2019 Conference
We are thrilled to partner with the Canadian Council Of Montessori Administrators and Association Montessori Internationale (Canada) to present "commUNITY: The Human Tendencies as a Framework for Peace" on November 1 & 2, 2019 at Brock University in St. Catherines, Ontario. This marks the first major collaboration between these three Canadian Montessori organizations and the Education Faculty at Brock University.
In the meantime, here are some of the details about the conference.
Friday's workshops are crafted as a day of learning with your same level of practitioners - Toddler, Children's House, Lower Elementary, Upper Elementary, Adolescence, and Administration.
Please Note: Friday is also a special day with a late afternoon AGM for CAMT and CCMA and a birthday gathering for AMI-Canada followed by a special dinner event.
The Saturday workshops present a unique opportunity to have our knowledge of what learning looks like through all of our ages of Montessori children. It will allow us to experience the continuum of learning exploring the linages between the planes of development.
Costs for the conference are as follows:
Both days = $ 325 per person
Friday Only = $ 200 per person
Saturday Only = $ 150 per person
Friday's Dinner Event = $ 35 per person
Here is a link for the hotel choices:
Thursday, October 31 to Sunday, November 3
Special Rate: $129 to $149
2 Night Minimum
14 Day Cancellation
Four Points by Sheraton St. Catharines Niagara Suites
3530 Schmon Parkway Thorold, Ontario L2V 4Y6
+1 905-984-8484
Special Rate: $119
Four Points by Sheraton St. Catharines Niagara Suites
3530 Schmon Parkway Thorold, Ontario L2V 4Y6 +1 905-984-8484
Once the Four Points by Sheraton is sold out for Thursday night
· there are 10 additional rooms available at the Hampton Inn
Hampton Inn by Hilton St. Catharines Niagara
89 Meadowvale Drive, St. Catharines, Ontario, L2N 3Z8, Canada +1-905-934-5400
Please note that the hotel rooms MUST be booked by Monday, September 30, 2019.
Friday November 1, 2019
Keynote Address
The keynote address "Unity: The Basis for Positive Change" will be presented by Sandra Girlato.
Keynote Description:
The potential for the progress or decline of humanity lies in education. All adults, and specifically educators, must acknowledge our universal responsibility that whatever we do as human beings matters and that as sentient beings, we have the power to transform our existence on this earth. If the child is the creator, then we as adults must provide the exterior means by which this divine being can fulfill their worldly mission. TOP
Toddler
Workshop Description:
Teanny will address the human tendencies and their work on the construction that takes place in the first 3 years of life, their role to establish the inner harmony that allows the child a peaceful relationship within himself, their surroundings and the world. She will explore practical ways to allow the proper work of the human tendencies in the prepared environment to aid in the creation of these foundations. Tendencies include: Orientation, Order and Exploration which are supported through the prepared environment and in work with parents. Communication, Abstraction and Imagination are supported as we build language activities starting with real objects and progress to 2 dimensional images encouraging abstraction and imagination. Work, Repetition and Exactness are explored in that we give the child purposeful work through the activities of Practical Life which allows for repetition and leads to the success of the classroom community. TOP
Presenter Bio: Teanny Hurtado
Teanny’s journey in Montessori began in Mexico City where she attended Montessori school from the age of 3 to 12 years. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, early childhood education and a Master’s Degree in Psychotherapy. As an AMI Assistants to Infancy Diploma (0-3) holder, Teanny worked with this age group for more than 25 years. She opened the first Nido in Mexico in 1999 for babies aged 3 months old to walking. She is an AMI trainer for this level and has been lecturing alongside Maria Teresa Vidales (Chacha) in courses in Mexico, China and Vancouver. Teanny is an AMI consultant in Mexico and the USA and gives inspiring workshops for teachers, schools and parents.
Workshop Title: “Within the Child Lies the Fate of the Future”
Children’s House I (Casa)
Workshop Title: How to Aid Independence in an Interdependent Community
Workshop Description:
Our children are on a physical, mental, and spiritual quest to become independent individuals within an interdependent world. As adults we are privileged to work with children, for our children are at the beginning of life: a period which provides an opportunity to see the wonders of human development. As educators, we have an immense responsibility to be the best that we can be, to act with intelligence, integrity and benevolence and to provide thoughtful prepared environments conducive to wholesome development. Our work is to prepare children for life and not simply to provide education. This workshop will highlight, with specific practical examples, all that it entails to be in the children’s world, including our role, the environment and the needs of the child. Special focus will be given to best practices with regard to observation and building relationships.
Presenter Bio: Sandra Girlato
Sandra has been active in the Montessori community, working with children, parents, educators and administrators for over 30 years and is currently the Primary Director of Training of the Foundation for Montessori Education in Toronto, Canada. In this capacity, she oversees exams, on an international level, for those completing their training as Primary Teachers. Sandra acts as a school consultant, teacher mentor, lecturer and parent educator and has served as an adjunct professor at Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland as well as presenting at various colleges and universities across North America.
She is currently the President of AMI Canada (a national organization that provides professional development, parent education and support to schools across Canada) and has had the unique distinction of being mentored by Renilde Montessori, Dr. Montessori’s youngest granddaughter. TOP
Children’s House II (Casa)
Workshop Title: Human Tendencies and Practical Life: Essential Connections for Peace
Workshop Description:
Dr. Montessori’s vision for peace is rooted in Practical Life. This area is foundational to a child’s development of compassion and their ability to care for self, others and the environment. Explore the human tendencies and the child’s movement and activity as they forge a connection between heart, mind, body and the construction of self in a social environment. They will discuss concrete ways to build these into your practice in your Casa environments.
Presenter Bio: Gina Lofquist
Gina is the Chief Education and Learning Officer of Teacher Education for the American Montessori Society. An advocate for Montessori education and the children and families it serves, Gina’s Montessori experience includes teaching and school administration, university Montessori teacher education administration, adult instruction and consulting for public and private Montessori schools both nationally and internationally. She is AMS-credentialed at the early childhood level.
Presenter Bio: Rosemary Quaranta
Rosemary Quaranta, MEd is currently Teaching Professor and Head of the Lab School at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. She is a graduate of Edgecliff College, The Washington Montessori Institute, and Cleveland State University where she received her Master’s Degree in Education with a specialization in Montessori. Rosemary holds AMI credentials (EC, EI-II) and has over thirty years of experience in Montessori classrooms. She has also been a strong lecturer for AMS and MACTE accredited programs. She is passionate about Montessori Education, consulting and lecturing with schools nationally and internationally. TOP
Lower Elementary
Workshop Title: Observation - A Cosmic Journey
Observation is our greatest and most underused tool. Observation is more than learning to see. It is an act of co-creation. It is a necessary element to the proper functioning of the Montessori environment, and it is the key to the spiritual preparation of the adult. It is through our observation practice that we, and the children, are transformed. Learning to simultaneously observe self and other can help us better understand our role, the needs of the child in the moment, and the dynamics between the two. Designed to motivate and inspire guides at all levels as well as adults in a position of leadership, this interactive experience will take participants on a cosmic journey, and also provide the tools to shift their observation practice from a thing we do to an active process in which we participate be it at a single classroom or whole school level.
We will explore the cosmos and microcosmos, the inner workings of the human spirit, and our own sensations and perceptions, revealing how philosophy and practice connect.
Presenter Bios: Andrea Lulka and Regina Lulka
Regina and Andy both began their official Montessori lives in 1977. Regina as an adult undergoing training, and Andy as a child entering the Casa. Since then, both have undergone multiple trainings, completed MEd programs, seen their children graduate from Montessori schools, and have worked and advocated for Montessori from inside the classroom as well as in the broader community. Their joint experience covers all three planes of development, as well as administration, parent partnership building, and professional development. Both have sat on the CAMT board. Currently, Regina is Head of School at the Montessori Jewish Day School and sits on the CCMA board, while Andy focuses on creating professional development opportunities for Montessori teachers online. TOP
Upper Elementary
Workshop Title: Cultivating a Culture of Peace in a Montessori Elementary Environment
Montessori education offers a strong academic experience for children. But Montessori at the elementary level is about so much more than academic development. How do we support the development of the whole child, not only academically, but socially, emotionally, and spiritually? How do we support children in solving their social problems? How do we support children in becoming critical thinkers? How does this approach impact our broader society? The way we approach elementary children supports the children’s self-construction, and has broader implications for society. In this workshop we will discuss how we collaborate with children in their self-construction during their upper elementary years. We will reaffirm our belief that children have the capacity to build themselves, guided by the human tendencies. We will explore practical ways to extend children’s academic skills, but also how to ensure they develop strong social and emotional skills to guide their self-construction through adolescence and beyond. When we support children in this way, we lay the groundwork for peace.
Presenter Bio: Jamie Rue
Jamie Rue is an AMI Trainer at the elementary level and holds AMI diplomas at the 6-12 and 3-6 levels. Before taking elementary training, Jamie started her Montessori career as a classroom assistant. During her ten years teaching in Montessori elementary classrooms, she was a guide in classrooms for children aged 6-9, 9-12, and 6-12. She has also worked as an administrator in a Montessori school. Jamie was Director of Elementary Training at Washington Montessori Institute at Loyola University Maryland for five years. She has served as treasurer on the AMI/USA Board of Directors, vice-chair/treasurer on the AMI-EAA Board of Directors, and is an AMI Consultant and Examiner. Jamie lives near Washington, D.C. and works with schools, teachers, parents, and administrators through workshops and consultations around the world.
Adolescence
Workshop Part 1: Human Tendencies Manifest in the Adolescent: What that Means for Practitioners
Workshop Part 2: What a “School of Experience in the Elements of Social Life” Looks Like
Workshop Part 3: Practitioners’ Questions and Challenges
Laurie Ewert-Krocker will address what developmentally engages the adolescent and why—what fundamental needs and characteristics of the age need to be met and how teams of adults can prepare and refine Montessori environments to meet those needs. She will revisit the principle of Social Organization as a guiding framework for experiences and consider what obstacles get in the way of providing those experiences as well as how teams of adults can collaborate to work with adolescents.
Presenter Bio: Laurie Ewert-Krocker
Laurie Ewert-Krocker has been Pedagogical Advisor, Upper School Program Director and Middle School Program Director at Hershey Montessori School where she worked for 28 years. She was the founding head teacher of Hershey’s Adolescent Community in 1996. She currently consults and works with teachers in Montessori adolescent programs around the world. She holds AMI diplomas at the 3-6 and 6-12 levels, a BA in English from John Carroll University (OH), and an MA in English from the University of Washington. She has been a presenter for the AMI-NAMTA Orientation Course since 2001.
Administration
Workshop Title: Solving our Fundamental Challenges through a Montessori Lens
Workshop Description:
Imagine walking away from a day of professional developmental with the tools, insight and support you need to be better at your profession and enjoy your work more; with the keys to building your ideal Montessori community. That is what I am invested in offering our CCMA community.
Together we will reverse engineer our victories and challenges through the lens of our own particular communities. Together we will solve those most challenging questions.
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How to build a staff committed to developing and refining their Montessori practice
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How to keep your students through each 3-year cycle
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How to create classrooms where students are engaged
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How to create a supportive parent community and deal with the ‘outliers’
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How to sleep at night
This workshop aims to come up with sustainable, realistic solutions to the inevitable challenges of running a school. We are a community and together we will be part of the journey.
Presenter Bio: Tony Evans
Montessori invested in us a mission - “An education capable of saving humanity” - these words are what Tony has built his life on. He started in Montessori at the age of 3 and thrived. Later, after time touring in a rock and roll band, he was offered a job as an assistant in a Montessori School on Toronto Island and knew he had found his future. He then went to Bergamo, Italy, to train as an Elementary Montessori teacher.
In 2002, Tony established Dundas Valley Montessori School, starting with only 8 students above an abandoned greenhouse, and with almost no advertising, has grown to include two schools and over 240 children. The school has Strata, Canada’s first land-based Erdkinder and his school videos have been watched by over a million people. He has served on the CCMA Board for 15 years and is the Chair of the Board. Tony has been a CCMA government lobbyist for 12 years, advocating for better Montessori ratios in Ontario. Tony is a mentor, advisor, visionary, and administrative leader within the Montessori community. TOP
Saturday November 2, 2019
The Saturday workshops present a unique opportunity to have our knowledge of what learning looks like through all of our ages of Montessori children. It will allow us to experience the developmental continuum of learning rather than in our small 'silos' of developmental knowledge. The morning and afternoon sessions will feature a panel of specialists at each age and stage.
Morning Theme: A Culture of Work – What It Looks Like through the Ages and Stages
Afternoon Theme: The Future of Montessori in Canada