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SIMS

| Montessori Teacher Training in Phoenix, AZ

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Featuring our Graduates – Paige Isom – Class of 2018-2019

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Featuring Paige Isom

3-6 Class of 2018-2019

Where are you now?

Mis Manos Montessori School in Tucson, AZ

What position do you currently hold?

School Director

What did you enjoy most about training?

I feel like I received all of the tools and training I needed to become a successful teacher at an AMI school. I return again and again to my albums to refresh my training and understanding and re-reading my lecture notes opens new doors to do more research to learn and to take a deeper dive into Maria Montessori’s amazing thought process. Had she lived longer I imagine she would have addressed every stage of development into old age.

The integrity of the teaching that I received at SIMS is reinforced when I get together with other AMI guides in other schools or through continuing education activities through an AMI training program.

How has SIMS benefited you in the last 10 years?

I became a teacher and learned how much I love helping children learn to trust themselves and to grow in confidence and self-knowledge. Training changed my life in a lot of ways, because it changed my career direction and forced me to slow down and look at my own growth and understanding of life. How we treat children is how we should treat everyone: meet them where they are and appreciate their unique approaches to life.

Featuring our Graduates – Lauren Franchek – 3-6 Class of 2011-2012

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Featuring Lauren Franchek

3-6 Class of 2011-2012

Where are you now?

Creo Montessori – A Montessori Community

What position do you currently hold?

Assistant Head of School

What did you enjoy most about training? 

Training at SIMS was the ultimate gift. I embarked on a transformational Montessori journey, and it gave me a deep introspective outlook on all aspects of life in general. SIMS made me a better educator and a better human. 

After completing my AMI Primary training ten years ago, I have been fortunate to have completed the Elementary Orientation and the A to I Orientation trainings at SIMS as well as a potpourri of continued education courses. Having completed AMI trainings at other U.S. training centers as well, I can attest that SIMS is unlike any other training center. The benevolent yet prolific training team at SIMS creates space for safety and belonging; students become their best selves for the children they serve. 

How has SIMS benefited you in the last 10 years?

Beyond receiving a top-notch AMI training that propelled me into a fulfilling career as a teacher and administration, I found community at SIMS. My training buddies have become lifelines throughout my teaching career and administrative career. I feel that I have an entire community of diverse yet kindred spirited professionals in my corner. 

After completing my initial training at SIMS, I spent seven rewarding years as a Primary Guide and helped to pioneer Creo School. As the years seemingly flew by, I found myself on the precipice of infusing Montessori theory and practice into adult development and dove into the world of leadership. I never expected to find a career in a community imbued with such passion and embrace of Dr. Montessori’s message: “We can only better humanity through the child.” I attribute my success to the strong foundation I constructed at SIMS. 

Nimal Vaz Arizona Legacy Scholarship Fund

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AMI Teacher training in the Southwest has a long history. In Arizona, we owe thanks to AMI Trainer Nimal Vaz. Nimal received her AMI Primary Diploma in 1964. As Montessori schools began to spread throughout the United States, Nimal Vaz responded to the need for teachers by helping to organize AMI training courses in Arizona. She founded the Montessori Education Center of Arizona in 1980 and acted as Director of Training and AMI Primary Trainer until 2006. During her 15 years as a teacher trainer, she directed 30 courses that developed approximately 325 Montessori teachers.

In celebration of Nimal’s contribution to the Montessori community in Arizona, a scholarship fund has been established in her name. The principal aim of this scholarship fund is to support Arizona residents seeking to advance their Montessori education.

All the money received from donations goes directly towards tuition for recipients of the scholarship. Every donation, of any amount, helps SIMS students realize their potential. Please click below to make a donation. If you wish for your donation to be anonymous, please make a note on the donation page.

Thanks you so much for considering our fund!

Donate here!

Spotlight on Tuition Sponsorships – One way to fund your Montessori Training

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Students:

Did you know that there are schools willing to contract with students and training centers to cover the cost of tuition? This is the time of year that schools are starting to look for teachers to invest in for their upcoming academic years.

The details of each sponsorship will vary from school to school, so you’ll want to reach out to the school and see what their terms will be.

We hope that all interested students will seriously consider researching sponsorship opportunities available to them. It is a valuable source of financial assistance in addition to scholarships, payment plans, and private loans. Even if you don’t see a local school listed, you should reach out to schools in your area and let them know of your interest in Montessori training and your willingness to work with them in exchange for a tuition sponsorship.

You can see a full listing of the sponsorships schools have requested we advertise on our sponsorship page.

School Admins:

We’d love to partner with your school! Students at the Southwest Institute of Montessori Studies are well-supported and well-prepared, with  dedicated time for classroom observation and practice teaching during their course of study.

Montessori schools across the country trust us to train their chosen candidates at SIMS. Many of our students have experience as assistants in Montessori classrooms, and are preparing to move into lead teacher roles.

When you send a teacher to SIMS, upon successful completion of our training course, they will have met the AMI standards, and must have demonstrated a deep understanding of educational theory, child development, observation techniques, and use and presentation of the Montessori materials. No other Montessori training comes close to providing such a systematic, rigorous course of study. It pays off: by hiring and training AMI-certified Montessori teachers, your school will be providing the best, most authentic Montessori experience available to children, and will appeal to parents looking for the rigor of the AMI standard.

Any school that sponsors a student for training with SIMS receives $500 off the student’s tuition.

If you’re interested in sponsoring a student, please fill out this form with more information so we can list your school on our sponsorship page. We encourage students to apply for sponsorships directly so you can screen potential candidates and find the right fit for your school.

Indigenous Land Acknowledgement

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The Southwest Institute of Montessori Studies is located in modern-day Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona, which is on the ancestral lands of the Akimel O’odham tribe and before that the Hohokam people. This place where we live and work has been and continues to be the home of indigenous peoples since time immemorial. We honor the elders of both past and present, as well as future generations, of the Hohokam peoples and the Akimel O’odham nation. We express gratitude for their stewardship of the land we currently occupy.

Prehistorically, the Hohokam people inhabited a large part of central and southern Arizona. Their descendants, the Akimel O’odham tribe (River People) is also known as the Upper Pima, and today is part of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

Indigenous ancestors of these groups developed the most advanced canal system in North America to provide irrigation water to villages and agricultural lands here in the harsh Sonoran Desert environment. Hundreds of miles of canals were engineered and dug by hand. These systems allowed them to engage in canal farming and produce an ample supply of food. Some of these historic canal courses are still utilized in the Phoenix Valley today. We acknowledge this important infrastructure that early colonizers and modern day populations have benefitted from.

As educators we acknowledge and assume the responsibility to share this important aspect of our local history with our students. We must help them to develop an appreciation for those who came before us and whose territory we now occupy. We must encourage our students, and ourselves, to pursue a journey of learning to better know and understand our current modern-day indigenous neighbors, with the goal of developing an understanding of how we can be better allies.

AMI Message of Solidarity

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There is a roar right now, a rage against injustice. How could there not be?

The recent murder in the United States of George Floyd, has served as a clarion call to unite us. AMI stands with its partners both in the US and around the world in denouncing discrimination, exclusion and all of the social inequalities that deprive adults and children of their rights to a fulfilling life.

Right now, the world is experiencing extreme forms of exclusion, inequity and discrimination. The pandemic, in rich and poor countries alike, has revealed the suffering of the most marginalised: the millions who have neither the resources nor the standing in society to protect them in this time of crisis.

How should we, as Montessorians act during this time? What should we say? What should we do to express our solidarity?

We must stand shoulder to shoulder with the discriminated and the excluded. Martin Luther King reminded us that “all life is interrelated…whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” His words encapsulate our belief as Montessorians. Respect for all humanity is integral to our philosophy. It is the wellspring of our values.

Education is the pathway to a better world; education that includes global citizenship, love and appreciation of others and of our planet. It is a fundamental human right and we must continue to work to make it available to all. In doing so, we must learn to become aware of bias, injustice and systemic discrimination and ensure that there is no unconscious bias, no inadvertent discrimination in the work that we do, with whomever we work. Bias, discrimination and exclusion have no place in Montessori’s philosophy, and nor, therefore, do they in ours.

Children are not born prejudiced, racist or phobic. They are taught to be so. Prejudice is born of the environment and it is an environment which we can all influence profoundly. Maria Montessori worked all her life to bring about a radical change in the way we view human relations. She believed that we must strive “to awaken in humankind’s spirit a sense of gratitude towards others.”

In that spirit of gratitude and love let us act together. Let us aspire to become better partners and stronger allies. Let us seek, identify and transform the hidden prejudices and implicit biases that we carry. Let us listen more, learn from those fighting the hardest battles and work together for real change.

 

Lynne Lawrence                                                                  Philip O’Brien
AMI Executive Director                                                    AMI President

                                          

Bringing Montessori Training to You!

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Flexible distance learning models offer authentic AMI Montessori teacher training

We know that the everyone’s lives have been abruptly affected by the Coronavirus and the restrictions that have been put in place. That is why at SIMS we have adapted quickly! For the first time we will offer AMI Montessori training in a blended distance-learning format.

 

The 3-summer courses scheduled to begin this year at both the Primary and Elementary levels will be offered in a distance learning format.  Students will be able to take advantage of the internationally-recognized gold standard of AMI Montessori teacher training from the safety of their own home.  Students will still have live, direct contact with trainers this summer, and receive all of the same course content traditionally delivered in our training.  We will maintain our mission to honor Dr. Montessori’s legacy with the same high quality and standards that are expected of an AMI course.

 

So what does this look like?   Most days there will be live virtual sessions via Zoom with the trainer.  Some of these virtual sessions will include discussions with the whole group about theory topics.  Others will be focused on live demonstrations of materials.  Attendance will be tracked during these sessions. In addition to the live virtual sessions, there will be supplemental online course content for students to work through independently, to complete lessons and submit assignments.  A daily schedule will be provided to students to show when virtual sessions are scheduled.

 

Getting hands-on practice with the materials has always been a critical aspect of the training experience.  For students who live locally, the training center will be open for limited numbers of students at a time to come in to work with the materials, and the trainer will be on hand to guide these sessions.  For those who are not local, this practice can be done at a school in their area.  Students can either join a Zoom session to be supervised by the trainer, or record and upload videos of themselves practicing materials. (Note: If you don’t already have an established relationship with a local school, we will strive to assist you in making arrangements with one in your community.)   In all cases, students will be responsible for keeping track of practice hours and materials practiced.

 

We are hopeful that schools will be re-opened this fall and students will still have the opportunity to complete observation and practice teaching requirements in classrooms.

 

One benefit of this distance-learning format is that students from outside of Arizona will save on travel and the temporary residence expenses associated with attending the training in person in Phoenix!

 

If you are interested in pursuing this unique opportunity, please connect with us!  We are happy to answer any questions that you have.  Or, click here to apply now!

Our response to COVID-19

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Greetings to our Montessori Community and Everyone who has Expressed an Interest in Montessori Training! 

We have been carefully monitoring the information and guidelines being made available regarding the COVID-19 virus. In order to do our part in the efforts to flatten the curve and impact of this virus, we have made the decision to cancel all scheduled workshops until the fall.

The health of our students, staff and community is our first priority!

We want to reassure everyone that we are committed to all of our training options for our summer and academic year courses. Of course, we will continue to monitor the situation and have been granted authority by AMI to be flexible in the delivery of courses if necessary.  At the present time, we are live streaming course presentations for our current students.  As we get closer to the start of the summer courses, if the situation deems necessary, we can continue this practice.

We are committed to providing you frequent updates via email and social media on our plans to respond to on this situation as it evolves over the coming weeks.

We are thankful for the engagement by everyone in our Montessori community. Such engagement is encouraging because it demonstrates our ability to come together during this challenging time to determine appropriate next steps.

We hope that you all stay healthy, stay home as much as possible, and be kind to each other.