Walk down any street in an Indian city and you'll see preschool signboards promising "Montessori-inspired", "play-based learning", or a "globally acclaimed curriculum". These labels matter less than parents think, and more than schools admit. Here's a plain-language guide.
Playway (the Indian default)
Most Indian preschool chains run a version of the playway method: structured learning delivered through games, rhymes, art, and activity. A typical day has circle time, a guided activity, free play, snack, and story time.
Looks like: colourful classrooms, theme weeks (fruits, transport, festivals), worksheets appearing around nursery age.
Good fit when: you want a sociable, low-pressure start and a smooth handover to a mainstream school.
Watch out for: "playway" used as a cover for early rote learning. If 3-year-olds are copying alphabets into notebooks for homework, it isn't playway.
Montessori
A 100-year-old method built on self-directed activity. Children choose from specific Montessori materials (sandpaper letters, number rods, pouring and buttoning frames) at their own pace, in mixed-age classrooms, with the teacher as a guide rather than an instructor.
Looks like: calm, ordered rooms; low open shelves; children working alone or in small groups on mats; very few plastic toys.
Good fit when: your child thrives with independence and hands-on work.
Watch out for: the word "Montessori" on the board with no trained adult inside. Ask two questions: "Which Montessori training do your teachers hold?" (look for AMI, IMTC, or a recognised diploma) and "Can I see the materials in use?" A genuine house will happily show you.
Reggio Emilia
An Italian approach where learning is project-led and expression-led, children investigate a topic (rain, markets, shadows) for weeks through drawing, building, drama and conversation. Teachers document the journey on walls.
Looks like: children's project work everywhere, natural materials, an atelier (art studio), teachers photographing and documenting.
Good fit when: you value creativity and deep engagement over early academics.
Watch out for: it's rare and usually premium in India. True Reggio-inspired schools invest heavily in teacher planning time, ask how projects are chosen and documented.
Waldorf / Steiner
Rhythm, storytelling, imaginative play, and no early academics at all, formal reading often waits until age 6 to 7. Handwork, baking, and nature time fill the day.
Good fit when: you're committed to a slower academic start (and a school ecosystem that supports it).
Traditional / academic
Structured, teacher-led classrooms with early reading, writing and number work. Common in preschools attached to big-school brands preparing children for their own Grade 1 admission tests.
Watch out for: homework before age 4 and long seated hours. NEP 2020's foundational-stage guidance explicitly discourages this.
The honest answer
Execution beats philosophy. A warm, well-staffed playway school beats a fake Montessori every day of the week. On your visit, ignore the signboard and watch three things: how teachers speak to children, how children move around the room, and what's actually on the shelves.