We have found that children are generally better
at adapting to these changes than adults.
REFERENCE:
Lillard, A. S. (2012). Preschool children’s development in classic
Montessori, supplemented Montessori, and conventional programs.
Journal of School Psychology, 50(3), 379–401. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
jsp.2012.01.001
©MONTESSORI LEADERSHIP | WWW.MONTESSORI.ORG/IMC | VOLUME 22 ISSUE 4 • 2020
Duna Strachan, M.Ed., is the founder of Soaring
Wings International Montessori School in Park
City, Utah. She has been involved in Montessori
for 35 years and holds credentials at the Infant/
Toddler and Early Childhood levels.
Although we are respectful of each other and generally stay
6 feet apart, teachers are very sensitive to their students’ needs
and give hugs and physical reassurance whenever appropriate. It is
daunting enough that we cannot see each other’s expressions, so
we can at least hug a child.
After the months of planning and preparation with our teaching
teams, a few of our teachers did not feel comfortable coming back
to school during a pandemic, and we honor their decisions. You
have to want to do this. It is a risk to be at school, even with a mask,
gloves, and smocks, interacting with children and families every
day. In order to offer the extension for our students, we again called
on our Montessori community, borrowed teachers, and hired a few
who considered the risk worthwhile.
During the closure, our school’s families stepped forward
to offer funds for our faculty whose income was suddenly cut in
half when their spouses and roommates lost their jobs. Parents
brought groceries and surprises to teachers’ doorsteps. Some
of the teachers decided to wait to feel more comfortable before
returning to school. Enrollment dropped, and then we began to
get calls from families looking to move to our little mountain town
from the big cities. The rosters are filling again, and we have some
eager new employees enthusiastic about all things Montessori.
We have found that children are generally better at adapting
to these changes than adults. They don’t understand what or why
coronavirus is, but they understand that we have to help each
other stay healthy and safe by wearing masks, washing hands,
giving safe space, and being careful of what they touch. Lunch is
different, group lessons are different, and moving in and out of
school is different. Most of what goes on in between is pretty much
the same, and for that normalcy, we are forever grateful. When I
stand at the gate and greet families each morning, I accept loads
of thanks and praise. One day in early June, it snowed in our
little mountain town. There were our families, having scrambled to
find their winter wear, as well as their face masks, lining up at the
orange cones placed 6 feet apart at each door and still smiling and
giving thanks for being able to bring their children to school for a
few hours.
Since it is summer, we’ve spent much more time outside,
making use of our patios, gardens, playground, creek, and field
as we’ve never used them before. We’ve taken time outdoors to
observe native plants and animals. Most of our children now
know the Uinta Ground Squirrel’s call and where the voles and
garter snakes live. They know where to find strawberries, chives,
honeysuckle, and the lavender used in all types of Practical Life projects.
They have discovered the beauty of our campus that is so often
missed in the summer when our student population typically falls off.
Winter will bring more problems to solve – where to store
snow clothes so children can access them without coming into
contact with children from other classes; lunching socially and at a
healthy distance; how to keep classrooms adequately staffed when
winter illnesses make their rounds. And, there will be questions we
can’t even foresee now.
Early on in the pandemic, I thought about how few world
crises we have experienced in the past few decades. Those of us
of a certain age lived through polio, the Cuban Missile Crisis,
the Vietnam War, AIDS, the Gulf War, September 11th, the Iraq
War, the War in Afghanistan, mass shootings, and a plethora of
environmental crises. Our parents and grandparents told us about
the World Wars, Pearl Harbor Day, the Spanish flu, scarlet fever,
and smallpox. An elderly cousin of mine recently remarked that
Americans were on rations for four years after WWII in a tone that
made me think, “we ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” It could be worse.
We have examples before us of how to behave during a crisis.
Following our ancestors’ lessons, we will look around, lend a
hand to those who need it, summon our courage, face down our
fears, and step into the fray to contribute whatever we can. As we
face each challenge, we have to remind ourselves that the entire
population of the world is in distress right now. Within each of us
is the ability to lighten another’s load with a smile, a few words,
or an act of kindness. Now is the time to fight this good fight with
great honor.
We will not be the same school again. We will not be the same
people also. But, along this journey, we have found the beauty
in simplifying, enjoying what we can do together, and the joy of
returning to the classroom where both children and adults are
getting something essential. When we recall the COVID years, we
will remember the lessons learned, and we will carry them with
us. We are learning to slow down, focus on the moment, and fully
support one another.
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