Our Guest: Kathryn Ross
Show Notes
Kathryn Ross, Montessori educator, trainer, and master gardener, joins us to discuss the importance of connecting young children to the natural world. Today, as we observe the deterioration of our natural environment, this connection is more important than ever. Humans learn to love what they are most closely connected to, and that love can form the basis for necessary care – of our rivers and trees, the air we breathe, and the animals we share this planet with. We need our children to love our planet, as they are the ones who will be most impacted by the choices humans make.
But what does this look like in daily practice as a Montessorian?
- What are ways that a Montessori educator might prepare themselves in order to most effectively connect children with the natural world?
- How might a Montessori educator extend the prepared environment outside the classroom walls?
- What are specific ways that nature studies, specifically gardening studies, be incorporated into each of the Montessori curriculum areas?
- How are the Montessori biology materials best used? Are they enough?
- How might a busy teacher, or one who doesn’t know much about gardening, find help?
Kathryn Ross considers these questions and offers specific ideas about connecting young children in a Montessori setting to the natural world.
About our Guest
Kathryn Ross
The Institute for Educational Studies at Union University
Kathryn has been a Montessori educator for over 50 years. She received AMI training at the assistance-to-infancy level, and the 3-6 level, and also holds an AMS diploma at the primary level. She and her late husband founded the Mt. Sopris Montessori School in Carbondale, Colorado in 1982, where she taught for 25 years. She also taught in Philadelphia, PA, and has served as head of school at Children’s Garden Montessori School, in Denver, Colorado. She served as an instructor at the Montessori Education Center of the Rockies for over 20 years and also was part of the AMS faculty at Oklahoma City University, working with their sister program in Taipei, Taiwan.
Kathryn has a M.Ed. from Regis University with a focus on educational technology, as well as a M.Ed. in Montessori Integrative Learning from The Institute for Educational Studies (TIES) Her thesis for TIES won the AMS best Montessori-focused Master’s thesis in 2009.
Since retiring from daily Montessori classroom work, Kathryn has focused her energy on serving on the TIES faculty, and learning what she can about gardening. She is both a Master Composter and Master Gardener. She is currently developing a native plant and vegetable garden in her new home in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Resources
Websites:
The American Horticultual Society https://ahsgardening.org/ (provides information about Master Gardens)
Homegrown National Park Project https://www.homegrownnationalpark.org/ (an organization founded by Doug Tallamey to encourage people to grown native plants that will support insects and other animals)
Vermiculture (Worm Composting) https://compost.css.cornell.edu/worms/basics.html
Books:
Cerny, Julie A. (2020). The little gardener: Helping children connect with the natural world. Princeton Architectural Press.
Kahn, David, ed. (Summer 1992) The NAMTA Journal: “Rediscovering the outdoor environment: A Montessori approach.” NAMTA.
Kahn, David, ed. (Winter 2021). Montessori voices: Guided by nature. NAMTA.
Lingelbach. Jenepher, ed. (1986). Hands-on nature: Information and activities for exploring the environment with children. Vermont Institute of Natural Science.
Moore, Bibby. (1989). Growing with gardening: A twelve-month guide for therapy, recreation, and education. University of North Carolina Press.
Perry, Celma Pinho with Fedoroiwicz, Meg. (2001). The cosmic approach: A Montessori science curriculu 0-6 years old. MECA-Seton.
Russell, Helen Ross. (1990). Fifteen-minute field trips: A teacher’s guide to using the schoolgrounds for environmental studies. National Science Teacher’s Association.
Stone, Michael K. & Barlow, Zenobia. (2005). Ecological literacy: Educating our children for a sustainable world. Sierra Club Books.
Tallamy, Doug. (2021). Nature’s best hope: A new approach to conservation that starts in your yard. Timber Press.
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