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During the course of this project, we have run into slabs of granite that needed to be blasted and hauled away, outdated sewer and water lines that needed to be replaced, and now a roof that must be stabilized and restored.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.
Our children are back on campus and classes are in full stride! The month of August brought many exciting updates, along with some hiccups. Our entire community has worked together to overcome these challenges with grace and strength.
The Toddler and Children’s House Village East looks very different from our last update – there is now a roof, walls, windows, and doors! Inside, the HVAC, plumbing, and electrical have all been set and the workers are finishing up with the drywall. In addition, the road that runs in front of the Main Building has been torn up to make way for new utilities and a new road has been paved in its place.
Our entire school community had the opportunity to experience the unpredictable nature of renovations when the power was lost on the first day of school. Our children were excited to learn about the ins and outs of construction and it was a beautiful day to be outside, so it was a harmless inconvenience. Since then, things have been running smoothly!
We are all looking forward to moving into the new building in November.
The Faculty and Staff of Greenspring Montessori School have had quite a busy summer. Guides and assistants traveled as far as Ohio, Connecticut, and even Prague to learn from seasoned Montessorians. Learn more about their exciting experiences below.
Elliot Dickson, Adolescent Guide, traveled to Hershey, Ohio, to attend the North American Montessori Teachers’ Association Orientation. He writes: “I attended Hershey Montessori School, a farm school that was the first school to implement Maria Montessori’s full vision for an adolescent community. At Hershe, I attended lectures given by veteran Montessori guides and got to experience the life of an adolescent as I balanced academic work with chores on the farm and in community spaces. The training gave me a holistic view of human development and how Montessori’s vision for community learning can best support the developmental needs and characteristics of children and adolescents at each stage of life. I also came to better understand how our own adolescent community at Greenspring can fully meet the needs of the adolescents while also preparing them for the young adults they want to grow to be. After two years at Greenspring and thirteen years in education, the learning and time for reflection was a true gift. ”
The picture is of all 60+ attendees (from the U.S., Australia, Sweden, Mexico, Romania, China, and Germany) and faculty.
Marketa Traband, Children’s House Guide, ventured to Prague to attend the International Montessori Conference. The topic for this year’s conference is Pathway to Peace: Montessori Education for Social Change. She was so inspired by her trip and the international community of Montessorians, and she is excited to utilize her new understanding in the classroom this year.
Lee Lanou, Director of Children’s House and Director of Training at the Maryland Center for Montessori Studies, continued her AMI Primary training at Greenville Montessori Institute in South Carolina.
Already AMS certified, Lee is deepening her Montessori practice and gaining a better understanding of the unique teachings of the AMI curriculum. She said, “Training is a wonderfully intense, fulfilling, and filling experience. By the end of 8 weeks, my brain was completely full! Having had the AMS Primary training in 1989, this training has served as a wonderful refresher, rich in Montessori theory and practice.”
Marcela Daley, Spanish Enrichment Guide, attended the Summer Assistants Course at Washington Montessori Institute in Columbia, Maryland. She was enthusiastic to share, “The training provided great information helping me with a better understanding, not just about the Montessori philosophy, but about the needs and expectations of the child from 6-12. I am excited to put in practice all the learning and use it during the Spanish time with the students.”
Kim McCaslin, Spanish Dual Language Toddler Guide, entered her second summer at the Mid-America Montessori Teacher Training Institute in Omaha, Nebraska to earn the AMS Toddler credential. She writes:
“I greatly enjoyed my time training at Mid-America Montessori Teacher Training Institute in Omaha, NE for three intense weeks this past July. I had the opportunity to study both infants and toddlers. During my training, we made materials, practiced lessons and created practical yet thorough albums. I brainstormed new ideas with both my teachers and my classmates. Overall it was a wonderful experience that gave me a more complete understanding of the importance and beauty of a Montessori education.”
Two new staff members, Monique Crabb, Dual Language Children’s House Assistant, and Shweta Santosh, Floating Assistant, began their AMS Early Childhood training at our very own Maryland Center for Montessori Studies. Both are looking forward to pairing their knowledge from training with real-world implementation in the classroom.
11 other team members – including Lead Guides, Assistants, and Administrators – attended conferences and trainings, bringing back a wealth of knowledge on Montessori practice. We are looking forward to a fantastic year of continued growth!
In June, our building project hit full stride – we have seen walls literally pop up overnight! Although many of our families and staff are off for the summer, our construction continues on and it is great to see the amazing progress.
The half of the Multipurpose Building that is being renovated was stripped down to the bones, windows, siding, and interior framing then took place in this side – making it even easier to picture the spacious, bright Toddler and Children’s House classrooms that are soon to occupy the space. In the east side, the cement floors were poured, steel beams were installed, and the exterior framing is going up. On the other side of campus, workers are digging a trench for utilities.
In the coming weeks, the sheathing, siding, and roof will go up on the new building, providing a true vision of the exterior of our new Toddler and Children’s House Village East. In addition, the construction crew will continue to work on utilities, with their trench extending into the road in front of the Main Building. If you are attending any of our summer programs, please be on the lookout for a revised traffic pattern.
Though the ample spring rains have been trying at times, the project found a much more productive rhythm in May. After spending April in a battle of wills with the vein of Cockeysville Marble running through the site, rock breaking yielded to a considerable amount of grading and foundation preparation. The new addition’s configuration has taken form as footings have been poured—their purpose is to support the foundation and prevent settling, and the site has been cleared of all remaining intrusive elements—electrical and internet cables and less difficult sections of rock.
On the interior, load bearing walls have been demolished and structural steel beams and columns await installation, the existing slab has been cut in various places for plumbing rough-ins, new plywood sheathing has been installed, and window and door openings cut throughout. With a little imagination – ok, maybe a lot – you can see the new classroom building taking shape. June’s efforts will bring far greater clarity to the image.
