Global Montessori Training at MST

MST hosted two September weekends of training by the Montessori Institute of Tokyo (MIT) on the Grove Campus. Fifty educators attended the sessions to fulfill their Elementary Assistant Adjunct Training requirements. Though MIT, the largest Montessori training center in Japan, normally conducts programs in Japanese, these training sessions were conducted in English, a first for the institute. 

As a major international destination for trainees who want to observe and practice Montessori pedagogy, MST is a natural partner for MIT as they expand their programs to include an international audience.

Sequoia teacher Jocelyn Saito also participated in the training, expanding her Montessori knowledge into the next plane of development. 

Sunshine Homecoming

The training was led by Anna Camila, an AMI Trainer from Mexico, and overseen by Setsuko Miura, Director of Training at MIT. “The training required us to be in a prepared environment for 6-12 year-olds and the Grove Campus offered an ideal environment for the adult learners,” she explained. 

Setsuko (standing) with her pre-Hazel class.

Setsuko is a former MST Sunshine teacher, here from 2006 to 2012. She taught the Sunshine West class, now known as Hazel. “It also gave me a nostalgic and sweet feeling about going back to where I had started working as a Montessori guide years before I became an AMI 3-6 trainer. MST is forever my home and it is always nice to return to work with my dear colleagues and friends,” she mused.

Micro-economy in Action

Eucalyptus students worked shifts for the Coffee Wave, their micro-economy project that raises funds through the sale of coffee and pastries which are made in the middle school’s kitchen. Setusko expressed gratitude for the service. “The adolescent students provided us with delicious baked snacks, coffee, and tea which all of us really enjoyed! We were so comfortable and well taken care of!”

Wind Edward Kim