What parents have to say about Autana ...
By Dale B. Davies:
My two daughters attended Autana for two years prior to our move to Pasadena, CA. What a GREAT school that was. The teachers, Miss Patti and Miss Raquel are extraordinary women and SUCH good teachers.
My girls really came to understand and appreciate the value of the scientific method as well as learning to read, write and do math. Clearly they developed a love of learning that they still have today. My sister-in-law has been a Montessori teacher in Jackson, Wyoming for 25 years. When she came to visit me in Boulder, she spent an entire morning at Autana at my request. When she came home she told me I had no idea how lucky I was to have found Autana and to have gotten my girls in there. I agree with her completely.
Honestly, the hardest part of our relocation to California is that we have not found a school public or private that can hold up to the standards set at Autana. Both our girls complain to us about the lack of academics where they now attend kindergarten. In this whole year they will not go beyond what they already learned in pre-school at Autana.
I have not even touched on the topic of language acquisition which is HUGE. My daughters are fluent in Spanish partially due to their time at Autana. The combination of the Montessori method and second language acquisition is fantastic and something we are all grateful for.
Future students will be very lucky to attend.
Dale B. Davies
By Melissa Lockman:
My daughter has been at Autana for almost three years now. We love this school so so very much and will be opting to keep her there for kindergarten. What we love about this school:
1.Two extremely talented, qualified and kind women founded and run the school.
2. The two teachers are highly committed to the Montessori method and yet never "lose the forest through the trees" such that the "work" of Montessori is fully infused with fun and with genuine love for the children and the growth and learning of every child.
3. The two teachers truly bring their heart and their humanity to work every single day. When my daughter was a toddler and I was looking at preschools, I knew I needed to find a preschool where I felt that my children were not just "housed" for the day, but actually loved. These two teachers love my child. And my child feels that love. In three years of dropping off my gal at school, I have never felt unsure of her being safe and nurtured and loved.
4. The teachers are trained not only in Montessori but they bring many other important methodologies and theories to their work as educators. My own work is as a parent-infant/child therapist and my standards for what I want out of a teacher are high! Here are some of the bases of knowledge that these two teachers bring to the school:
Both teachers are knowledgeable in Attachment Theory and Neurobiology.
They follow a program called Nurture the Heart.
They are committed to a "Peace" curriculum.
They interweave service into the curriculum
They are committed to an "earth-focused" curriculum"---getting the kids out on hikes and to Open Space, growing vegetables in the school yard, etc.