Families

Parents are at the core of LMMS. The founding group consisted of elementary and preschool parents who desired a Montessori middle school option. Parents were integral to the project and are wholly responsible for its conception. This involvement, however, did not end with the opening of LMMS. LMMS fully expects that parents participate in school life as important support for students and classroom teachers as well as work as school volunteers and/or board members.

As a criterion for admission to LMMS, families sign a contract agreeing to twenty hours of volunteer time per family each school year. These volunteer hours may occur in many contexts including classroom support, community awareness projects, grounds work, and instructional support. LMMS feels that an involved parent is one who is aware of his or her child’s educational process and supportive of the learning community.

Within parent class meetings, the school may offer some training on topics such as adolescent development, Montessori philosophy and classroom organization. These meetings serve to orient the parent in the Montessori middle classroom, to assist in the parental understanding of the important work of adolescents, as well as to encourage participation in the learning process. Montessori work can sometimes feel intangible and unfamiliar, so these trainings will serve as the place where parents can begin to understand the work of the Montessori middle student.