My Montessori journey…

My Montessori journey started more than 15 years ago when my son was about 2 and I was diligently searching for a special early childhood centre for my precious toddler. That is how I accidently stumbled across ‘Montessori’. The more I read, the more I knew that a Montessori environment was what I wanted for my child. It also awakened in me a need to pursue my own interests in education.

As soon as my children started Casa, I sought every opportunity to further my understanding and get involved. I attended parent information evening, talks, conferences, fundraisers,.. you name it, I did it. In my spare time, I read extensively about The Method and entered into discussion with any Montessori professional who would hear me.

As my children moved into Elementary, I joined the Parents’ Association and then the Board. I helped on school trips and in the classroom, I made/cleaned/organised materials. But it still was not enough… When my youngest was just 6 years old, I enrolled at a local university where I gained my Bachelor of Education specialising in Montessori. Yes, I was one of the lucky ones to spend the last year of my studies focusing on the Montessori philosophy.

Luck was also on my side when I received a very unexpected call from the children’s school. They had lost a teacher with eight weeks left in the year and were looking for someone to see the year to the end. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity. The following year, I started my Montessori Elementary training and the rest is more or less history.

I find that over the year, the more I learned and understood about Montessori the more I felt I did not know and the more I wanted to find out. Even though it has been more than 15 years, I still feel that I am just scratching the surface.