Educateurs Sans Frontières recently spoke with mother and daughter Luming and Lora Woellhaf, to learn more about their work in the Philippines and their foundation Mithing Pangarap. Their initiative is two-fold, and combines a thriving private Montessori school in Metro Manila with an outreach Montessori program that nurtures the educational and holistic development of children from the underserved community at Smokey mountain, a former dumpsite in Tondo, Manila.

Awesome Is Grey

EsF Stories: Luming and Lora Woellhaf

The AMI Talk of 19 May 2022 zoomed in on how children acquire life skills in Indigenous communities in the Americas, and particularly Mexico. Dr Barbara Rogoff shared some of her pioneering research work and Carolina Cerezuela spoke of a Montessori outreach initiative in Oaxaca.

AMI Talks Episode 5: Life Skills and Learning in Communities

The AMI Talk of 31 August 2022 with Nicolina Montesano Montessori and Yoliswa Mahobe focused on the laws of life and the role of nature in humankind’s true well-being. Nicolina Montesano Montessori, a researcher with a background in discourse analysis, reflects on the importance of connecting to nature. With her special interest in eco-literacy and social justice, she also uncovers some of the “policy speak” of leaders when referring to the protection of nature.
Yoliswa Mahobe is attached to the Sustainability Institute, Stellenbosch, S.A. where she is the training coordinator for the Living Soils Community Learning Farm; here she supports community engagement work around food security. She also facilitates experiential garden lessons with the Lynedoch Small School, Lynedoch Children’s House and Youth programme.

AMI Talk Episode 6: Digging Deep: Connecting to Nature for a Healthy Society

This podcast is about innovation, commitment, and resilience. It features people who found different ways to apply Montessori principles and started initiatives to serve communities in different parts of the world. They share their stories on what inspired and motivated them, and how their ideas came to realisation. 

In this new episode of EsF stories, we have a conversation with Mayumi Saito. We got to know Mayumi during the Voices of EsF programme in 2021. As part of the programme, she conducted focused conversations with children between the ages of 6 and 12 about their life; the things that are important to them, the challenges they face, and the changes they would like to make. In our conversation, Mayumi shares how she got involved in Montessori through parenthood, in a search for the best way to support the development of her children. Her commitment to Montessori and child development eventually led to the establishment of a Montessori children’s club, where children can meet, work, and learn through Montessori principles.   
 
If you have any questions or if you would like to get in touch with Mayumi, please send us an email at info@montessori-esf.org.

EsF Stories: Mayumi Saito

Our AMI Talk of 19 October with Uma Ramani and Pieter Verstraete focused on the theme of silence and highlighted how silence in education can be both an instrument and an outcome of the practice of education as an aid to life.

Uma is an AMI Trainer, and currently Director of Training (3-6) at the Montessori Institute of North Texas (MINT), Dallas, Texas. Uma is deeply interested in the study of Maria Montessori’s writings and enjoys exploring the continued relevance of Montessori philosophy and practice in the modern-day context.

Pieter is a professor of history of education at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences at the University of Louvain in Belgium. In his most recent book Silence in the Classroom, he explores the history of western pedagogical approaches to silence in schools (Leuven University Press).

AMI Talks Episode 7: The Educational Value of Sielence

On January 6, the day that marks the opening of the first Casa dei Bambini in San Lorenzo, Rome we held a talk with Victoria Johnson, Agnese Fontana and Rosario di Girolamo. The speakers were invited to share their experiences around the theme of the Global Path of Montessori. 

Since that first 1907 Casa, the Montessori principles and ideas have caught on in the world and found their way to many communities on all continents. Today we see that Maria Montessori’s ideas are as relevant as ever and applicable to children everywhere, regardless of their background, culture or living conditions.

Victoria Johnson, PhD in Global Family, Health and Wellbeing will speak on her research into the introduction of Montessori in communities, prompted by a variety of reasons, most of which can associate with the Educateurs sans Frontières banner. 

Agnese Fontana, producer and author, and Rosario di Girolamo, cross-media creative director, will delight the audience by showing this spread across cultures, sharing highlights from their filming of Montessori children at work in different countries.

AMI Talks Episode 8: The Global Path of Montessori

To celebrate International Women’s Day we hosted an AMI Talk with Professor Noah Sobe and Beverley Maragh, lecturer at the Maria Montessori Institute, London. Noah Sobe’s presentation explored whether the concept of childhood has its historical lifespan and traced ways that childhood changed across the 20th and 21st centuries. Beverley featured on an amazing initiative that was created in collaboration with the Born Inside project, aimed at benefiting mothers, babies, and pregnant women in one of the biggest prisons for women in Britain.
Noah Sobe’s presentation explored whether the concept of childhood has its own historical lifespan. It began with an examination of how a proper, protected, healthy childhood was understood at the time of Montessori's first work in education, and then traced ways that childhood changed across the 20th and 21st centuries. The talk concluded with an evaluation of historical arguments that we have reached an "end" to childhood and what this might mean for early childhood education.
Beverley Maragh presented an amazing initiative that was created in collaboration with the Born Inside project, aimed at benefiting mothers, babies, and pregnant women in one of the biggest prisons for women in Britain. Her story is testimony to the great commitment and dedication to give infants and babies a “head-start” in circumstances where love and care can be scarce commodities. Beverley sketched how the initiative developed, also having to battle against institutional prejudices, and the disruption caused by Covid. The Born Inside initiative has been replicated in Mexico, where recently a mother and baby unit opened in a penal institution.
We were happy to host such an interesting presentation which highlighted the importance of childhood, education and children’s and women’s interaction with society, its structures, challenges, and opportunities.

AMI Talks: Desired childhoods, adverse childhoods and the future of early childhood education

In this episode of EsF stories Monique Bekkers and Felista Urassa tell the story of the Kilakala Montessori classroom for deaf children in Morogoro, Tanzania. Monique and Felista have been working together to support deaf children for over 20 years and they share their experiences and their thoughts on why Montessori education is a natural fit for deaf children. They also reflect on the evolution of the initiative and the impact it has had on the children, their families, and the broader community.  
 
Felista joined the conversation from Tanzania. Her internet connection was a little unstable at times, but we were so grateful she was able to join the conversation and share her inspiring story. If you have any questions or if you would like to get in touch with Monique and Felista, please send us an email at info@montessori-esf.org

EsF Stories: Monique and Felista

On 31 August 2023, AMI held an enlightening AMI Talk featuring three exceptional speakers who discussed the importance of parent engagement. Hear from Eduardo Cuevas, Francescah Kipsoi and Lilian Wairimu Mwaura who generously shared their stories and expertise in this field.
Parents play a crucial role in shaping their child's educational journey, and when equipped with deeper Montessori knowledge, children can reap the benefit of closer and more joyful collaboration between home and school. You will love hearing about experiences from various backgrounds and cultures.

AMI Talks Episode 10: ParentEngagementAudio

Welcome to the latest episode of the AMI Talks! On November 15th, we hosted an insightful talk exploring the topic of The Importance of Movement. Our line-up of speakers was dynamic, and we began with the globally renowned Professor Adele Diamond, who is a pioneer in the field of developmental cognitive neuroscience. In her presentation, she discussed the profound significance of music, dance, and movement. After Professor Diamond's talk, we had the privilege of hearing from Ruben Jongkind and Patrick Oudejans, the two visionaries behind Montessori Sports. They shared their perspective on how "Sport is a key to educating human potential." 

🔗 You can learn more about the speakers of this AMI Talk by visiting https://montessori-ami.org/events/ami-talks-movement.

AMI Talk: The Importance Of Movement

In this episode, our president Alain Tschudin, professor of Peace Studies and Takako Fukatsu, Montessori advocate in Japa tap into their varied and wide experience in a Montessori concept embedded in all our work and values: the preparation and transfer of peace.
You can learn more about the speakers of
this AMI Talk by visiting the link ⁠here⁠: https://montessori-ami.org/events/ami-talks-cross-pollinating-peace

AMI Talk: Cross Pollinating Peace

AMI’s global network empowers teachers and communities through the holistic approach of Maria Montessori, helping all children become truly capable and productive individuals by focusing on their moral, behavioral, emotional, and intellectual development.

EsF Stories: Luming and Lora Woellhaf

AMI

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