In this episode I have a chat with Cecily Cortez, Head of School at a Guidepost Montessori Virtual School - Harmony Community, who is also a Montessori mom of a 2-year old son.  We talk about generational caregiving, individuating for team members just like we would in a classroom, and the leadership mindset of planning to elevate team members so they serve and then fledge--that we're always in succession planning if we are doing it well.

Cecily talks to me about the value of prioritizing JOY, and resisting the idea that humans are numbers, or checkboxes. We discuss her successes at keeping humanity in the forefront of how she leads her team.

Cecily is fond of mantras. One is adopted from Brené Brown's work:   Courage over comfort. And Cecily's Montessori superpower is her fierce advocacy coupled with her ever-curious questioning: How is it that this can, might, and should be done? 

As she has begun to facilitate leadership of more team members, Cecily has found it ironically better to particularly define when she is truly available and then commit to being actually available during set times. She insists that we communicate worth through being truly present to each other. 

Finally we chat about Montessori parenting.  Cecily tells a story about her veteran-educator mother who has seen the magic of Montessori-style parenting, exclaiming: “That IS Montessori for you!” In sum, Montessori principles allows for an opening of one's eyes to what children are capable of every day, and exposes our assumptions about children that may be based on incorrect bias. 

You can connect with Cecily on any of these topics by dropping her an email.

If the continued issues of the pandemic are wearing you thin and you want to use a set of basic Montessori pedagogical principles to get your groove back click here to drop me an email and say, "I want to learn more about Mental Fitness for Montessorians." 

In this episode, Tammy Oesting and I speak about authentic engagement and her adventures in the world, as part of a long line of adventurers in her family lineage.

We delve into loss and how loss can be converted into opportunity, and that often after a long time in Montessori education it is normal to believe that you're done with it, however, one may discover it isn't yet done with you...

It was that which inspired the idea on a beach in Albania to build what would become Classroomechanics Montessori Assistant's Course.  A vision meant to more readily spread Montessori in an equitable way through adult education. The Assistant’s Course has since landed in 6 continents. 

We end by discussing Montessori and entrepreneurship, the right to earn a decent living and the fact that many teachers of young children, despite excellent training are not yet remunerated in a way by our societal priorities that deeply values this contribution.

Tammy's latest endeavor is connecting children to the cosmos, connecting herself regularly with awe, and pursuing a Principles to Practice project.

In this episode I speak to my good friend, Letty Rising ([email protected]), about our mutual love of Mr. Rogers and the Message: You are special just as you are. You are Enough. 

We speak about the necessity of attunement to needs of the heart, and how in her history as a teacher and Montessori leader, that waiting and watching for when children and staff want to flex their leadership muscles becomes an opportunity to facilitate letting them take over, ultimately turning things over to staff as much as possible. 

Then we dive into Decider vs. Facilitator--and the overall invitation of paradigm shift to parenting and teaching.

Finally, we cover Letty's decision to leave a full-time HOS role to more fully develop her "side gigs" as a Montrepreneur and consultant for hire, then dive into her optimist's view that possibility is everywhere, even in times of challenge. We finish with the upside/downside of technology in the past few years during the pandemic, and acknowledge the crisis of labor and pay in the childcare and early childhood education industry, and how we must adapt.

In this episode Jana and I cover a lot of ground.  Montessori teachers, especially new ones, should check out Jana's podcast, Montessori Book Club, where Jana reads Montessori's words on topics of vital interest. 

We chat about Montessori's growth edge--Where she started and how she grew and how she was really transformed by her time in India. Montessori tells us: We must relieve ourself of our omnipotence--an appropriate message for our world still.

Jana recommends a book to get your hands on to understand Montessori in context. Trabalzini: Through the Seasons of the "Method."  

We go deep with Jana's world travel in pursuit of offering Montessori training, where she had an epiphany. If not me, who? If not now, when? This changed the whole course of Jana's life.  We chat about her big passion: teacher training and what it means to be midwife to aspiring Montessori teachers...the Birthing of a new self. 

Montessori: you don’t need to worry about having a big building. Just a cozy apartment. Jana says--A perfect Montessori environment looks like what the local community looks like.  

We cover how Jana shut travel down during the pandemic and what she pivoted to will make you smile!  Life about following INTUITION. 

Finally we chat about a helpful disposition for an Informative School Tour.  Jana reminds us that parents aren’t always running to your school; they are often running from somewhere else. She tells us to risk being clear about what you do and don't offer so that folks are clear about whether the school is a match. 

Her best advice: Montessori is a small world; we cannot afford to NOT be nice to one another. If you want to connect with Jana about opportunities for her wisdom to rub off on your work in Montessori go here: Montessori with Jana.

Peter Piché, M.Ed, ACC

Montessori Leadership and Mental Fitness coach

Need an ally for improving your communication and ability to handle conflict?

Book a free call to see if I can help!

www.montessorileadershipcoach.com
(919) 949-3404

Lee Lanou joins me as my first recorded guest (not released first) for MLC. She speaks of having had the privilege of being guided by Celma Perry (AMS Living Legacy), her work with Endeavor Schools (a network of over 60 schools, half of which are Montessori schools), why observation is essential and how it lets us trust children the more we actually engage in authentic observation. She shares some tools she's developed to help with observation and record keeping that you can find here:

Montessori Masterclass

If you want to reach Lee about 'teacher and family gifts' and her Etsy shop you can email her direction: Lee Lanou [email protected]

Pamela Green of Ananda Montessori joins me to talk frankly about her work with families around the first prepared environment--the womb--and the child's rich full life and full personality in utero. She also goes into detail about the value of being mentored in Montessori and the impact and meaning this continues to have for her even years later. There isn't a day that goes by without holding the lessons of her mentor in her daily practice as a Montessori guide and leader.  Making the invisible visible is the task of coaching families and children.

You can find Pamela on the interwebs at www.Anandamontessori.com and on her Facebook page: Pamela Green Consulting

Jamie Hoffman, Head Of School at Montessori Children's House of Valley Forge, joins me for a discussion about how hard work beats talent when talent stops working hard. She speaks about the effort to individualize for all families and staff, her personal restorative practice of creating art, and a journey of being reactionary when she was a younger leader to being a self-reflective and deliberate leader who realizes mistakes are really just attempts that didn't go as well as they could...but could go better next time.

Margaret Whitley, retired Head of School joins me to chat about her latest foray into life-long learning, having completed an MFA in Creative Nonfiction. She shares her musings on life and Montessori as an approach to everything, the value of humility, and what it means to be part of a family legacy of Montessori educators rooted as far back as the 1960's.

Charis Sharp, Ph.D.,  and Executive Director of the Latin American Montessori Bilingual Public Charter School, joins me for a frank discussion of our responsibilities as white Montessorians in a traditionally elitist private Montessori educational sphere, and how perhaps our original concept of life purpose and mission needs to change.

I'm joined by award-winning professor and author, Catherine McTamaney, to chat about the intersection of art, public Montessori, what it means to embody Montessori leadership, and her personal journey of learning to not take herself too seriously.