More than 40 years ago I vowed, “I’m never getting married and I’m never having kids—they’re just brats!” But God had a Plan for me! He gave me a husband and we will be celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary this December and He gave me three children who took me on a journey to become a successful Montessori Guide—God has given me the gift to love and teach young children; how did this happen?!
The only thing I knew when my daughter was four years old was that she probably needed to go to school. We lived in Germany in a small German village. I checked with the military base and all the classes were full. I started talking to other military wives and one told me about her son’s “kind of different” school in the next village. That was the beginning of my Montessori journey—now my daughter is 36 years old!
C & K Children’s House was a parent co-op Montessori school for American and German children ages 3-6 years old. It was fantastic! My daughter learned to read by 5 years old and was so happy there. I decided to put her brother there too when he was three years old. As a parent co-op, I got to learn how to give Montessori lessons to the children, to substitute teach, and was elected to the School Board to run the school. I thought this was just the normal, regular way every Montessori school was: easy to get trained and learn all about Montessori! But that was not true.
We moved to Maryland and entered public school because there was no Montessori. I volunteered in the classrooms and all I kept thinking was, “Why do they make it so hard for the kids to learn when Montessori is so much easier?”
We moved again, to California, and our third child got to go to a Montessori school but the older two to public school. Again my Montessori experience was amazing. I got to substitute and was voted to the School Board. But public school was mostly a disaster—expectations and lesson were way too low and boring. I ended up Homeschooling my second son through 5th grade—the Homeschool movement was just beginning. There was still no place available to get trained as a Montessori teacher and the internet wasn’t something yet created!
We moved to Colorado next and again disappointment in lack of Montessori so I went back to college (in my 40’s) to get a regular teaching degree. I figured I could teach in a public school and just use Montessori materials and method there. Well, we got moved to Okinawa, Japan next and I was able to finish my regular teaching degree which included Special Education and then found an online Montessori training with International Montessori Society (IMS)! I completed both degrees and got to teach in a Montessori school—I loved it!
We got moved again to Germany and I got hired to teach on the military base in a “Sure Start” class. (The military version of “Head Start”). I led it as a Montessori class and within two months the children had completed the entire Sure Start “curriculum”. I added more Montessori lessons and wrote the equivalent Curriculum Standards for them and my class was the most successful to move on to Kindergarten.
Next we were moved to Virginia where I got to work in two different Montessori schools before our retirement to California. Here in California I have been blessed to be able to start my ministry, The Mustard Seed—a tuition-free Montessori classroom and Montessori Resource for parents.
For those of you who are interested in my professional training here it is briefly:
Montessori Certification through Interenational Montessori Society (IMS)
IMS Workshops in Pennsylvania, Scotland, and Hong Kong
Keynote Speaker for the Montessori European Congress in Sweden
American Montessori Society Workshop in Virginia
Association Montessori Internationale 100 Year Anniversary Workshop in California
International Montessori Council Workshop in California
Established Montessori Toddler Classroom at Calvary Chapel, Petaluma, CA
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