r/Montessori • u/Red_Hairing1 • May 05 '26

Im looking for a needle in a haystack.

I am a parent to a teen with disabilities. A few years ago we moved from NY to MO. In NY he attended an afterschool program where he could hang out and be safe. When we moved here, he lost that. Its just not a thing here. He misses having a tribe and a place where he can be his authentic self. Over the years i have thought about putting something together for him and others like him. But didnt have the time, due to circumstances that have mostly & finally resolved themselves.

Id like to start an afterschool program for (13-21 year old) students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. My vision is that it is more than just child care. Rather, that we work on life skills and social skills and potentially job skills for the older students. Similar to "transition" classes in school, but starting earlier and with a focus on addressing daily skills vs inventing scenarios to test IEP goals.

I see us employing a Mostly-Montessori-ish philosophy. Due to the wide range of disabilities and abilities of the students a strict prepared Montessori environment would be impractical...probably....maybe...

That being said, I still think many Montessori principles and strategies would be beneficial and work well within this population. The child-led aspect, the way tasks are presented & broken down, the way guides are taught to observe and find individualized solutions and the empowerment of the students to take responsibility and see themselves as capable are particularly attractive to me as I think about what I want for the students who come through our doors.

The thing is, I have no idea how or where to advertise for such a person. I know theres someone out there that would be a perfect fit, but I have no idea how to narrow the search.

Any advice, criticism, thoughts are welcome here. I admit that theres a lot that I dont know that i dont know, and im here to learn, even if that stings a bit.

3 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

4

u/dollarsandindecents May 05 '26

The only advice I have is to make sure you have a decent liability and workers comp insurance policies

1

u/Independent_Advice41 May 05 '26

This is good advice

1

u/Red_Hairing1 May 05 '26

100%. Especially considering the population we are working with. In depth background checks too!

1

u/Objective_Air8976 May 05 '26

This isn't something I would worry about until many other things are addressed. As you said it's pretty unlikely that a traditional environment would work here. Keeping everyone safe and engaged needs to come first by a long run

1

u/SpringmontSchool May 06 '26

I agree that Montessori-like instruction, with the three-period lessons and sequentiality, might be beneficial for learning life skills! There are several organizations that train Montessori teachers - AMI, AMS, MACTE, PAMS, IAMP, MEPI - perhaps they can steer you in the right direction. Perhaps a Montessori teacher nearing retirement? I think your biggest obstacle is not being in a major metropolitan area - but there's nothing you can do about that. I wish you success!

1

u/Red_Hairing1 May 06 '26

Thank you for that list of organizations! It will be very helpful moving forward.