Image by congerdesign from Pixabay 

It never fails to surprise me when “Back to School” ads start running. Doesn’t it seem like they come earlier every year? This year, they prompted me to reflect on the implicit difference between “welcome back” and “welcome home”: returning to where you have been vs. returning to a place of belonging.

In thinking about the many ways that Montessorians create spaces that become “home” to the children, three themes evolved for me.  I hope these will prompt your own inspirations for building your community this fall.

What’s in a name?

A rose by any other name, as Shakespeare suggested, may smell as sweet, but it would not be a rose.  Names are an incredibly important and personal part of our identity. They carry deep connections to family and culture.  Just a bit of intentionality with names can establish the earliest bonds in a classroom.  Some ideas:

• Call children as they wish to be called.  Sometimes, a familial nickname, like Lil’Bit, is not the way a child wishes to be known as they get older.  Sometimes children have both a given name and a culturally adapted name – they may be Nombulelo at home and Grace at school.  It is a sign of respect to ask children what name they wish to use at school.  This applies to preferred pronouns as well.  (For an incredibly powerful piece on the importance of names, please view Unforgettable at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xvah3E1fP20 )
• Learn to pronounce each child’s name accurately.  This basic sign of respect is essential to promoting inclusivity in a culturally diverse classroom.  This can sometimes be challenging if the child is from a culture other than your own.  Ask the child to help you get it right, and to be patient with you as you practice until it is automatic.  Even if you can’t precisely replicate the child’s pronunciation, your effort tells them that they matter. 
• Let children who share a first name work out how they want people to distinguish between them.  This is far preferable to telling the children that you will call them “Mateo R.” and “Mateo G.”

What fosters belonging?

As Montessorians, we know that it is the job of second plane children to explore and experiment with social rules.  Dr. Montessori said that children of this age form “gangs” to satisfy their need to belong – even in seemingly culturally homogenous classrooms.  The group is where they feel safest and most accepted.  The trick is to be sure that, while children naturally feel a stronger affinity for some than for others, each child authentically feels that they are members of the whole classroom community.

This can happen only when each child feels free to be themselves.  When we humans feel like the metaphorical square peg, we shave off the corners of our persona that keep us from slipping through the round hole.  The better answer for an inclusive community is to make the hole bigger.  We want the square pegs to pass through with all of their beautiful edges and corners intact.   

Creating that open, safe environment for children is not accomplished in a single grace-and-courtesy lesson.  We begin before the children arrive and is mold and develop it throughout the year. 

Cultural Diversity

A great deal has been written lately on the importance of children finding representation of their culture within the classroom.  They need to see that this space is “for them”.  The focus has rightly been on providing positive, non-stereotypical representations of diverse ethnicities and genders in materials, books, art, language, and social customs.  Most schools are providing some preliminary professional development on how to approach this ongoing effort.

Diverse Talents and Learning Styles

Of equal importance is children being able to feel their personal individuality is welcome and valued.   Children who are naturally academic feel connected to the community by learning opportunities.  Do we have equal opportunity for those whose strengths lie elsewhere? Here are but a few offerings to consider sprinkling into work time during the early days.

For the artists, non-verbal opportunities to create:

• something to share something of themselves/their culture with other children (a crest or flag or diorama)
• a depiction of their passions (pets, hobbies, favorite lessons, summer activities)
• something that shows what they know or have learned (follow-up and personal interest work)

For the athletes, non-competitive activities that allow them to shine without needing to “win”.  These can be at the beginning of the day to get everyone’s blood going or perhaps at some point when the class seems to need a brain-break:

• a short fun-run where children choose the number of times to run (or skip, or hop) around the playground
• a tennis ball toss where children choose between close in and distant targets
• a 3-minute dance party where children choose their moves

For the scientists, opportunities to practice and demonstrate scientific or engineering principles.  These might include:

• experiments from books like those by Janice Van Cleeve, which require little or no specialized equipment.
• some experiments that are traditionally part of the First Great Lesson. If children demonstrate select experiments in advance of the lesson, they isolate the scientific principles for the Lesson before the story is told (which also shortens the Great Lesson a bit).
• supplies for building.  These can be a plan/kit or supplies to build something of their own choosing.  (There are some great circuit-building kits available, for example, that will appeal to older scientists).

For the introverts and extroverts, activities that balance group engagement with quiet time.  Providing time for 1-person work (silent reading, journaling, or even listening to a read-aloud) can be refreshing for those who find that social engagement takes a lot of energy. For children who draw energy from social engagement, provide opportunities to collaborate over work or to organize peers to accomplish a goal.

For neurodiverse learners, establish early on that we all learn differently and that diverse learning styles are welcome.  When we give children options for attending lessons and completing follow-up activities, we reinforce that tenet that we embrace learners of all styles.

How is this community special?

Being in community is essential to the human spirit.  Exploring what is special about being part of this Montessori community can engender feelings of gratitude and pride.  This can build empathy for the group (sociability), an essential element of normalization. 

Sometimes, children who have grown up in Montessori do not realize how radically different our philosophy and pedagogy are to traditional methods.  Older elementary children have enough educational experience to discuss the differences, perhaps during class meetings.  “Here is something we believe in Montessori.  How do you see this play out in our classroom?  Has anyone been at a school where this was not true?” With younger elementary children, we can look for “teachable moments” to point out ways in which a Montessori community differs from a traditional classroom.

Potential Topics

There is no shortage of potential topics.  Here are just a few:

• Teachers as guides.  We encourage children to be active participants in decisions about how and what to learn, and to know when they have mastered a concept and when they need a bit more help or challenge.  My daughter pointed out this essential difference to me when she started attending a traditional high school.  “I can’t figure out why kids think of the teachers as the enemy.  If they are having trouble in a class, they think it is because the teacher doesn’t like them.  They won’t ever go in to talk to a teacher.”  
• Valuing collaboration and interdependence.  As Montessorians, we know that second-plane children often learn best by discussing it with a peer – better than by just listening attentively to an adult.  Our 3-year classrooms provide ample opportunities for collaboration and for peer-peer teaching.  This interdependence fuels a sense of each person being valued in the community.  It is quite different from the individualistic, competitive structure of more traditional programs.
• Constructivist philosophy.  We see our role as helping children build better brains rather than as filling their heads with facts.  This is why we care so much about a child’s process for gaining knowledge.  It is why we teach from concrete materials and experiences rather than from abstract formulas and rules. 
• Emphasis on community.  We involve children in creating agreements about conduct that arise from a desire for the good of all.  They are not “Rules for Room 101”, created by adults to try to minimize children’s bad choices.  We believe that we do not need to make children learn; they earnestly, naturally want to succeed. 

These three themes, taken together, can help lay the foundation of cohesive community that honors the individual members.

Reflection:

How can I demonstrate and promote Montessori values while establishing an inclusive community? 

How can we build a class identity – something that gives the children a senses of family within the context of the school? What makes our class special? Should we have a class name, mascot, flag, or something else to show who we are?

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” 

– Coretta Scott King