This week, we had a large turnout at our Beginner’s and Children’s House Curriculum Overview. Since not everyone was able to attend, I will share a piece of my introductory words for those who are curious about the direction of the school under new leadership.
I’ve been working in education for the past 18 years and in Montessori, specifically, for the past 15. The longer I have been at this thing we call education, the more I have realized that the most significant impact you can have on the trajectory of a life is during the developmental years that Oak Meadow serves.
Our culture places so much value on older ages, on high school, college, and beyond, that we sometimes forget the significance and importance of these early ages. We underplay how crucial childhood experiences are as a society, but ask anyone who’s been through therapy- the things that happen in your childhood are formative and stay with you through your lifetime. It’s really not a task to be undertaken lightly or casually.
We’re living through a tremendously pivotal time in human history. The children in our school right now were born during a once-in-a-century pandemic. We’re at a tipping point with our development of Artificial Intelligence, and honestly, can only guess at the myriad of ways in which AI will change the workforce and our social and political landscapes.
It’s a scary time to be a parent, as the old ways of doing things don’t seem to apply to the challenges we’re facing. There doesn’t seem to be a rulebook any more, and it’s hard to know what is right, what is best, and what will set your children up for success.
Just for a moment, imagine your child or children at age 16, 25, or 30…. Imagine what qualities you wish for your child to have. Not the specifics of their lives, but the qualities and values they will live by. Maybe it’s joy, maybe persistence, maybe empathy or creativity or a commitment to social justice. Imagine your child in adolescence, or adulthood embodying all those qualities. Breathe into that image.
And then let’s reverse engineer it. What experiences do they need to have now to be able to become everything you wish them to be? If I had to guess, they would need to have time and space to make mistakes, to learn from them, to have role models that inspire them, to be role models themselves. They would need to have concrete experiences with materials that are intentional and precise, and to be an active participant in their own learning. They need to be able to listen to the voice inside of themselves and identify, “What am I interested in? What makes me come alive?” And then they would need to have the space and time to come alive and pursue their passions. They would need to be a part of a community where every individual is valued and respected, not because of their achievements, but because of their humanity. They would need to know that their worth is not tied to outcomes.
Our commitment is to child development. We nurture strength, resilience, creativity, empathy, and we have a proven approach that has worked through the changes of the past 118 years. At the end of the day, technology changes, our society changes, values change, but the biological developmental path of children has remained relatively steady.
The Montessori approach speaks to that development.
If this speaks to you, and you would like to chat more about your hopes and vision for your own child or the direction of the school, please take me up on the offer to Banter at any point! Because this year, more than any other year, it is together that we grow.
Wishing you presence and peace,
Bridget Barrett-Parker
Head of School
Oak Meadow Montessori School
Let’s chat about anything you’d like! Banter with Bridget
