The Children's Place Montessori School was founded in 1998 by the mother-daughter team of Beverly and Jennifer Richards. They knew that with a Montessori approach they could build a school that neither expected young children to be miniature adults, nor minimized children's remarkable, inherent abilities and love of learning about the world around them. The school opened with 4 part-time students and a shared vision of an environment that nurtures and supports the very best in each child. As our first year progressed we had a full, bustling classroom of happy 3, 4 and 5 year olds. Three years later the school expanded to include a location just 4 blocks from the original site. Here we were able to add a small toddler program for students 18 months 3 years who were not yet ready for a 3-6 classroom. We retained the original location however, and in the fall of 2002 we opened our elementary class there. Once again we started with only 4 students (3 of whom had joined us during our initial school year of 98/99!). This program now goes through the 6th grade and we are very pleased to say we have graduated from our elementary program, not only students from our very 1st year but also several students who were in our toddler room in its very first year. Through the years we have been blessed to add some very talented, hard-working teachers to our community. The majority of teachers at The Children's Place have been with us for more than 5 years and several were with us during our first transition from our original location. Beverly passed away unexpectedly several years back and having a loving, dedicated group of teachers has made all the difference. Despite our modest expansions we have remained a small Montessori school, which allows us a very special kind of school community. Our toddler room looks out upon our 3-6 room, within which all of our preschool children interact with, and learn from one another across this age group. Our elementary is truly a one room schoolhouse with students in grades 1-6 working and playing together the younger ones admiring and seeing the exciting work they have to look forward to, and the older ones remembering lessons from past years and recognizing how far they've come. This multi-age grouping combined with the social skills learning inherent in our curriculum, and having the same teacher/s for several years, creates a feeling that feels a great deal like family. When you are with family, learning is an adventure, not a chore.