Dr. Maria Montessori addressed the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1950. She stated, "It is the young people, the children, upon whom we may base our hopes of building a better world since they can give us more than we have today, and more than we, at one time had, but have since lost.”
From the beginning, Montessori education has had a focus on world peace. At The Children's House peace education is woven into many daily activities. Even the youngest children in our school, the Nido infants, begin learning to be part of their community in a calm, peaceful environment. The Young Children’s Community (YCC) learners begin to explore the world together and contribute to their group by helping to clean, prepare snacks, and assist classmates- along with other responsibilities. Once in the Primary classroom, children begin to look at the world outside our campus through maps, books, and oral stories, while continuing to work on grace and courtesy skills. The Elementary learners begin to go out into our community, learning how to help by delivering meals and collecting food for local food banks, partaking in environmental clean-up days, and visiting the elderly- among other activities. All of this is the beginning framework for creating lasting peace.
During their final year of Elementary, sixth-year students have the opportunity to act as UN delegates in the Montessori Model United Nations program, where they collaborate with students from five continents! In September, they begin studying their selected country and they take that country's perspective in solving some of the world's biggest issues. This year, for example, our learners looked for solutions to issues such as the implementation of the United Nations convention to combat desertification, empowering youth in inclusive and sustainable food systems, and disaster risk reduction, among other topics. The learners spend many hours researching and writing position papers for their topic. Once they have laid out their country's position they write speeches to be delivered in their committee sessions, which are then shared with the Secretary General of the United Nations. This is huge work- the work of creating a pathway to world peace! There are no awards for the best position paper or highest quality speech, it is truly a collaborative experience. We are raising the leaders of tomorrow. I encourage you to learn more about how the Montessori Model United Nations helps students take part in our global community.