Such was the transformation that Maria Montessori witnesses amongst the children in the classes under her direction. One hundred years later, I see the same concrete examples of peace and joy in each one of our classrooms.One of the most notable outcomes of Montessori education is the way it transforms the people (adults and children) who embrace it. Dr. Montessori believed that children who were brought up and educated in an atmosphere of respect, compassion, empathy, and kindness would be able to transform the world. This is a hope cherished by the people who work at Montessori Children's School and by the parents who entrust children to our care.

Montessori works best when this approach is adopted as an integrated whole, when the parts work together, and when the school community evolves as an organism that is stronger than the sum of its parts. This is the feature that distinguishes a great Montessori School from all the rest. We thank you for the part you play in this vision. We could not make it work without your support.

It is quite easy to identify features that result in dysfunctional schools. You see various camps whose needs and goals seem to be in opposition to one another. Faculty and support staff in conflict; parents and teachers at loggerheads; Heads of School andBoards of Directors distrustful and disrespectful; students fearful of adults, and even levels of bullying aggression and other distrustful behaviors. These scenarios should never be part of the daily life in a Montessori community. I am grateful that we see few examples of these features that could prevent us from fulfilling our mission.

 Our students acquire lifelong skillsby living this community of people who give them such good examples of how to be a functioning part of an organic whole. Our school communicates fully its principles to the families before admission.After parents join the school community they are responsible for honoring the ethos of the school.

Working together is a strong factor in cementing a community. I am inspired every day by the amazing dynamic that exists in our school.The power of children, who inspired Dr. Montessori over a century ago, still inspire us today.  

The following passage from David Kahn's publication, "What is Montessori?" gives us one explanation of the importance of the community which includes Parents.

 "The Montessori classroom in many ways resembles an extended family. Everyone knows everyone. Work is shared, and learning is vitalized by social life. There is free communication and movement. The exchange of facts and discoveries become second nature.

Parent involvement adds to this community spirit. Because parents are treated as collaborators in Montessori, they are often invited into the classroom to share and participate in activities. Children begin to see that their educational experience is the result of their parents' direct input and action. The school is a community, and all are involved with events and celebration."

Thank you for the support you give the school.

Peggy Higgins

As part of our Earth Day Project, the Primary South students have collected pennies to donate to the children in Haiti.  We've named it 'Pennies for Peace.'  Together, we've collected a total amount of $61.15.  Every day the children come in either with a bag full of pennies or other change to contribute to our penny jar.  We've watched how our small jar got filled up quick and we had to transfer the pennies to a bigger container.  The children enjoyed counting and sorting them out.  On Wednesday morning, we welcomed Ms. Kathy, who is an American Red Cross representative for Onslow County, to our classroom.  The children handed her the fund we've collected and they learned about the Red Cross.  They were all very excited and proud of what they've done.  

It was indeed a remarkable experience to us all.  More so, it wasn't simply the amount of money we wanted to achieve but that we worked together peacefully as a group and learned how to contribute to, help, and care for others.  With that, we would like to thank all of our parents for participating with us.  It wouldn't have worked without your support.  Thank you!

Lastly, as Maria Montessori would say, "We shall walk together on this path of life, for all things are part of the universe, and are connected with each other to form one whole unity."

Thank you,

Primary South

May 22nd Yard Sale
All we can say is "WOW"! We are getting so many wonderful items to sell at the yard sale. Items that range from cribs to running shoes, clothes for older folks (there's even a red hat for someone in the Red Hat Society) to baby clothes! It's really fun to see all the stuff we accumulate over the years.
A parent had some larger items so we arranged a date and time for pick-up, real easy! Leaving items at school is also working out well!
Thank you all for supporting your PTO and remember, although this is a yard sale "for" the Montessori School it is not a Montessori yard sale.  So, anything goes!!!
Have a great week!