Dear MMS Community, We are far from being out of the global pandemic woods. It is reasonable though, to predict that in a year from today, the world and our country will be in a very different place--the roll-out of mass vaccinations and the transition to a new president both in the rearview mirror. As 2020 closes up shop (cue whatever expression best symbolizes your feelings about 2020), a note from T.S. Elliot: "We had the experience but missed the meaning. And approach to the meaning restores the experience in a different form." In short, let's not miss the chance to pause before quickly moving on, to reflect, identify, and internalize the meanings 2020 offers for us as individuals, families, and as a school community. I share the top three meanings that 2020 has highlighted to me: - In-person, social connections are profoundly important: The ebullience of MMS students when they returned to on-campus learning is an unforgettable image. We heard too from so many parents that with the return to in-person learning, their children seemed to come back invigorated and full of life. A number of parents shared with me the sentiment, "...I have my child back." This makes sense: Child and adolescent developmental specialists all note the intense importance rich, complex interactions with peers and trusted non-parent adults play in healthy development. This recent article, "Childhood Without Other Children: A Generation Is Raised in Quarantine," is worthwhile for parents of young children. Additionally, experts indicate that the group most likely to suffer the costs of social isolation during and immediately after the pandemic are adolescents. This recent article, "Teens in Covid Isolation: 'I Felt Like I Was Suffocating'" is a worthwhile read for parents of teens.
The powerful importance of relationships will endure for our children's entire lives. As an article from Harvard Medical School notes, "People who are more socially connected to family, friends, and community are happier, healthier, and live longer than people who are less well connected."
- Education must put students' agency at the center: Having served in a number of different types of schools, I could not possess a stronger conviction that core qualities of an authentic Montessori education need to be woven into all schools. Specifically, the urgently needed quality of fostering independence, of ensuring children learn how to be pilots in their lives and education, not passive passengers. Why? See #3
- We need to build our children's capacities for navigating uncertainty: As William Butler Yeats wrote, "Things fall apart." The changes in the world and the challenges these will bring our children will continue. Vital then is education and parenting that cultivates curiosity in children along with a well-developed sense of strength in their capacities to effectively navigate changes and challenges directly, independently, and bravely. When they develop the ability to face change and challenge without paralysis, dread, or passivity, our children will create well-lived, healthy, and high-functioning lives. For further, terrific insights and advice on this topic from the author and psychologist Madeline Levine, Ph.D., see this interview, How Parents Can Help Kids Thrive in an Uncertain Future.
None of this is easy, from offering in-person learning during a pandemic, to creating schools that truly cultivate student agency, to helping our children (let alone ourselves…) learn to confidently navigate uncertainty. Yes, this is not easy, but it is so necessary. And, very fortunately, this is what Marin Montessori does and will continue to do with excellence. Thank you for your care and commitment to MMS. Most importantly, thank you for sharing your children and your families with our vibrant, resilient school community. We are grateful. All my best wishes for 2021, Sam 5200 Paradise Drive Corte Madera, CA 94925 | 415-924-5388
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