A Montessori Education
A Montessori Education
Today’s rapid technological and social change makes it increasingly difficult for us to understand and keep pace with today’s world. Learning how to learn optimizes our navigational and problem-solving skills.
Montessori students enjoy extraordinary educational opportunities helping them become deep thinkers and lifelong learners. They experience the many cultural traditions represented in the Montessori Children’s School community. Students interact and learn with celebrated international scholars, artists, scientists, and business leaders. Engaged in local, national, and global service-learning projects, our students learn about the world around them. Our course of study guides students on how to think clearly, do their own research, express themselves well in writing and speech, and put their knowledge to practical application.
A Universal Curriculum
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- We put the world into the palm of our students’ hands, studying and celebrating cultures and nations.
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- As a Lab School of the Montessori Foundation, which works with schools all over the world, our students have extensive connections and opportunities in international studies.
Second Language Study
- We introduce second languages by consciously seeking native speakers in our faculty.
- We seek to help our students appreciate the Spanish language and the cultures of the Spanish-speaking world.
An International Diverse School Community
- Our goal is to draw together a diverse community of educators, children, and families from all walks of life.
- We build tuition assistance into our annual budget.
- We accept Florida State Scholarships.
Sustainability
- We place emphasis on creating a sustainable environment.
- Students have ongoing lessons on living a life that is more in harmony with a sustainable environment.
- Each class participates in gardening and caring for our campus habitat.
A Family-Friendly School
- We want all of our families to feel welcome and comfortable.
- We offer an extended day program, starting at 8 am and ending our day at 5:30 pm for those who need a safe place for their children.
- We offer programs to help parents become well-informed and successful in creating peaceful, harmonious homes.
A Close Knit Montessori Partnership-Based School Community
- Our administrative and board decisions are based on clear, written values and principles of Montessori partnership (The Blueprint of Our Core Beliefs).
- All members of our school community are invited to participate in a partnership-based process of ongoing discussion, planning, problem-solving, and self-study for program improvement.
- We schedule many opportunities to come together as parents, students, and educators in celebration.
A School for Entrepreneurs and Leadership
- We teach children to be economically literate and capable. We help them understand business and personal economics.
- Students learn about local businesses, professions, and local government roles from various experiences.
- Students are encouraged and assisted in forming their small businesses for hands-on learning.
Technology & Communication
- We use technology as an effective tool for learning.
- We are committed to the ongoing emphasis on ethical, safe, and appropriate uses of technology.
A Peace Academy
- We teach partnership, peacemaking, and leadership skills to our students.
- Children learn how to communicate clearly and assertively in ways that express kindness and respect.
- They learn skills for conflict resolution, consensus building, and diplomacy.
- They learn about the world’s great peacemakers and leaders of nonviolent social change.
- We encourage our students to contribute to others through a tradition of community service and philanthropy.
An Environment for Learning
Montessori classrooms tend to fascinate both children and their parents. The classrooms have intriguing learning materials, fascinating mathematical models, maps, charts, fossils, historical artifacts, scientific apparatus, and natural science.
Our classrooms are carefully prepared to stimulate children’s independence and intellectual development. You will not find rows of desks here. Instead, the room will be set up to facilitate discussions and encourage collaborative learning.
Students will typically be found scattered around the classrooms, working alone or with one or two others. They tend to become so involved in their work that visitors are immediately struck by the peaceful atmosphere. As our students grow, they engage in seminar discussions, individual research, thoughtful writing, and field experience.
Our teachers focus on each student individually, not on a daily lesson plan for the entire class. They nurture and inspire students, teaching them to ask questions, think for themselves, explore, investigate, and discover. Our ultimate objective is to help students learn joyfully and think deeply and independently while holding on to the curiosity, creativity, and intelligence they were born with. Our teachers don’t simply present lessons; they are facilitators, mentors, coaches, and guides.
Our Montessori Partnership Community
As a partnership-based Montessori community, we consciously create a circle of equals. There are no somebodies and nobodies, nor in-groups or out-groups at MCS. Parents, educators, and children are all members of the school community.
School policies and decisions are based on its core values and principles of Montessori Best Practice rather than an ever-changing debate about the School’s mission and identity.
Our core Montessori principles cannot be compromised. However, parents, teachers, students, and school leaders can and should explore issues and ideas in a culture of kindness and respect.
We hold three whole-school Corporation Meetings and monthly School Community Meetings to provide one of several forums. We also offer workshops and discussions on partnership parenting and how the school prepares our children to face the challenges of a changing world.
We believe that a school can be a close-knit community of families who share common values and a place where children attend class. We welcome family involvement. Interested parents are invited to participate in many ways, from organizing celebrations to long-range planning. However, we expect each family to work closely with us to support their children’s education.
The Special Appeal of Our Campus
Our campus feels like Old Key West. We have a series of cozy cottages, gardens, and shaded areas to meet or work outside. Our classrooms are our students’ homes away from home, and we make them as attractive and comfortable as possible. They are warm, vibrant rooms filled with plants, art, music, and books.
