“We cannot make a genius. We can only give to each individual the chance to fulfill his potential possibilities.”

-Maria Montessori

Dear Friend of Children’s House:

Who is a Montessori Child? A Montessori Child is: a leader, a believer in justice, an independent thinker, a person of compassion and empathy, a problem solver, an enthusiastic learner, a creative force, a confident child.

Montessori children grow up to become novelists and writers, entrepreneurs, social workers, doctors, actors, musicians, chefs, editors, artists, teachers, architects…whatever they want to be! And they change the world in ways both big and small. Montessori alumni like Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos have all credited their Montessori education with teaching them to be self-directed, self-motivated learners. Nobel Prize-winning novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez credits Montessori for unlocking his love of reading. When you support Montessori children, you are supporting the future.

What is the Montessori philosophy? Dr. Maria Montessori’s method embraces the whole child and his or her natural curiosity and love of learning. It believes children can reach their full potential with the freedom to work in a carefully prepared, engaging environment using developmentally appropriate materials. Learning becomes a happy experience that children, and later adults, seek out not because they have to but because they want to.

This year, Children’s House celebrates thirty years of Montessori education. To commemorate our thirtieth anniversary, we have created a goal to raise $30,000 for thirty years of Montessori in midcoast Maine.

What would $30,000 do for CHMS? For starters, $30,000 would cover the majority of our Tuition Assistance Program budget. The number of requests we have had for tuition assistance has increased dramatically in the last year, yet we remain committed to offering aid to as many families as possible because we believe Montessori education should be available to everyone. Currently over 40 percent of CHMS families receive some form of tuition assistance. Please help us to continue to support our families as we look ahead to the next thirty years.

Any amount you are able to give is appreciated. You can pledge a monthly or quarterly donation, or make a one-time gift. For your convenience, you can use google checkout, below, to make your gift. Checks should be made payable to CHMS and sent to our address, 58 Elm Street, Camden, ME 04843. All donations are tax-deductible.

With gratitude,

Lauria O’Connell

Chair, CHMS Board of Directors