Kathleen Hannah—director of Pennington Montessori—has been working at the school for the past 25 years.
Hannah originally began as a teaching assistant, later moving onto various jobs throughout the school, finally landing the position of director after 10 years.
“Many of the teachers have been here for over 20 years,” Hannah said, adding that the low turnover in terms of staff is one of the components that make her school unique.
“When you leave your most precious possession, you want to feel that you are leaving them with someone you can trust,” said Hannah.
Pennington Montessori School takes children from 15 months old to 6 years old. Their school is based on each individual child’s needs. Classes are multi-aged with an emphasis on showing, not telling.
“With multi-aged classes, the older children help teach the younger children,” Hannah said. “It can be with something as simple as showing them how to put on their coat. It’s the theory where you learn more by teaching someone rather than just telling them what to do.”
Hannah said the multi-aged classrooms are also beneficial in increasing children’s interest in academic learning.
According to Hannah, when younger students see an older student reading a book it often sparks an interest in them because they view the older students as a role model within the classroom.
Hannah said this interest helps encourage younger students to learn the basics of reading so they can work their way up to the books the older kids are engaged in.
Hanna said when people hear that they offer a program for kids ages 3 to 5, they picture a scene of children run amok. But she says it’s not like that at all.
“Every room is founded on grace and courtesy. That’s a big deal here. When you go in a room, you have to be respectful, and it actually works. We don’t have a lot of discipline problems at all,” she said.
Hannah said unlike traditional schools, Pennington Montessori students are not all working on the same thing at once. Instead, they work on different projects at different paces.
Hannah said it helps because a class never has to be held up because of one child.
“If it’s only one person not doing their work or not paying attention, the teacher can just go over a direct them to something more enticing,” Hannah said. “Everyone else doesn’t have to be constantly reprimanded. It helps allow all of their time in the classroom to be used productively.”
Hannah said the way the classes function also make it a great environment for children who have special needs or are gifted.
Because everything is being done at the student’s own pace, it allows those with special needs to not feel pressured or rushed, while also allowing them to not stand out to the rest of the students as being behind.
On the other side of the spectrum, the individual pace of student activities benefits gifted children as well, allowing them to be continually challenged. Instead of waiting for the rest of the class to finish a project they’ve already completed, they’re free to move onto the next thing.
Many projects that intrigue all children at Pennington Montessori are focused on their Outdoor Education Program.
“We’re LEED certified, which basically means we are very energy efficient,” Hannah said. “Our Outdoor Education Programs teaches children about recycling and composting. We have a big garden where children plant and cook what they grow.”
Hannah said the energy efficiency also helps the well-being of the children, reducing cases of asthma and allergies. Pennington Montessori School is one of the few schools in the state that has all these qualifications.
An additional qualification Pennington Montessori has is certified Montessori teachers. Each classroom has a certified teacher, as well as an assistant teacher to help them in the classroom.
Hanna said she believes the most important advice for parents of young children is to remember the importance of early childhood education.
“A lot of people think they’ll save all their money and just send their kid to Harvard or Yale,” Hannah said. “But studies have shown it’s so important to expose your child early and build a good foundation. What difference does it make if you have a beautiful roof when you have a crummy foundation?”
Pennington Montessori School is located at 4 Tree Farm Road. Call: (609) 737-1331. On the Web: penningtonmontessori.org.
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