The program is a small, mixed-age classroom for first through third graders at the Montessori Children’s House on Madison’s west side, where my eldest child currently attends preschool. It is in danger of being eliminated because of diminishing enrollment. I think that this would be a horrible loss to many academically talented children who would do so well there. They do so many things right there, such as:
- Nurturing, home-like environment in which intense curiosity is normal
- Mixed-age classroom, which encourages children to work at their own pace
- Elegant learning materials
- Freedom of movement and plenty of outside time
- Freedom to follow their own intellectual curiosity
- No busy work
- No homework (unless the child chooses to keep working on something after school)
- Emphasis on peace and global citizenship
- Healthy snacks provided, healthy lunch to be brought from home
- Parental involvement welcomed (the school is a parent run co-op)
As a small community, it would only take a few more children to keep the program viable. If you are the parent of a child who would benefit from such an environment, would you please look at the school’s website http://www.madisonmontessori.org/programs/elementary/Elem_intro.html
and maybe take some time to observe the classroom?
Our family is committed to public schools, and we know that a school district needs talented kids and engaged families to thrive. This program would allow kids to integrate back into the public schools at a fairly young age, while protecting and nurturing them through a critical period of development.
Upon re-reading this message, it sounds like I’m making a blatant marketing pitch (which, frankly, I am). Please forgive me and understand that my only interest in the program is that it survive so that it is an option for my two children, ages 4 and 1, when they are old enough to need it. I hope that there are a few families here who might find a home there. Sincerely, Dawn M. Rappold [drappold@gmail.com]
Montessori Children’s House was an excellent program for my daughter for the first two years after we adopted her from Peru. It is there that she learned English with other kids, made friends, learned from hands-on experience.
Montessori teaching techniques emphasize precise language, the right vocabulary, and manipulatives, so kids can see, concretely, meaning and concepts. No, this is not a rote drill approach, and this is not what my daughter needed at that time.
At age 5, with no education in Peru, no English, and 5 five year old’s Spanish and Quechua, she was able to learn fairly good speaking English, good working and academic habits, and good social skills, taught in a very accepting but structured environment.
Individual attention was key at MCH. Teachers had the ability, the patience and time to attend to my daughter’s progress and approach her needs to ensure her success.
There was no special English-as-a-second language curriculum, no pull-outs, no labeling of kids as gifted or special-needs — just continuous progress that was noticeable week after week.
My daughter was unique in her special needs, but the other kids were treated well and made progress also, from my discussions with other parents. So Montessori is not and was not for kids needing special attention. The other kids were from middle and upper middle case families, and families who want to be deeply involved with the kids schools. Trust among kids, parents and teachers is a given.
That is not the case with MMSD.
There was no “if this is week 4, we must be on page 35”. There was no feeling of inadequacy, just the enjoyment of doing and learning. No busy work — only work that my child needed at this stage of her life.
I contrast this with 1st grade at Leopold. Ms Climans, her 1st teacher was wonderful, but the ESL and Whole Language program was implemented by idealogues.
My daughter was pulled out of 1st grade class for 6 weeks for ESL training, which made her feel stupid, and worse, if that was not bad enough, the ESL contents were geared for kids who could not speak or understand any English — which was not my daughter’s case. The ESL teacher simply mechanically started the conveyor belt process of teaching English without regard to whether it was needed or helping. After 6 weeks, stupidly trusting MMSD, we finally were able to ask the ESL teacher how Jessica was doing in the ESL class. Only then did the ESL teacher tell us that ESL was a waste of time for our daughter — so the ESL teacher was perfectly content to pull our daughter out of class, waste her time, and make her feel stupid.
My daughter was subject to pull-outs for reading — Whole Language. The conveyor belt moved at a given speed because theory told them so, but the Whole Language teachers were quite content to rely on theory to tell me that though she was not making progress using this approach, theory told them that by 5th grade, she would be caught up. Keep the belt running and eventually my daughter will be a perfectly adequate cookie.
By any measure I would make, the Montessori approach, as implemented at MCH some 15 years ago, created a rich and unhurried learning environment, where progress could be seen from week to week.
This is no time to lose such a valuable resource and school. We need more like it. Other schools make promises, this school, 15 years ago, I know, actually delivered.
If you have kids in the MCH age group, you owe it to yourself and your kids see how a successful school works.