20 Feb Establishing Peace in Education

Maria Montessori once said: “Establishing lasting peace is the work of education.” At Meadow Montessori Schools, we pride ourselves on teaching every child the importance of peace, harmony, and balance between students, educators, and the world at large.

Peace education is the cornerstone of Montessori education. As we’re bombarded with news of conflict and unrest, our job is to ensure your children are taught the importance of peace through education. By instilling peace into our children, we can create peace for the world at large.

Grace & Courtesy

In Montessori environments, our educators support children as they learn to function as part of a community. This begins with teaching children the importance of a connection with self and connection with others, through Grace and Courtesy lessons.

Grace and Courtesy lessons can take many different forms. Through the teachings of Grace and Courtesy, children are taught how to respect each other, their peers, and the world around them. These simple lessons can either be carefully planned or demonstrated in an impromptu fashion through everyday interaction.

By modeling peaceful behaviors, whether through intentional skits or casual interaction, our educators can demonstrate the importance of courtesy to children. These lessons can range from simple activities such as how to politely blow one’s nose or saying “excuse me” while passing another student, to more challenging experiences, such as how to achieve compromise or calmly express one’s emotions.

When repeated over time, these small lessons teach children how to live in harmony with others and conduct themselves gracefully. They allow our students to manage impulses, practice kindness, and use their words to resolve conflict.

Multicultural Night

In the springtime at Meadow Montessori, another way we establish peace in our classrooms is through our annual Multicultural Night. This special event teaches children the importance of celebrating the differences between the many cultures that make up our global community.

This event is a favorite of most of our families. Each classroom represents a different continent, with our instructors going all-out with decorations, activities, crafts, and games for students to enjoy. Parents bring food from their native countries, creating one big multicultural potluck. This teaches children the importance of global peace, and our different backgrounds are what make us so special.

UN International Day of Peace

In further emphasizing the importance of global peace, our classrooms celebrate the United Nations’ International Day of Peace. Each September, we look forward to singing a song of peace with Montessori schools from around the world. Students learn the song and rehearse ahead of time, then on September 21st at singing time, students from around the world log on and sing together.

This event gives students a sense of what it means to be part of a bigger, global community, and feel a connection with students from all across the world. Learn more about Sing Peace Around the World here.

These events, combined with daily demonstrations of peace, grace, and courtesy, are how we establish peace through education. Teaching children how to experience inner peace, peace with other students, and peace with the world, is of vital importance. It demonstrates to children that we are all part of a connected global community.

To learn more about our curriculum, please contact Meadow Montessori today!