Abstract/Notes: Kohlberg's concept of a just community has been instituted, in varying degrees and at various levels, from the early elementary years upward. It is argued here that, although pre‐school children are developmentally unprepared for the in‐depth classroom discussions and reasoning called for by Kohlbergian theory, they are nevertheless capable of creating a just community in simplified, or embryonic, form. It is further argued that this pre‐school concept has been in existence since Maria Montessori established her first Children's House. A comparison of the Kohlberg and Montessori models is made showing their compatibility in both theory and practice. Further analysis shows that developmentally the two work well as a sequence for children's moral growth.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/0305724810110104

ISSN: 0305-7240

Abstract/Notes: Uma Ramani's characterization of practical life is philosophical and anthropological, suggesting that "human history is the story of the evolution of our practical life activities." Practical life is a collaborative activity that creates community and culture. One's adaptation to life through the daily work of ordering our environment lends meaning to all learning and to living a good life. [This article is based on a talk presented at the NAMTA conference titled "Whole School Practical Life: A Comprehensive View of Community, the Intelligence, and the Hand," Dallas, TX, January 17-20, 2013.]

Language: English

ISSN: 1522-9734

Abstract/Notes: Project Friends is a learning community based on our confidence in the multi-age classroom as a valuable and viable vehicle for teaching young children. Our three multi-age classrooms of kinder-garten, first- and second-grade children were the served as the setting for Project Friends. In this article, we share our beginnings, significant features and outcomes of the learning community, and our reflections on a year ended in Project Friends. Our experiences and the experiences of the children in the multi-age classrooms continue to provide rich contexts for teaching and learning in the elementary school.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1007/BF02354835

ISSN: 1082-3301, 1573-1707

Abstract/Notes: Joen Bettmann's depiction of practical life exercises as character-building reveals how caring, careful, and independent work leads to higher self-esteem, more concern for others, better understanding for academic learning, and a self-nurturing, respectful classroom community. Particular aspects of movement and silence exercises bring out what Joen calls the child's "quiet soul," the contemplative and reflective side of life that brings peacefulness and a state of grace. [Excerpted from a presentation given at the NAMTA conference titled The "Casa dei Bambini on the Threshold of the Twenty-First Century," October 7-10, 1999, Arlington, VA. Reprinted from "The NAMTA Journal" 25,1 (Winter, 2000): 101-116.]

Language: English

ISSN: 1522-9734

Abstract/Notes: Community connections and a commitment to Montessori have kept us strong.

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: Joen Bettmann's depiction of Practical Life exercises as character-building reveals how caring, careful, and independent work leads to higher self-esteem, more concern for others, better understanding for academic learning, and a self-nurturing, respectful classroom community.

Language: English

ISSN: 1877-539X

Abstract/Notes: This paper is the synthesis of Elizabeth Henke's four years of work from 2009-2013: three years at the high school and one year at the University for Peace. She summarizes, "A Montessori high school education should reveal to the adolescent a pathway to peace that is built on positive human relations and should provide opportunities for contributions to the community that result in experiences of valorization. The organizing principles of the universe and society are revealed in the core of each discipline, and a moral framework emerges before the adolescent when disciplines are explored with the help of experts." This is the first Montessori document that attempts to directly derive moral essentials from teacher interviews about formal high school disciplines that develop peaceful communication and action and bring an understanding of peace theory to students at the Montessori High School at University Circle, in Cleveland, OH.

Language: English

ISSN: 1522-9734

Abstract/Notes: Context: Schools are unique sites for nutrition education interventions due to their ability to provide educational activities as well as meals, allowing for observation of behavior change. Nutrition education and physical activity awareness programs implemented in the school setting have the potential to positively impact students’ eating habits. Eating habits are developed at a young age, but few efforts have been made to deliver and assess education interventions in the pre-K through grade 3 age group. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate student food selections before and after a nutrition education intervention was implemented in a Montessori school. Human Subjects Review: Approved as non-regulated research by the UTSW IRB. Study Design: Retrospective exploratory analysis. Setting: A single Montessori community school with students in grades pre-K through grade 3. Instrument: Aggregate lunch food selection data, including total food items offered and total food items left over, via daily production records. Main Outcome Measures: Records were collected from three school years to compare the food acceptability – the percent of food item taken from the total offered - of fruit (F), vegetable (V), F&V, 0% milk, 1% milk, and all milks before and after the implementation of the intervention program. Food acceptability served as a proxy for food consumption. Results: In all years, fruit (82.88%) and all milks (81.74%) were well accepted by students, but vegetables (62.00%) were not. The study found that from year 1 to year 2, there were statistically significant (p <0.0001) decreases in intake in all categories. This trend continued when comparing year 1 to year 3. Conclusions: Prior studies show that even in successful interventions, when vegetable or F&V intake does increase, changes are minimal. These findings corroborate the difficulties prior studies have demonstrated in changing students’ food selections for the better, particularly regarding vegetable consumption. This analysis of production records showed a decline in acceptability of foods over the three years. It is unclear if these changes are directly related to the instructional program, due to the presence of confounding factors. Future studies should attempt to reevaluate nutrition education and subsequently conduct a plate-waste study for a more accurate representation of food consumption before and after an intervention.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1370/afm.20.s1.3129

ISSN: 1544-1709, 1544-1717

Abstract/Notes: Frank and Annette Kulle retire; East Dallas Community School gets grant

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: In the late 1980s, a group of parents, teachers, and community members were concerned about an abandoned nineplex unit that sat directly across the street from an elementary school in Northeast Denver, Colorado. The school was Mitchell Elementary. Only a few years before, it had been in noncompliance with the federal court order to desegregate the Denver Public Schools. Dr. Martha M. Urioste had been assigned as the principal to bring the school out of noncompliance -- she did this in nine years by adopting a Montessori curriculum and attracting students from all over the city -- and Mitchell Montessori soon became a beacon of hope and opportunity in a neighborhood that had often felt forsaken. Next to the shining star of Mitchell Montessori, the neglected building stood in stark contrast and seemed to attract illicit activity. Many people worried for the safety of the children. Rather than wait for someone else to do something, these concerned citizens decided to adopt the building themselves and transform it into an infant-toddler-parent Montessori education center. They named the center Family Star for the child -- the nucleus of the family. This is their story.

Language: English

Published: Edgewater, Colorado: Great Work Publishing, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-692-61020-6