Schools

Bright From the Start Commissioner Visits Roswell School

Bobby Cagle toured a local Montessori school.

Village Montessori School in Roswell was visited by Bobby Cagle, commissioner of Bright from the Start recently.

Cagle was joined by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL), and two of the executive management team, Dr. Laura Johns, Quality Initiatives director and Janine Joseph, Quality Rated manager, along with a select group of Montessori leadership.

The visit was part of a tour of exemplary Montessori schools chosen in part for their participation in the “Quality Rated” pilot program Cagle has implemented throughout the state of Georgia. The innovative program is designed to recognize schools and child care centers that exceed licensing requirements.

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The professional group Montessori Administrators of Georgia (MAG) has worked collaboratively with Bright From the Start as it works to improve the level of performance in Early Childhood Education. Metro Atlanta features the largest community of Montessori Schools recognized by the Association Montessori International (AMI) in the United States.

Cara Friedline, director of Village Montessori School, praised Cagle’s leadership by saying, “Bright from the Start is finding ways to honor the Montessori philosophy of mixed-aged groups, scientifically designed materials and honoring independence at a young age.”

Find out what's happening in Roswellwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Sixth grade students Courtney Bass, Hannah Knight and Colm Pettelier led the tours of the campus, which includes a large outdoor classroom featuring gardens, a composting site and an agriculture project. First grade student Sean O’Brien demonstrated a science experiment measuring the weight of different liquids. Kindergarten student Audrey Hunt demonstrated mathematics, showing place value and addition into the 1000’s.

Cagle said he left Village Montessori School with a renewed appreciation for the Montessori Method of learning.

“It was a pleasure to visit Village Montessori to observe first hand the intentionality and respect for the child that is at the core of Dr. Maria Montessori’s pedagogy,” he said. “We look forward to having the Montessori community participate in Quality Rated and in our continuing discussion regarding the alignment of Montessori practices with Georgia’s ongoing quality initiatives.”

For information about Village Montessori, call 770-552-0834. For more information about Bright From the Start, visit the website.


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