Inclusion includes who?

Many of the methods that were incorporated by Maria Montessori in her pedagogy came from her study of Friedrich Froebel and others who worked with "idiot" children--what I will henceforth call children who learn differently. Additionally, Montessori's first observations of children were those who were in an asylum. So I am thankful that including children who learn differently as well as those who have special needs are being placed back into the national equation as it pertains to Montessori programs. One could ask the question, "How were they ever subtracted from that equation?" But such an answer requires far more blog posts. And they are coming, dear friends. When I saw this Facebook post on your right...

It gave me hope for the future of Montessori education in this country. But in order to be an agent of peace for the future of our children, it is worth considering the past (and present) wounds of a nation that places a limit on whose children we consider to be "ours". That is to say, "difference" is so easily equated with division. Anything outside of sameness easily becomes other. How do we fight against this human tendency? Better still, how do we cultivate a new tendency? While we can lovingly (and vocally) disagree with one another, how do we create an environment in which we can still learn from and serve one another? May such answers come all the more quickly as we walk forward, child in one hand--who holds the hand of yet another child...and another---and the smallest pink cube in the other.

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A return

It's been a long while since I've used writing as an outlet for thinking about Montessori pedagogy. But I have been using my voice in other ways. When I was growing up, I was slow to speak and would more likely be found writing in a journal rather than talking to others. There are some tendencies (not in the Montessori sense) that stick with you, even into adulthood. But lately, even in shyness, I've been speaking more rather than writing; sometimes to my colleagues regarding the lessons I've learned about the classroom; sometimes to parents to remind them that they are doing the most difficult of jobs, and that I know they're child well. But what I'd forgotten is how the written word has a magic to it that cannot--or perhaps ought not--be forsaken. It is in the written word that the ideas of one person can be conveyed, at least in part, to a completely different person. And in that transfer, hearts can be shared as well as minds. It's how I learned about...

What am I reading right now?

I have a habit of reading multiple books at once. Hopefully I'm not alone in this. As I have just gotten off of a wonderful vacation, I took a good chunk of that time to read. And as you might imagine, my reading list is right at the intersection of Race, Religion, and education (I couldn't think of another "r" word that means the same as education). Some of these books are what I'm currently reading, so I don't have a review on it per-se. But hopefully they are helpful. Race How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized trauma and the pathways to mending our hearts and bodies by Resmaa Menakem Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman (which could also be in the religion category, but ah well) Education The Tao of Montessori: Reflections on Compassionate teaching by Catherine McTamaney Citizen of the World by Maria Montessori Religion Jesus Knowing God by J.I. Packer The Little book of Christian Living by John Ca...

With Rods painted red

I first established the idea for this blog many years ago, when I just started working at a public Montessori school in a relatively poor neighborhood. But then life happened. Before I knew it I found myself in a Montessori teacher education program, graduate school, and lead teaching in an early childhood classroom. Being one of a handful of men in my school (there were three of us at the time), I felt a bit of pressure to perform. I was quite stressed and worn down. What constantly brought me back was the primary reason that I came to my school, that I began learning Montessori pedagogy, that I do anything at all: to bring glory to God. Granted, I had to learn the lesson of being satisfied in Jesus by being hospitalized, but that's another story for another day. (I'm quite fine now, thanks). My point is that there was very little time for me to reflect on what it means to be a Montessori teacher, while first being a lover and follower of Jesus. But now I can. On...

Grace and Courtesy

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