As the school year draws to a close, we prepare to say goodbye to our eldest WMS students. It’s a nuanced time for the 8th graders, filled with remembrance, excitement,
Renowned ecological horticulturist, and WMS graduate and parent, Rebecca McMackin recently delivered an impassioned TED Talk about the importance of letting your garden thrive with native plants, or in her words, “grow wild.”
In the wider world, toys marketed as “Montessori” or “Montessori-inspired” are often accompanied by expectations that they are beige or boring; the antithesis of the loud, neon-hued toys demanding your child’s attention in a toy store.
Critical thinking and learning go hand in hand. When we help children to develop critical thinking skills early on, we give them the essential building blocks for wise decision-making in the future.
Parents may have heard a bit about our classrooms, but they don’t know much about the approach’s history or the lifelong impact of Montessori education.
In 1907, Dr. Maria Montessori opened her first school in Rome, sparking an educational revolution that would continue into the 21st century, changing students’ lives.
In a Montessori classroom, educators maintain a careful and thoughtful balance between individuals and the group as a whole. Rather than privileging one over the other, we create a space where the collective experience is heightened and strengthened by the individual contribution and identity of each child.
As a new Head of School, I want to shout to the rooftops how much I appreciate WMS and what we do for children. Recently, I got to do just that with an article in Litchfield Magazine that focuses on our Middle School, which I believe to be one of the most substantive and exciting programs for young adolescents anywhere.
Through years of research and careful observation, Dr. Maria Montessori declared that education from birth to 6 was the most important in a child’s life. “Children taking in knowledge now retain it for the rest of their life,” she asserted in her book “Absorbent Mind.”
I am thrilled to report the return of WMS’s Composting Program after a hiatus due to factors beyond our control — specifically, a growing population of bears in the area and a global pandemic. A wonderful example of a student-led initiative directly benefiting our school, local community and beyond, our composting program clearly illustrates WMS’s mission for students to recognize their ability to contribute to the world in positive ways — both big and small.
Washington Montessori has a strong commitment to the principles and practices of diversity, including diversifying our student population geographically and socioeconomically. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, national and ethnic origin, or physical or mental disability status in the administration of our educational and admissions policies or other school-administered programs.
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