Namaste Montessori School

March 27, 2025School Eventscaregivers, Community, Montessori, parent involvement, primary

Bring A Caregiver to School Day!

March 2025: We are excited to bring back a wonderful family event to our school calendar this year – Bring a Caregiver to School Day! This February and March, children in our Primary program invited in a parent or caregiver for a tour and a visit, in which they could show them some of their favorite activities. It is a …

February 28, 2025UncategorizedBook Sale, Community, literacy, Montessori

Our “We Love Books” Book Sale was a Success!

Each year we work with a publisher to hold a “We Love Books” book sale in the month of February. Our intention is to both help parents and caregivers find high quality reading materials, and to earn credit for our school library. The publisher must have books for all the ages of children in our programs. This year we partnered …

February 21, 2025School Eventsalternative education, child development, Community, elementary, literacy, Montessori, primary

Montessori Education and Literacy – Panel Discussion

Join us for a presentation of current literacy research and its application in the Montessori curriculum. Bruce Howlett, reading specialist and author of “Sparking the Reading Shift” with join us. Additionally, our Primary and Elementary teachers, Bridgid Beames, Lauren Lougher, and Lex Thompson will be part of our panel. Learn more about why some children read easily and some find …

November 18, 2024School Eventsalternative education, Community, Montessori, Music and Art Education

Namaste Fall Festival 2024

Despite the chill, Namaste families gathered for a fun-filled afternoon of games, activities, and treats early this November. The annual festival was larger than ever with the addition of a paper plane launching area and a timed obstacle course. For the last 4 years the toddler, primary, and elementary families plan and gather for this fall festival to build community …

September 22, 2024School Eventsalternative education, child development, Community, elementary, Montessori

Upper Elementary Annual Camping Trip

Each year, the upper elementary heads out on a fall two-night camping adventure to an area state park. This trip offers valuable experience planning, preparing, and packing, as well as a opportunities to cook meals, explore the area, and bond with peers. Before the camping trip, the students decided on meals and went on a field trip to Wegmans to …

September 9, 2024School Eventsalternative education, child development, Community, elementary, Montessori, primary

Namaste Celebrates 20 Years of Serving Children and Families

The Namaste community gathered to celebrate 20 years of excellent early-childhood education with food, music, activities, and memories! Many current and former families joined the festivities and offered their congratulations. Namaste sponsored free carousel rides for visitors to the park for the day. History Bridgid and Stanley Beames founded Namaste Montessori School 20 years ago, in August of 2004. The …

July 2, 2024School Eventsalternative education, Community, Montessori

Ithaca Fest Parade

Each year the elementary students help design and build a float for the Ithaca Fest parade. This year the Ithaca Festival theme was “Let the Sunshine In!” and our float was colorful, with flowers and butterflies! We had record turnout for our little school, with many alumni and families walking with us. Making a parade float is no easy task. …

June 30, 2024School Events, School Projectsalternative education, child development, Community, elementary, Montessori, Music and Art Education, technology

Elementary Annual City Trip for 5th and 6th Years

Each Spring, our 5th and 6th year elementary students plan a field trip to a nearby city. This year the students chose Philadelphia and planned for a very busy three days of activities. The activities included a visit to the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Museum for a private tour and art lesson. The students visited the Philadelphia Mint to …

June 23, 2024School Eventsalternative education, child development, Community, elementary, Montessori, Music and Art Education, primary

Spring Festival

What a joy to be together as a community at our annual spring festival! Families spread blankets across the lawn at Jacksonville Community Park and watched the children’s performances. The spring festival is an opportunity for the children to share songs, rhythms, and dances from their music classes with their families. It is also an opportunity for our community to …

June 18, 2024School Projectsalternative education, Careers, child development, Community, elementary, Montessori, Science

Making Bread From Seed to Loaf

Our elementary students learned about the growing of wheat and milling of flour, the creation of sourdough starters, and the kneading, shaping, and baking of bread this spring! With guidance and support from staff from Wide Awake Bakery and Farmer Ground Flour, the children enjoyed in-class visits and field trips to gain hand-on experiences with the processes of farming grain …

March 19, 2024School Projectschild development, Community, literacy, Montessori, primary

Thank You for Making our Book Sale a Success!

We are grateful for all the people that participated in our “We Love Books!” Barefoot Books, Book sale last month! With the credit we earned, we were able to purchase some beautiful books for our classrooms. To fit with the Montessori theme of Grace and Courtesy and building community, we selected some sweet short stories. These books included short chapter …

January 23, 2024School Events, School ProjectsCommunity, elementary, Montessori, robotics, technology

The Elementary Robotics Team Wins First Place at the First Lego League Competition

The Namaste Elementary First Lego League Robotics Team, The Tech Animals, won first place in a FLL qualifying tournament. They competed in with 22 other teams from the area. The event took place in Auburn, NY on Saturday January 20, 2024. Tech Animals will move on to compete in the Fingerlakes Regional Tournament in Buffalo on February 10, 2024. From the …

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