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ATTENTION MONTESSORI ELEMENTARY GUIDES: NEW JOB POSTING
The reach and velocity of hope and promise offered by Montessori Phoenix Projects is determined by available funds.
The following quote hints at the mechanism that makes it possible to offer Montessori teacher education courses to individuals of any educational background and any age.
"To become acquainted with the material, a teacher should not just look at it, study it in a book, or learn its use through the explanations of another. Rather, she must exercise herself with it for a long time, trying in this way to evaluate through her own experience the difficulties of, or the interests inherent in, each piece of material that can be given to a child, trying to interpret, although imperfectly, the impressions which a child himself can get from it. Moreover, if a teacher has enough patience to repeat an exercise as often as a child, she can measure in herself the energy and endurance possessed by a child of a determined age. For this final purpose, the teacher can grade the materials and thus judge the capacity of a child for a certain kind of activity at a given stage of his development."
Maria Montessori
Discovery of the Child
“When will we teach our children in school what they are? We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the world there is no other child exactly like you. In the millions of years that have passed there has never been another child like you. And look at your body – what a wonder it is! Your legs, your arms, your cunning fingers, the way you move! You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity of anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you harm another who is, like you, a marvel?”
Pablo Casals
“You have very truly remarked that if we are to reach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with children, and if they will grow up in their natural innocence, we won’t have to struggle, we won’t have to pass fruitless idle resolutions, but we shall go from love to love and peace to peace, until at last all the corners of the world are covered with that peace and love for which, consciously or unconsciously, the whole world is hungering.”
Excerpt from a letter Mahatma Gandhi wrote to Maria Montessori
MPP is dedicated to bringing to those environments programs that build on the dedication, concern, and knowledge to dramatically increase holistic development and contribute to promising futures; at the same time, ensuring each a happy, healthy, and nurturing childhood.
A quick, fun, and painless way to learn more about Montessori is to visit Nienhuis Montessori and read through the information on each set of materials. You have to click on “more” to see the full text of that topic. After that, if you want to be even yet more completely informed, visit Montessori Services website to explore supplemental aids to the Montessori environment.
CHILDREN AND TEACHER PREPARATION
The sisters in the above photo live on a ranch in Central America. Xochil, 9 yrs., the eldest (center), cannot attend school because her chores are necessary to her family's ability to be self-sufficient. Xochil is responsible for teaching her sisters how to care for themselves and the farm animals. As she was herding the milk cows into a corral where she and her sisters pumped water into the cow's trough, Xochil explained that although school lasts only three hours one day a week in the village, because of her chores, she is not able to attend.
MPP's commitment is that children like Xochil would be able to participate in the teacher development courses by way of neighboring participants visiting the farms and villages scattered throughout rural areas to share what they have learned with children like Xochil and their families. This would help participants gain valuable experience by repeating and demonstrating course material, as well as, let the children and their families receive immediate and ongoing benefit during the long teacher education process. This would also give children the option to make teaching a career.
Being committed to ensuring each child enjoys a complete quality primary education by 2015, Montessori Phoenix Projects invites children who currently have no other educational opportunity to join in teacher preparation courses. Since becoming a quality Montessori teacher involves years of study and practice, children (like the adults) are able to move through the program at their own pace and have a double benefit of receiving quality education while at the same time securing for themselves, if they choose, a career in teaching. Perhaps, best of al, even the content of MPP's Primary Teacher Education Course (Montessori for 3-6-year-olds) is academically enriching for all age groups, especially materials comprising Cultural Subjects, Language, and Mathematics.
One MPP adolescent participant, Nehan, began with MPP in 2000 when he was 15 years old. When he was an infant, his mother, a single mom, attended two Montessori workshops led by Marjorie Farmer. So inspired with ideas Nehan's mother opened her own school and hired local women, teaching them what she had learned from Marjorie. Nehan's mother now inspires teachers all over the country.
When his mother travels, Nehan runs their school of nine teachers where he also co-teaches and cares for his younger brother. Nehan has no access to secondary school for himself
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