|
Established in 1965, the Aquinas Montessori School is located
at 8334 Mount Vernon Highway on spacious grounds where creative
playground equipment excites students from ages two and a half
to 12 to explore and expand their physical capabilities.
Inside the comfortable building that houses the learning centers,
the excited chatter and laughter of students denotes a school
where children thrive in a nurturing environment. Under the supervision
of multi-degreed teachers and highly trained aides, students
are quietly encouraged to develop both the self-discipline and
decision-making capabilities so essential in today's complex
world.
Aquinas opens at 7:30 a.m. Bus transportation is available
through a contracted provider, and the school has an after-school
program for ages 21/2 - 12, which is open until 6 p.m.
Montessori is a time-tested method to give each child the
love of learning that will last a lifetime," explains Mrs.
Kathleen Futrell, director. "The Montessori method that
has evolved over the past 85 years encourages each child to progress
at his own pace and fulfill his own potential," she adds.
The Aquinas Montessori School is
located on spacious grounds where creative equipment excites
students to explore and expand their physical capabilities.
Dr. Montessori observed that by age 21/2, children are ready
to explore an environment wider than their homes. Thus, the Montessori
environment provided at Aquinas is rich in practical life and
sensorial activities which promote independence and self-confidence,
as well as foster the continued acquisition of language and understanding
of numbers.
"Today, when children spend so much time away from home
and the parents who love them, their secondary environment should
encourage self-development rather than simply present supervised,
passive activity," says Mrs. Futrell. Among the eight full-time
teachers assisting Mrs. Futrell are Hannelore Blank (over 30
years of experience), Susan Callin (over 25 years of experience),
Lila Carusillo (over 25 years of experience) and Mary Wormell
(over 20 years of experience). Mrs. Futrell's son, David, is
assistant director and teaches music and physical education,
and her daughter, Alison, teaches art and drama.
In a Montessori class, there is far more interaction than
one would see in a traditional classroom where the children are
silent by decree rather than by choice. "Who in the classroom
needs the most practice in speaking? The children or the teacher?"
asks Mrs. Futrell, quoting John Holt in his book, How Children
Fail. "At Aquinas, the children receive all they need -
especially practice in communicating - to further their individual
development."
The child in a Montessori class has the possibility of working
for long periods of time on one task,
|
Montessori is a time tested method which gives each child the
love of learning that will last a lifetime.
because his ability is not fragmented by skipping through
20 minute periods of several different subjects. "This room
is dedicated to the child who is free to move around, to apply
himself to all kinds of formative work," explains Mrs. Futrell.
"When a child truly chooses a task and sees it to completion
by himself, he is well on the way to becoming a free, independent
being."
Some projects children choose for themselves? One young girl
decides to transcribe printed phonogram cards into cursive writing,
taking several days to complete the task. One young man devises
an exercise in long division that took two days to complete -
working from the number 80 down to the number one with all possible
divisors using a board and beads. Another child writes a book
on the voices of mammals, researching the material from the back
of biology cards. The completed project was in booklet form,
with her drawing on the front cover.
"It is not unusual to see a child reading or working
so intently that he is oblivious of the work being done around
him," explains Mrs. Futrell. "This profound concentration
is not possible at first; children new to the classroom are often
characterized by instability of attention. But profound concentration
can be developed by our exercises of Practical Life, which help
the child focus, giving him the opportunity to develop a lengthened
cycle of work."
According to Dr. Montessori, "The discipline which reveals
itself in a Montessori class comes from within rather than from
without. [It] does not come in a day, a week or even a month,
[but] is the result of long inner growth and achievement won
through months of training."
Aquinas provides just such an environment with three primary
classes, where children range in age from 21/2 to six years.
Children up to the age of five attend 9 a.m.-noon, daily. Children
five years and older remain for lunch and an afternoon session
that ends at 3 p.m. After school care is available for children
of all ages until 6 p.m.
The elementary level consists of two classes for ages six through
nine and one class for ages nine through 12. Principal teachers
hold A.M.I. (Association Montessori Internationale) diplomas,
in addition to their undergraduate degrees and graduate degrees.
The school year is September through June, following, in general,
the calendar for schools in the area. Aquinas also operates a
Montessori summer day camp program for ages 21/2 through nine
in June and July. Aquinas opens at 7:30 a.m., and bus transportation
is available through a contracted provider.
The Aquinas Montessori School
8334 Mount Vernon Highway
Alexandria, Virginia 22309
Phone 703-780-8484
|
