The Montessori method is a completely different approach to learning, and for fans of that and for those who want a different option for learning than public schools can offer, I have good news. There is already a Montessori Academy in North Ogden that teaches grades K-6, but they have just been approved to open a Junior High as well. They plan to start with seventh grade next year and adding eighth grade in 2014, and finally ninth grade in 2015. They are doing it this way so that current Maria Montessori sixth graders will not have to transfer to a public school and then back to the new junior high when all three grades are ready, ensuring a much smoother transition.
Although the location hasn’t been decided yet, staff for the new classes have already been hired and are planning on going on a field trip with the sixth graders to the Redwoods National Forest this May. So far, the new junior high will not have its own sports teams, but thanks to state law, home school students and students from charter schools can participate on public school teams. It is also possible that in the future, Montessori will have its own sports teams.
The Montessori method of education is designed to take full advantage of the children’s desire to learn and their unique ability to develop their own capabilities. Children need adults to expose them to the possibilities of their lives, but the children themselves must determine their response to all the possibilities. It focuses on the need for freedom within limits, and an environment that guarantees exposure to experiences and materials.
