Beth: Latta is a very small town. We have two stop lights. It is more family-oriented. Everybody knows everybody. But as far as anything big, there’s nothing here in Latta.

John: The biggest asset we have is not the church on Main Street, it’s not the small little industry on the outskirts of town. The biggest asset we got in this community is the school system. We are in a poor, rural district, but the parents and the community expects us to do the very best we can.

John: We were basically a pretty traditional school district in teaching methods and instruction. What I felt like we were missing was “Is this really what our students need?” We didn’t know how to reach every child in the classroom. So, I challenged the administration, “Come up with a program that’s going to raise the rigor, that’s going to be fair and equitable, so every student in that class is learning.

Student: “You’re a frog,” she said. “You wouldn’t understand.”

Dollie: We chose Montessori because we were looking for a program that had consistency with reading instruction as well as math, but social-emotional is a huge part of Montessori. We’re actually providing for the whole child and not just reading and math, science and social studies.

Amanda: We’re not just teaching them standards and content, but we’re trying to teach them how to be a person. They’re learning how to respect others. They’re learning to take care of themselves and their environment, not just two plus two.

Dollie: The transition was difficult. I’ll be very honest with you.

Dana: And this time, instead of me mostly doing it, you’re going to do the tens, Maddie.

Dollie: I’ve got some teachers that have been in traditional for thirty years. So, it was very difficult for them to move over to a completely different way of presenting lessons and setting up your classroom.

Beth: I’ve been teaching for seventeen years. This is my first year teaching Montessori. The training process lasted probably about two years. Traditional was a little bit different, because I had the whole class the same age. However, now I have all of the first year, second year, and third graders in one class.

Beth: All right. Let’s do that.

Beth: The older kids can really serve as those role models for the younger ones.

Student: That one turned it down.

Beth: They’re like little mamas and little daddies, because they watch out for them. If they’re not doing something, I have some that’ll, you know, touch the little first grader and say, “You need to get back to work.”

Bella: We have been working on our work plans.

Beth: Work plans, to me, is the toughest part of it. I still teach pretty much the same thing to all the students, but they’re at a different pace.

Amanda: This is the last ant. Can you spell “last” for me?

Amanda: In my opinion, Montessori is just a different way of learning. It’s more about the individual child learning what they need to learn. Some children will work together. Some like to work individually. When they need help in any way, they’ll let us know and we sit down and help them.

Beth: The traditional classroom versus the Montessori classroom is totally different. In the Montessori classroom, students have rugs that they work on. They have their lesson on that rug. As they get finished with a lesson, they can get up, they can move, they can go.

Amanda: And in division we always start with our thousand.

Amanda: It’s really more of a follow-the-child path that we take.

Amanda: The hardest part about Montessori education is making sure all of the standards are mastered for all grade levels. We have to teach the same content as any other public school, I just think that we go further than the standards. the goal of Montessori is just teaching the whole child.

Dollie: Montessori is one of those situations where you almost have to live it before you understand it. To believe in the program you have to be a part of it.

Dollie: As we shifted from traditional to Montessori, I think the biggest impact is that our children have become independent thinkers and very good problem-solvers.

Amanda: We truly get to know the child. I watch kids grow from barely being able to read CBC words, to where they’re reading novels.

Amanda: Just seeing the full circle just come together is really amazing.

John: Montessori is very much in tune to what’s going on in today’s world now:
cooperative learning, helping your peers, learning at your own speed, being challenged. We’re creating kids that want to learn, but Montessori in itself,
to me, is not the answer. It’s taking advantage of that enthusiasm, that thirst for learning, in a great philosophical environment that lets the child thrive.

Latta Elementary School