We champion the power of Montessori at every stage of life and in challenging circumstances with outreach programmes in the UK and abroad.

Aid to Life

The Maria Montessori Institute is a founding partner of the Aid to Life Initiative. This initiative is founded on the idea that children develop optimally when they are brought up in an environment that supports their natural development, with an adult who understands how to connect them to positive activity and then allows them enough time to grow and develop according to their own pace and rhythm. It aims to give parents clear, simple, straightforward advice in a format that is easy to understand and apply. For more information visit www.aidtolife.org. Please help us to continue this project by making a donation below.

Parent Programme – Montessori in the Home

As part of our mission to champion the power of Montessori our programme for UK parents, carers and professionals working with young families shows how Montessori can nurture young children at home. This free of charge programme will provide parents and professionals with practical parenting strategies and advice on the home environment. The programme will be delivered via six online sessions. It is open to any parent or professional based in the UK, though we are particularly interested to support those who cannot access our other courses for financial reasons.

Educateurs sans Frontières

Educateurs sans Frontières® (EsF) is a division of the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) dedicated to assisting children through the Montessori approach to education. EsF is Montessori without Borders© and is committed to working with individuals, families, communities, organisations, and governments to champion the rights, education and welfare of children worldwide.

The goal for ESF is to identify innovative educational projects worldwide that are based on Montessori principles, and support them with mentorship, resources, and/or funding, guiding them towards sustainability, expansion, and replication.

You can help by starting your own initiative, donating books or materials to an existing project, by supporting a child in another country to go to school, by supporting the training of a Montessori teacher or by fundraising. No effort is too small to contribute towards changing the lives of children for a better and more peaceful world.

Corner of Hope

As an Educateurs sans Frontieres (EsF) initiative, the Corner of Hope is a pilot initiative, demonstrating how Montessori can support the most vulnerable communities such as those in refugee, transit and Internally Displaced Person Camps.

Its aim is self-reliance not dependence, community, not school, self-ownership and control, dignity and self-worth, which all play an important role in overcoming the effects of trauma experienced by the inhabitants of the camp. It has the added advantage of building for the future and creating transferable skills that will accompany both adults and children wherever their final destination may be.

10 years into existence, the Corner of Hope school in New Canaan is thriving and has become a centre for the community. A second location has opened at a nearby location in Kisima at the request of the community and, the school opened its doors for the ages 6-12. Around 1000 children in the age group 3-6 have received high-quality Montessori education in the Corner of Hope locations of New Canaan and Kisima. In addition, the 6-12 classroom has served around 100 children since it opened its doors in late 2018. A total of 102 teachers have received Montessori training through Corner of Hope. Corner of Hope has become a model for inspiration and replication, demonstrating a strong foundation in community building, skilled and motivated teachers and flourishing children. 

Corner of Hope has achieved the following project objectives since its establishment:

  • To create a school within the IDP camp;
  • To train 102 teachers with sufficient knowledge to work in other schools;
  • To engage the local community in all aspects of the process;
  • To seed similar projects in other regions;
  • All building, organising, teaching to be done by the camp inhabitants with only a small amount of external expertise;
  • To provide access to high-quality Montessori education for the New Canaan and Kisima community;
  • To expand the school’s capacity for the ages 6-12;
  • To show the potential of quality Montessori education in under-resourced communities.

The future aims of Corner of Hope are as follows:

  • To underpin the impact of Montessori in under-resourced communities with scientific research;
  • To inspire more initiatives and offer a model for replication;
  • To work towards sustainability through the exploration of revenue-generating activities.

Inspired by the Corner of Hope model, several new initiatives have sprouted. Tented children’s houses have been established in the remote Samburu region. Two former Corner of Hope teachers work as mentor teachers at the Samburu schools, applying the knowledge and experience gained at Corner of Hope to guide the newly trained Samburu teachers. Furthermore, as a response to a request for Montessori education in the under-resourced East Pokot region, an endeavour has started to train people from the Pokot community and establish Montessori environments in East Pokot. Three trainees from East Pokot started their Montessori training in January 2021 with more expected to start soon. 

Although we have come so far, there is still much to do. For example, there is the consistent maintenance of the school building, the constant repair of Montessori materials, outfits for the children and always the need for more trained teachers.

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