and formats. If you have questions, text our San Diego team, and when you feel ready, fill out the short online application.
The Montessori assistant course in San Diego from Montessori Stoppani Institute is an AMI-recognized certification that prepares parents, educators, and classroom assistants to support authentic Montessori environments. The course is offered online and in a blended format at both the 0-3 and 3-6 levels, so you can build real Montessori skills around your work and family schedule. Montessori Stoppani is a San Diego based AMI institute, and its assistant training is taught by the same experienced AMI trainers who lead its diploma programs. It is a practical, accessible first step, whether you want to assist confidently in a classroom now or work toward the full AMI Diploma later.
An AMI Montessori assistant learns to prepare, protect, and support the prepared environment so the lead guide and the children can do their best work. Our assistant course gives parents, educators, and aspiring classroom assistants the core Montessori principles behind that role: how children develop, how the environment is arranged, and how an assistant supports independence without interrupting it. The training is shorter and more flexible than the diploma, which makes it a strong fit for busy adults exploring Montessori for the first time or deepening the practice they already use. You learn from trainers with years of real classroom experience, and you finish ready to contribute in an authentic Montessori setting.
The assistant course runs online and blended, so you do not have to move to San Diego or leave your job to earn your certification. You study the coursework on a schedule that works for you, with the structure and guidance of a real AMI training program behind it. Montessori Stoppani also offers programs in both English and Spanish, and it keeps tuition accessible, so cost and language are far less likely to stand between you and an authentic credential. Pricing is easy to find as well: request the free Program Details and Pricing Guide and you get instant access, with no waiting for a callback.
Starting the Montessori assistant course in San Diego takes just a few steps. Request the free Program Details and Pricing Guide to see the assistant course levels, schedules, formats, and current pricing, all delivered with instant access. If you still have questions, text our San Diego team and we will reply quickly, then you can complete a short online application whenever you are ready. Many students begin with the assistant course and later step up to the full AMI Diploma, whose hybrid format is anchored by summers in San Diego, and diploma graduates can pursue a master’s degree through the Loyola pathway; request full details. Wherever you want to go in Montessori, the assistant course is a smart, accessible place to begin.
