Playbook Sunday

Do not miss on this one-in-a-conference opportunity: our Playbook Sunday will bring concrete change to your community as early as post-conference Monday.

conference audience looking toward speaker on stage reduced

Stay on for a 120 minute interactive session where you will be discussing some of the most relevant topics in Montessori with like minded attendees and work on your action plan to bring back to your school.

We are looking for in depth learning, introspection and collaboration with some of our most coveted mentors to guide you through the discussion.

Sunday, November 5, 2023

All times are given in Mountain Standard Time (USA)

7:30 am – 8:00 am

Back to Center

Join us for 30 minutes of mind-quieting, energy-boosting activities and exercises. Share your favorite mind-body practices: creative movement, songs, affirmations, poems, breath work, visualizations – any activity that brings you peace and positivity.

8:00 am – 8:50 am

Breakfast

9:00 am – 9:45 am

Gratitude Gathering

9:45 am – 10:15 am

Break

Network & Visit Exhibitors

10:15 am – 12:15 pm

Jonathan Wolff

(For All)

7A | Can “Spiritual Preparation” Become a Daily Lesson Plan for Oneself – Preparing the Environment Within

*In-person onsite & live-streamed*

Maria Montessori advised, “The first essential is that the teacher should go through an inner, spiritual preparation.” But what does this mean in terms of daily practice? What can a Montessori guide or school leader do to center, quiet, and energize themselves before, during, and after their work day? What can one do when they feel their emotions and energy have become imbalanced, depleted, or negative? In this workshop, we will present and practice a variety of (mind-body) tools and techniques for inner readiness, renewal, and rebalancing.

10:15 am – 12:15 pm

Christine Lowry

(Special Ed)

7B | Leading an Inclusive Montessori School and Classroom: The What, the Why, and the How

*In-person onsite & live-streamed*

A workshop for school leaders, level directors, and classroom teachers.

As school leaders and classroom teachers, we are challenged by the wide range of diversity we observe in today’s students. We appreciate the concept of inclusion but aren’t always sure how to support inclusion in an equitable way. This workshop will share what inclusion is, what it can look like, the reasons and benefits of inclusion for our schools, our students, and their families, and how we can begin to implement universal practices in every component and provide needed support for every student. Participants will gain:

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a thorough understanding of inclusion as a path to social justice that honors diversity and equitable practices in our Montessori schools –
knowledge of the benefits of inclusion for ALL students and their families –
strategies for implementing the components of inclusion and their interdependence as consistent with Montessori philosophy and pedagogy –
the process of implementation that supports and brings together in community our teachers, staff, students, and families –
a design and flowchart for the practical implementation of each component – a system for using the flowchart –

In a two hour follow up session, you will have the opportunity to engage, to reflect, and interact in small group activities that will guide you in beginning to plan how you could implement inclusion in your school. You will return to your school with a “lens of inclusion” to communicate your goals and action plans with your school community.

This session specifically and practically supports the nurturing and well-being of all students, all school staff, and an inclusive school culture that is responsive to issues of social justice as we accept all forms of diversity with respect in equitable practices.

10:15 am – 12:15 pm

Hillary Drinkell

(For All / Special Ed)

7C | Empowering the Individual to Empower the Whole

*In-person onsite & live-streamed*

Empowering the Individual to Empower the Whole: a philosophical and biological approach to the preparation of students and faculty/staff developing resilience, interconnectedness, collaborative and courageous Montessori communities. By empowering our most important assets, our students and faculty/staff, we positively influence whole classroom communities, whole faculty/staff communities, whole school communities, and school communities within the larger demographic communities in which we live.

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We will follow a comprehensive roadmap to prepare for transitions, defining potential leaders’ or new trustees’ character and skills, effective outreach, and onboarding new leadership. Emphasizing the evolving phases of leadership—from the initial ‘marriage’ and ‘honeymoon’ to the long-term relationship—this workshop underscores the significance of continual support, feedback, and evaluation. In the context of change, whether immediate, temporary, or permanent, the workshop offers strategies to leverage these transitions as opportunities to reassess and rejuvenate a school’s culture and direction. In this half-day working session, participants will examine the principles introduced in the first session, talk them through in-depth with colleagues, and develop a draft of their own action plan for Board and school leadership succession to bring back to their school.

10:15 am – 12:15 pm

Cindy Acker

(Social Justice)

7E | THI: Heritage Months’ Certification

*In-person onsite & live-streamed*

THI (Teaching with Historical Integrity) is a methodology of historical teaching in Montessori classrooms that involves research-based truth regarding the history of the United States and the world. Teaching with Historical Integrity is not Critical Race Theory, nor is it education that seeks to shame others. THI does not involve blame, guilt, or shame, but is a positive teaching design that helps children to learn through the true stories of our history. Together, we discover that we grow from our mistakes and within our history, we have examples of people whose untold stories have shaped wonderful things about our nation and our world.