I do. I believe that Montessori works, that it can work, and that it takes training and hard work for Montessori methods to pay off. It's a shame some people at Walden have decided to take the easier way. I will never set Montessori aside for something "better."
I don't understand when "doing Montessori" became optional at Walden.
I had a great day today. Math teams went swimmingly, and my language circles went beautifully. We had great work cycles in the morning and afternoon, and I taught a lesson about the Revolutionary War that had the kids wide-eyed and engaged.
In the afternoon I went into Jenessa's classroom to talk to her about math groups with second graders, and Buzz came in. There was chitchat for a few minutes, and then he got down to the business that had brought him down: would we be interested in having two grade classrooms instead of three grade classrooms.
I spoke up and said that I was opposed to the idea because it would completely mess up our three-year curriculum, and it's also a fundamental shift from what Montessori is.
The thing that has me all frustrated right now was the way he prefaced his question. I don't remember the exact phrasing, but the general idea was that there's a split in the school between the people who want us to be a Montessori school and the people who don't think it's all that important. Obviously, he has me, Jenessa and Sarai in the first group, and I got the feeling he thinks our position is seeing the world through rose-colored glasses, and that if we just *understood* how difficult it is to teach the state core using the Montessori method and materials we would jump off the bandwagon.
Thing is, I've already taught in a school where Montessori had been deemed less-than-good-enough and pushed aside for other methods. I would be sick if we ended up going that way because I know Montessori can work, that it does work, and that it will work when we have teachers who are trained to use the materials and the method. At some point some of our teachers stopped training to be Montessori teachers, and I feel like we are in danger of losing our way.
I was having this absolutely great day, and now all I can think about is this conversation.
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I am feeling better about this because I emailed the above to Diana, and she responded very lovingly and was supportive of my feelings and concerns. Right now I'm researching 9-12 certification programs, and I am doubling-down on my 6-9 certification. I want to be done by the end of May so that I can go to a summer 9-12 program. I don't know what I'll do with my kiddos (Leo works and is probably not up to being a single parent for a month . . . ), but I'm thinking about it more seriously than ever before. I don't really *want* to teach in the 9-12, but I will if that's what is best for Walden.
And the rest of them, well, get trained or find another job. Seriously.
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Case Study
JS arrived early again today - she shows up 10-15 minutes early each day. Today's morning task was to complete a grammar box. She started with her green reading, which took her far longer than it needed to due to the fact that she illustrates all of her writing. I have tried to talk her out of doodling all over everything, but she doodles with great determination. It has proved difficult to move her past it. I am trying to find ways to encourage this creativity that do not derail her academic progress, but so far I am stymied. Between her green reading and her grammar box, she spent two hours on language work this morning. She barely got to her problems on the board before recess. She was on task most of the afternoon, and she completed her classroom job at cleanup time without being asked (she is a waste management officer - takes out the trash and recycling).
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