Hello Montessori Families! On behalf of the Montessori staff, I am excited to both welcome you back and to introduce myself to you as we get started with this 2020-21 school year. My name is Mr. VanAllen, and I will be serving you as your principal for the upcoming year. Last year, I served as the assistant principal for Bennett Elementary. As you are likely aware, the Montessori school has moved into the former Bennett Elementary building, and we will continue to share our space with the Felician Children’s Center. The building has been undergoing renovations, updates, and improvements over the summer to offer a safe, terrific learning environment for your student. Our dedicated staff have been diligently working throughout the summer to establish policies, procedures, and plans that will provide for a safe return to school. A team of administrators, teachers, facilities staff, and other vital employees worked together to design and implement a plan that will return students to learning, while doing everything they can to keep the students and staff safe in all JPS buildings. For the upcoming school year, JPS will be using the “Flipped Classroom” model for instruction. In this approach, new content will be provided online that students can access at any time. Their work at home will be to engage with the content, complete assigned activities, and to think of what questions they have. Then, in class, the students will practice the skills presented and work on projects and activities related to the content. This method ties in nicely with the Montessori approach as it is student-centered, and emphasizes individualized instruction. Cohort A will come to school on Mondays and Tuesdays. Cohort B will attend on Thursdays and Fridays. For in-person instruction, we will be utilizing a hybrid model of instruction.
