Every year, students at Greenspring Montessori School emphasize the importance of service and stewardship through community service projects. However, we approach service a little differently than other schools. Instead of requiring a set number of hours of service or having a top-down approach (such as a teacher or administrator planning a coat drive and then getting students to participate), our students actively organize their own service projects based on the needs they see in their community.
Just before the winter break, two of our Elementary students organized a holiday drive for Paul’s Place, a community center in Baltimore City. Our school community contributed an amazing total of 146 brand new gifts including toys, clothes, books, personal care, jewelry, and appliances. The staff at Paul’s Place was very moved and acknowledged our contribution in their morning meeting for staff and volunteers.
During the month of December, Upper Elementary students also collected donations for people facing homelessness and the Humane Society. Our students and families truly embraced Greenspring’s commitment to service during the holiday season!
A group of third-year Lower Elementary students visited Pickersgill Retirement Community before the break as well. Students performed holiday songs and worked with residents on making holiday cards. It was a pleasant surprise when the residents chose to make cards for the students themselves! You can enjoy photos from their visit here. A group of students is already planning the next trip to sing additional songs and do more craft activities together.
At Greenspring Montessori School, when our students see a need, they respond with kindness, generosity, and thoughtfulness. It’s one of the things we love most about our community!
Toni-Ann Williams, OlympicGymnast Attended from 1999-2010
“Something I learned from Montessori is leadership, even from a very young age. Having that independence and being able to take my own initiative – two values Montessori taught me – I became the first Jamaican Olympian for gymnastics.
Toni-Ann Williams is working to use her passion for social welfare and legal studies to not only open access to the opportunities gymnastics can provide for young Jamaican girls, but to ensure that the environment is a safe one throughout their journey.
The spark that started Toni-Ann’s journey to become the first gymnast to represent Jamaica at the Olympic Games began at Greenspring Montessori. “Before Montessori, I had done ice skating. Once I got to Montessori, when I was playing on the playground Ms. Vivian saw me [doing cartwheels] and jumping off the playset and told my mom I should look into gymnastics. And that’s how I kind of got started. She helped my mom figure out my focus.” Toni-Ann obtained dual citizenship when she was fifteen years old and went on to represent Jamaica in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
Toni-Ann’s story was filled with destiny from before she was born. “My mom was my age, in her twenties, when she came to America. My parents hadn’t met – well, actually they hadn’t known they had met in Jamaica – until they came to America. They met each other through a mutual friend in the close-knit Jamaican community here in Baltimore. They got together and opened up a grocery store in Baltimore City and their relationship grew from there.
“In Jamaica, my mother had lived toward the beach in Jamaica – an ‘uptown girl’. My father lived in the poorer neighborhoods and he often had to steal to survive. When he came to America my father was retelling the story and my mom asked him, did you steal from this specific house? It turned out that my father had been stealing my mother’s family’s chickens for years and they had no idea who it was until they came to America and realized it was him! I thought it was a really cute story: he stole your chickens, then he stole your heart.”
Recent immigrants working hard to provide the best opportunities for their children, Toni-Ann’s parents sent her and her younger sister Maya (also a Jamaican gymnast and now an Arizona State University student) to Greenspring Montessori. Toni-Ann says, “They wanted a more open teaching mechanism than my older sister experienced at public school.”
Toni-Ann attended Greenspring Montessori for eleven years. After completing her Montessori experience and graduating Greenspring with the class of 2010, she attended high school at Roland Park Country School.
Montessori Moments
The Montessori model helped Toni-Ann open up and explore her passions. “I remember being really shy when I first came. Being able to interact with people of different ages, I was able to become more comfortable, involved with more sports, not afraid to play with the boys at recess, playing soccer, trying more things – it was a very open environment. I felt welcomed within each age group and within each gender – I became really comfortable and I was able to explore more of myself. [The school offered] a freedom to explore.”
Montessori also helped her become a confident learner. “Not only did I figure out my gymnastics career, also academically I got to explore a lot of different things I might not have done if I’d gone to a traditional school. Different books I got to read and being able to advance ahead of other people my age, being able to have the opportunity go ahead or stay back or whatever I needed to do, being able to explore my own academic journey on my own but also to have people guide me, as well.”
Bringing Montessori into the World
Toni-Ann took the challenge of balancing college school work, college gymnastics, and international gymnastics by the horns. “Something I learned from Montessori is leadership, even from a very young age. Having that independence and being able to take my own initiative – two values Montessori taught me – I became the first Jamaican Olympian for gymnastics.
“[Going to the Olympics] is everyone’s dream as a kid. I knew that I wanted to do college gymnastics, and I knew I wanted to compete for my family’s country, but I never ever dreamed that it would get me all the way to the Olympics. That was definitely one of my biggest accomplishments.”
Despite all her local, college, national and international gymnastic success, the accomplishment she is most proud of took place this year. “I tore my Achilles over a year ago and I was out for the entire season. This past January was my coming back season after the injury and it was very difficult for me. At the end of the season I [earned the title of] ‘All American’ – that’s top eight in the nation – that was a big moment for me. I have earned a lot of honors and recognition, but this one meant the most to me because I had struggled and stumbled and [through hard work] became top eight in the nation.”
Impacting the Future
Toni-Ann is combining her passions and talents to impact a serious need in the gymnastics community.
When the stories of sexual abuse throughout the gymnastics world came to light, Toni-Ann says it was a watershed moment to solidifying her vision for her future. “I’ve mapped out different versions of my life. I still want to be really involved in gymnastics. But there has been a lot of scandal and sexual abuse going on in the gymnastics world. I want to be a part of helping fix that, not only in the US but in Jamaica where that has been troubling for as long as I’ve known.
“I personally know a lot of the gymnasts who have spoken up – I’m friends with them and we’ve competed with each other for years. Even some of the competitions where they recalled the abuse happening, I was probably in the hotel room a couple doors down and I never knew any of that was happening to them. It’s heartbreaking to hear.
“I always had my focus on going back to Jamaica – a third-world country where my parents grew up – to help the gymnasts there. Gymnastics is not a sport that Jamaica recognizes, so [I am dedicated to] helping the gymnasts there realize their dreams. I was able to go to college because of gymnastics and a lot of Jamaican girls my age don’t have that opportunity. I wanted to go back and help them that way.”
Toni-Ann attends the University of California, Berkeley and is double-majoring in social welfare and legal studies.
Inside the Main Building, it is amazing to see the classrooms and office spaces begin to take shape! What was once a beautiful stone dairy farm has evolved and transformed into Toddler and Children’s House classrooms with amenities that are just the right size for our students.
The drywall was put up during the month of April and we soon expect it to be primed and painted. The frames for new windows and doors are in place. We have selected the finishing details for the carpets, tile, front desk design, and appliances for the classrooms and kitchenette.
Thanks to generous donations to our Capital Campaign, we were able to finish the restorations to the roof, once damaged in a fire. We are still seeking support for the remainder of the project – and we cannot do it without you! If you would like to make a donation to this cause, please click here.
During the month of May, we will begin to see more progress on the exterior of the building, with the rest of the windows and doors going in, painting of the siding, doors, and frames, and preparation of the sidewalks, flowerbeds, and playgrounds.
We are looking forward to having the building completed in June 2018 and ready for us to move in our classrooms for the 2018-19 school year! Join us in front of the Main Building for our Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on Tuesday, June 12 at 4:00pm!
On any given day, you may smell an assortment of delicious aromas when you are walking the halls at Greenspring Montessori School. This is because students and faculty are often engaged in various cooking and baking activities as part of the Montessori curriculum. To support these efforts, we have a full kitchen in Emerson Village and we have kitchenettes complete with refrigerators, dishwashers, sinks, and prep space in each of the classrooms. Building practical life skills in areas of daily living is a cornerstone of the Montessori Method, and it is also proven to help students develop soft skills. These skills help children learn essential life tasks, such as working well with others, having empathy, and being trustworthy and respectful. To learn more about the importance of soft skills, please take a look at this new article.
Starting with our youngest students, guides and assistants work with toddlers to create snacks for their classroom. Whether they are carefully learning how to cut pieces of carrots using a crinkle cutter or making freshly squeezed orange juice, the children are actively involved in every step of the process. During the warmer months, many classrooms will also plant tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, and more in their outdoor environments, so they children will become familiar with where their food comes from.
At the Children’s House level, students will help to plan larger meals and snacks, and the guides introduce new flavors with the seasons. Instead of always baking comfort foods such as oatmeal cookies or muffins, our guides work to come up with recipes that include fresh and natural ingredients. During the fall, one of our Children’s House classrooms baked acorn squash. In addition to learning about how to use the oven with a classroom assistant, the children also talked about the color of the vegetable, the texture, and the new and interesting flavor!
Additionally, cooking is often a big part of Spanish language enrichment at all levels. Spanish Dual Language Children’s House students work with a parent volunteer each week to prepare mango salsa, pan de elote (a Mexican dish similar to cornbread pudding), and arroz rojo y friojoles de la olla (a Mexican style rice and beans). This is a great way to introduce new vocabulary and new tastes to our children while celebrating other cultures!
In Lower and Upper Elementary, students will often incorporate what they are learning in the classroom with a new recipe. Students in Ms. Sarah’s Spanish Dual Language classroom researched different cultures and shared meals with their entire classroom as part of their presentations. One group made yellow dal, a traditional Indian dish with lentils, while another group created Dulcis Coccora, an ancient Egyptian dessert (Cleopatra’s favorite!) made with honey.
At the Adolescent level, our students have come up with creative ways to grow their student-run business with their work in the kitchen! Several years ago, they started Pizza Fridays, selling pizza by the slice (along with hummus and veggies) every Friday to the students and the faculty. In addition to honing their cooking and prep skills, they also learn to work together, stay organized, and manage money. In addition, the students have built a chicken coop, compost bin, and they are starting a class garden. It is their hope to eventually sell eggs and vegetables to the school community, and even use some of these ingredients in their own cooking.
The joys of cooking with children can extend into your home too. Take a look at our blog on setting up your Montessori kitchen at homeand consider trying some of the following this week:
Take your child to the farmer’s market and pick out one new type of fruit or vegetable to try.
Flip through a recipe book with your child and let them pick a meal for you to make together.
Start giving your child a task during meal prep – this could be anything from rinsing the vegetables, to cutting, and eventually even cooking the ingredients.
Give your child the opportunity to begin cooking, baking, or prepping one meal a day on their own (the younger ones may need some support) – this could be making scrambled eggs for breakfast, packing their own lunch, or preparing a snack when they get home from school.
Make sure to include clean up in your routine together! – our children love setting the table with real plates and glassware, washing their dishes, and sweeping up crumbs
Plant a garden – visit the store with your child and pick out seed packets or seedlings together! Children are more likely to try new things when they are involved in growing it themselves.
As the cold weather sets in, the construction crews stay hard at work restoring the Main Building at Greenspring Montessori School. Trenches have been cut in the concrete slab of the building in order to make way for new piping. Framing began on both floors, allowing us to begin to see the outline of the new classrooms and office spaces. Demolition of existing drywall brought us many historic building surprises, including a major setback in our project.
When the construction team pulled down the ceiling drywall on the second story, they discovered that the entire roof was charred black from a fire. It took some research to find out exactly what happened to this historic building, but we eventually came across evidence that in 1935 there was a fire that destroyed much of the dairy barn, now referred to as our Main Building. Luckily, the structural damage can be repaired, but we cannot continue the project without first stabilizing the roof and replacing the necessary elements.
During the course of this project, we have run into slabs of granite that needed to be blasted and hauled away, outdated sewer and water lines that needed to be replaced, and now a roof that must be stabilized and restored. Through the course of all of these surprises, we have had to put our full contingency budget to work far sooner than anticipated and we now must turn to you, our community for help.
Everyone in the Greenspring Montessori School community can make a difference for our building project. In order to address the issues with the rafters and roof, we will need an additional $100,000. To finish the entire Main Building, we will need a total of $300,000. We know that Greenspring is a financial stretch for many of our families and we must emphasize that every gift counts! If 200 of our families were to donate $42 per month for a year, we would reach the $100,000 marker. For those of you who can give more, we implore you to do so. Please consider making a donation to help us finish our project.
This project is our gift to our children, our future, and our world.
November brought great change to the Greenspring Montessori campus. Our new building, now named Emerson Village, was completed and our faculty and staff were eager to move in. Over Veteran’s Day weekend, an amazing crew of our staff and parent volunteers helped to move eleven classrooms and seven offices around campus. Three of our Children’s House classrooms and all five of our Toddler classrooms moved into the new Village; our two Lower Elementary classrooms moved across the street to Little Barn; our Upper Elementary moved to the Student Activity Center; our Training Center and all of our administrative offices previously located in the Main Building were squeezed in to various places around campus. We are truly loving our new spaces and the children are excited to explore their new classrooms.
This is truly a momentous occasion that is only possible because of the generosity and love of our extended Greenspring community. To see our parents, grandparents, students, faculty, and staff come together to complete this mission has sparked our enthusiasm once more. In mid-November, the second phase of our Capital Project began with renovations to our Main Building. This building was part of the original Emerson Dairy Farm over one hundred years ago. Our mission is to preserve this historic charm, while also making classrooms spaces specifically designed for each level. The Main Building will contain two Toddler classrooms, two Children’s House classrooms, a village kitchen, our new adult Training Center, and most of our administrative offices.
Already, we are beginning to see progress. The upstairs of the Main Building, once home to our Upper and Lower Elementary classrooms, has been gutted down to the original wood beams and on the main floor all of the walls between the classrooms have been removed. Looking into the windows of the building, it once more resembles a dairy barn.
In December, the construction crews will be working to continue the demolition of existing windows, doors, and drywall, as well as prep the foundation of the building for plumbing and new support beams.
